The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-06-19
AGENT MOTTER In JAIL.
Sold Registers and Failed to Account
for the Proceeds.

Pawned a S175 Cash Register to
Adam Strauss for S16-Strauss Re-
fused to Give 1t Up and a Bail in
Trover Action Was Instituted-Mot-
ter's Accounts Were Not Straight
and State Agent Black Game Down
to Look Into Them, Which He Did
With Results.
The National Cash Register Company,
of Dayton, o., seems to have more trouble
with It's Savannah agency than in any
other part of the state.
W. H. Motter, who was, until few
days ago, the local agent in this city for
the company, was arrested yesterday and
sent TO jail on charge of larceny after a
trust delegated. The charges against
Motter grew out of the fact that one of
the machines with which he was in
trusted as agent was found at the pawn
shop of Adam Strauss, while another was
sold to a Townsville firm, r. L. Hicks
& Co., for considerable less than it's value
Mr.. Jacob Block, the state agent for the
company, with headquarters in Atlanta,
came to the city last week with the OBJ
object in view of looking into Motter's ac-
counts and then discharging him, as he
stated that they had been kept in very
unsatisfactory manner.
TWO OF HIS SAMPLES GONE.
He found Motter and asked him for his
sample machines, of which four were sup
posed to be in his possession. Motter,
however, could produce only two, and
when asked about the other two he stated
hot & - 49,,
Townsville firm, which, by the way, was
already known to Mr.. Block, but he failed
to account for the other one.
The machine sold in Thomasville was
one of the new variety which registers
amo6nts and totals. and was worth $500.
Motter, it is said, sold it for 1857, which
he received in cash. Mr.. Block says he
has never received this money, and he is
satisfied Motter has appropriated it to
his own use, as it has never been &C
counted for to the company.
WANTED TO GIVE HIM A CHANCE.
This, however, is not the case which
caused his arrest directly. AS Motter was
a man of family, having wife and child,
MIR. Block was disposed TO be lenient
with him, and told him to go ahead and
make enough sales to square his accounts
with the company, AS Motter received
commission of Is per cent, he might,
with a few sales, have squared his ac-
counts and made the matter satisfactory.
Instead of doing this, however, Mr.. Block
says, he made no attempt to sell any
more machines, and when he demanded
his samples from him Saturday two of
them were missing.
The Thomasville case was known TO
him, but Motter, he says, tried to keep
the fact that one OF them had been
pawned as quiet as possible. He left the
city Saturday night, leaving Motter I'M
der the impression that his services were
still wanted, and when he returned yes
terday had him arrested by Detective
Wetherhorn.
THE PAwNBRoKER REFUSED TO GIVE 1T UP.
Learning that one of the sample ma
chimes had been pawned with Adam
Strauss last January through a pawn
ticket which he finally obtained from
Motter, he went to Strauss shop ana de-
manded the machine. Motter had pawned
the machine for SO, while it was a new
one and the price of it was S175. Strauss
admitted that he had the machine, but
claimed he had sold it for 500 and refused
to give it up. Mr.. Block didn't want to
have any trouble about it and employed
Messrs. Garrard Meldrim & Newman
who instituted n bail in trover action
against Strauss for the recovery of the
machine. The papers were filed in the
city court yesterday.
Mr. Block says he has given Motter
every opportunity to make good the loss,
and that he has always sent him money
with which to carry on the local agency /;
but when he found Motter not disposed
to do anything, he swore out a warrant
before Justice Mike Naughtin, charging
him with larceny after trust.
SECOND CASE WITHIN YEAR.
Motter is young man about 30 or 35
years old. He has wife and child, and
was living on South Broad street, near
Barnard. He has been with the company
about year or little longer, but has
had the local agency only two months
under Mr. Block.
This is the second trouble of this kind
the company has had in Savannah within
year w. H. Bluett, who was local
agent under @. II. Behre as state agent.
was arrested on the same charge, but he
finally settled up his accounts and was
released.
Motter was unable to give bond yester-
day and was committed to jail by Justice
Naughtin. MIR. Block says he has discov-
cred several transactions of Motter's
which are rather peculiar, and the result
will be that he will have to bring suit
against some parties who bought registers
from him.