The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-10-31

thing fG4k vas vJAAlnOIs N Intent LGo1tn
grose.que and sbor.ive in execution At
this late day, when the election is close at
hand, il vicio1sly sssslls Van de Vanier's
integrity, seeking 70 distort mistortune
into the appearance of crime, and by
aro1sing ondeservsd suspicion 20 vrest
from him the victory il sees 50 plainly
within his grasp. Having failed signally
in its desperate efforts to md aav in the
manifest rectitude OF his career in this
state. its eleventh hour recourse IS to east
odium upon his conduct in bis earlier and
distant home. In this, also, it will fail.
The mass Of verbiage in which 1t wraps its
charge OF misconduct viii not confuse or
mislead the intelligent people Of Seattle.
who viii read its assertions dispassionately
and easily see that its snimus Is vile and
its allegations unfonnded.
In order TO discover the inherent ras-
cality OF the TsGegraph's charge against
Mr.. Van de Vanter it il only necessary to
read and weigh the statements which Ii
presents. Stripped of the forest of words
in which they are hidden-the insinua-
tons. misrepresentation. false deductions
and reports OF slanderous gossip-the facts
are few and simple. Let Us make an
analysis OF the Tetegraph's own story. put
ting aside a. worthless and grossly preiu-
diced all the vituperative matter of its
own that IL has interspersed throughout
the story. and considering tina. which it
presents as facts from Indiana. This Is
what results:
On or about October 8, 1854. the firm Of
Van dc Vanter & Berger, doing business
3. the town of La Grange, Ind, gave q
mortgage on part of the goods in their
store TO Charles B. Buck. of that town.
1.-TWO days later. or on October Is, ITO adopt
the TsIegydph's chronology, the firm gave
q second mortgage to two Michigan firms.
covering the remainder of their stock. The
Telegraph represents that this second
mortgage covered only "about SIS worth OF
shop-worn articles" The gross falsity of
this statement will be shown in this
article
Al the time of the failure Van de vanter
II Berger were indebted to various
creditors, the aggregate OF their indebted
ness not being shown. but being alleged
by the Telegraph to be about $4,000.
The two members of the firm were very
young men. The success of their business
was in part prevented by dissolute con-
duet, which the Telegraph lays at the door
of Van de vanter. By series of alleged
interviews. that paper also presents Mr..
Van de Vanter in the light of wicked
partner, who easily led Berger astray.
A number of creditors. who suffered by
the failure, are represented as expressing
the opinion that Van de Vanter Il Berger's
operations were fraudulent in that they
obtained goods on credit with the inten-
ton of selling them for whatever prices
they could get, and so svindling their
creditors and poeketing the proceeds dis
honestly.
On November q. 1884, Van de vanter
and Berger were indicted by the grand
jury of the county, the charge being that
on October l they did ''unlawfully and
fraudulently sell and deliver to ono Ben
jamin Mitchell at and for the price of $50
the value of SIS. of the property of
the said Aaron T. Van de yanter and
Carl Berger. with the intent then and there
and thereby to cheat. hinder, delay and
defraud the Standard Wagon Company"
and other creditors; that Van de Vanter
and Berger fled from La Grange after the
indictment was found against them; that
they returned to that town under cover of
the darkness Of night. and would then
have been arrested by the sheriff had they
not been spirited away by certain personal
friends. through whose aid they escaped
into Michigan; that their whereabouts
since that time were unknown TO the
creditors they are alleged to have de-
frauded.
These are the alleged facts of the Tere-
graphs story. Upon the strength of these
allegations that paper declares Mr. Van de
Vanter fugitive from justice. swindler,
a sconndrei. criminal. Observe tina, the
only clear facts in all this are: That the
firm failed and made assignments and (if
that be faet) that its members were in
dieted. The other statements are only
given on the alleged authority of individ-
uals who may or may not exist. Il is
worthy of note that the Telegraph, after Civ
ing the words of the alleged indictment
for selling SIS wagon for $50, falsely saws
later on in its narrative that the indict-
ment was because OF "a fraudulent bin OF
sale 10 friend" Observe, also. the Tsle.
graphs report of the declaration of one OF
the creditors that the visit. Of drummer.
10 the firm would end ap by the travelling
man almost insisting on taking some of
his line" Of goods.
II there were no other testimony than
the Teisgraph's deliberately. purposely
and ingeniously distorted article, the care
fsIl and candid reader would see that the
charge against Mr.. Van de Vanter is ont.
rageoas aud yiilanous. He would dis.
cover from IL that two young men engaged
in the agricultural Implement business
did well a. Grst. we're persuaded by i'm.
Fortunate drgmmeFs for trade 10 load
themselves down with an excessive stock
IF wares; were not IS wise and con.erva.
tive as older heads would have been
finally became insoiveat; gave a mortTag.
70 LEGAL creditor. and a second
mortgage 10 creditors outside the
state: suffered under the usual charge. al
unfairness and fraud made BY creditor.
xho lost. were indicted a. the inssizalion
Of one Of the outside creditors On the
a.msy pre,ext that they committed fraud
/ ~ selling SIS wagon for 81. and left the
STATE % avoid arrest and persecution IN.
der cover of this fl,asy indictment lie