Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1894-12-01
HEAVY DEFAlCATION.

The National shoe and Leather Bank OF
New York Victimized by Trusted Em-
| ploye, Whose Peculations, Running
Through Five Years, Amount to $751;.
900.
New YORK, Nov. 25.-Through the
dishonesty of Samuel c. Seeley, book
keeper in the National Shoe and
Leather bank of this city, that institu-
tion has lost S354,OOO in the past four
or five years. Seeley was an old and
long-trusted employe. lie worked
with confederate on the outside in
the person of depositor in the bank
of thirty years standing.
The bank persued the old-style
ledger-bools method, which permitted
this conspiracy to exist without detec-
tion. Under the old system no deposit
slips are used, the depositor simply.
presenting pass book in which the
bookkeeper writes the .amsssns al .asss
deposit.
The scheme as worked by Seeley
and his confederate was very simple.
Seeley entered false credits on the pass
book for small amounts, charged them
in another account and carried these
charges along in clever way from
year to year. These peculations began
about five years ago and had swcllcd
to the total OF 1854 900 when the dis
covery was made of the defalcation.
Some time ago the bank decided TO
change the system of keeping books
and adopt more modern method.
Seeley Immediately knew that his fall
sitication of thebooks would be re-
vealed and disappeared, while the over
hauling of the books was in progress
The confederate is known. The di
rectors Immediately held meeting
and have decided to make good the i'm
pairment at once.
The clearinghouse committee visited
the bank and made the following
statement:
"a recent examination of the affairs
of the National Shoe and Leather bank
by the national bank examiner devel
oped defalcation of 1854, 600, and after
investigation by the clearinghouse com
mittee this loss was confirmed. The
committee are unanimous in the opin-
ion that notwithstanding this loss the
bank is in sound condition and able
to pay its depositors.'
The following statement was issued
by the president, John NJ. Crane, yes.
terday afternoon:
New YORK. Nov. "a, 1894.
To THE PUBLIC: A boolkeeper OF
this bank has disappeared, and the re-
suit of thorough investigation made
at our request by the national bank
examiner has proven him a defaulter
to the amount of S354 600, to meet
which the directors have called on the
stockholders for an assessment to am
ply cover any deficiency. We append
a statement by the clearinghouse COM
mittee.
| Signed JOHN NJ. CRANE,
President.
President Crane said to a United
Press reporter yesterday afternoon:
"Seeley has been an cmploye of this
bank for fourteen years. He came
here recommended by fellow clerk,
and was getting a salary of 1880 per
, year as one of the bookkeepers. His
honesty and faithfulness have never
been questioned until we had unde.
niable proof of his dishonesty
"We have no idea, however, how
.. long Seeley has been carrying OH
these peculations, but it must have been
for two or three years. His method
seems to have been of balancing of
various accounts. Supposed man had
an account with our bank of $50, 900,
and of another $4,000. Secley would
take 5000 from one account, which
he could take himself, and then put
the 5000 to the other account, which
would apparently balance the banks
accounts. To have secured the enor'
nous amount would, Of course, re.
quire an immense amount of balanc
ing. He had to be very careful not tc
diminish depositor's account sc
much that on attempting to draw the
depositor would discover that his ac'
count had been tlnkered with.
1.-The bank, of course, will be loser
to the amount of Seeley's defalcation
but the public can rest assured that
! the standing of our bank is not i'm
, paired. Our surplus is about $3.50, 900
Seeley's bond, furnished by the United
States Guarantee Co., was for $1,000
, which, of course, will be forfeited"
] Seeley's lawyer, Frank w. Angel
S attended directors meeting (: by
: pre-arrangement with his client. He
/ made statement to the directors OF
l the bank, being in substance the
e story of the defaleation as told to him
by Seeley, Mr.. Angel said Seeley told
e him that he himself had profited only
Y Sl1, 200 by the big defalcation. The
1 balance of the money, he said, hat
0 been secured by the depositor, whose
S name the officials refused to divulge
Seeley, the missing bookkeeper, is 4!
years of age, and his home is in Brook
lyn. Last Saturday the bookkeepel
had holiday. On Monday he failed
to appear, and another clerk was put
in his place. This was the first in
timation given of anything wrong
: The police were notified at once, ant
every effort was made to apprehent
the two offenders. The fugitives
: however, had good start, and there il
a possibility of their being well out o
! the country by this time. Seeley'
wife and children are still at thei
. home. The wife, Frustrated by tn
: shock of her husbands crime an,
!. fight, is at the point of death.
, The Seeley defalcation is the larges
!, since the Hill robbery of the Nintl
!, national bank in 1891. Hill was pres
= ident of the bank, and the discovery Q
: his wrongdoing was not made unit
after his death. Hills defalcatio
amounted to about S450,O00
NO CONTEST.
Tho pronocsd Cnptast ~ tho Cuhar,o