The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-11-24

directorate and the Imperial Loan and
Trust Company was consolidated with 1t
as the Bank of Tacoma.
Boggs now became the patron saint of
this institution. The light and water pur-
chase and extension bonds were sold to
Charles B. Wright. He agreed to pay the
money at certain time, but failed TO keep
his agreement, and now, for reasons too
divers for detail, the opposition party be-
came strong and there came revulslon OF
public sentiment setting strongly against
the deal. The Council declared the whole
matter off. The Wright-Boggs- ban ks
party urged an extension of the time of
payment; Bennett, now in control of the
Ledger, urged it; citizens meeting, COM
posed of bankers, urged it; a Chamber of
Commerce committee urged it; Boggs, dis
tracted, urged it. Attorneys Shackelford,
Titlow and Whitehouse, having been en-
gagged by the city as special counsel, and
being of the opposition party, were active
to prevent a contamination of the deal,
why will appear from their statement,
published in the Tacoma News of Novem-
Der 2, 1895:
"As Mr.. Boggs was at that time needing
money very badly he tried to prevent this
We made a tour of all the banks of Ia
coma that held city money and with the
greatest courtesy and kindness were given
information concerning the city deposits,
and in some instances the bsnkbooks
were turned over to us for inspection. We
found at that time that all the actual cash
subject to check which Boggs had on hand
in all the banks was but 1000. We went
before the Council on two successive Sat
urdays and tried to get the Council to hold
these bonds to compel Wright to carry out
his contract and prevent Boggs from get
ting the money, as we knew he was short
in his accounts, for he should at that time
I1,v ha1 hu,,,l l. 49,
to check something like $500, 600.
"For two successive meetings of the
Council we prevented Boggs from getting
this money. Just after the close of the
second meeting, when the Council had
voted to stay with us and keep the money
from Boggs, Mr.. Boggs burst out crying,
saying to us: You've got me; you've got
me; you've caught me at last. About thirty
minutes after this Mr.. Boggs had become
apparently violently insane and threatened
death and destruction to US, and followed
us from the City Hall to Ninth street,
threatening at every step to kill Us, S. L.
Armstrong having him by the arm and
trying to quiet him."
The pressure on the City Council
through the medium of banks and "tax-
payers, was SO great that they finally
yielded, accepted an indemnity bond of
Wright, signed by W. D. Tyler and other
bankers, and delivered the water and light
bonds to Wright, and Boggs got the money
in installments at intervals covering nearly
year.
How to prevent the Council from the
immediate expenditure of these funds was
Boggs' problem. The precarious condI-
ton of banks was such that they did not
want to be disturbed in the possession of
what money they had, and all hoped to be
able to float Boggs' accumulated warrants
and thus relieve the situation. So the City
Council was induced to pass a resolution
lnstructlng Boggs to invest-think of the
righteousness of itl-the extension mon
eys in general fund warrants, even as a
merchant might instruct his bookkeeper
to go out and s'invest'' his surplus in his
own notes of hand. But 1T satisfied Ia
coma inanciers, because it gave them
money instead of warrants to hold. There
after everything passed smoothly enough
until February, 1894, when the City Coun-
Gil suddenly ordered the extension moneys
deposited in six banks, not naming them,
and requiring interest to be paid.
This gave BOggs twinge. The Tacoma
National and Traders had resumed BUSH
ness long enough 10 get deposit of extern
sion moneys and had thereupon closed up
again.
The people were by this time pretty we'll
advised that there was no money in the
city treasury. Treasury and bank balances
showed over 100000 on hand, bat there
was no cash to pay warrants with and it
became an open secret that the banks
having the largest city deposits had the
least ability to pay. Boggs' term was ex-
piring; he was not eligible to reelection.
One James w. McCauley, former baker
of Los Angeles, was selected by Boggs as
his successor, and as before an immense
corruption fund was subscribed by banks
and others concerned with him to procure
McCauley's election. A newspaper-the
Morning Union - feared as possible
enemy, was purchased outright and
run in the interest of Boggs and
McCauley; the Ledger supported him,
the News alone opposing. But new
elements had entered into politics and
McCauley's election was encompassed by
large plurality. Some Popullsts had
been elected to the City Council and there
was great deal of loud talk about count
ing the city's money, not accepting war;
rants, etc., and Boggs, who on April had
reported "$212, 600 of unindorsed warrants
held as cash" became distressed. He had
little difficulty, however, in getting Graf
tan III. Wheelers bank of Tacoma with a
side issue called the Mutual Investment
Company, to handle the warrants. together
with the State Savings Bank the Columb ia
National Bank, the Commercial Bank and
the German American Bank, all now de-