The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-12-24
FIXING THE BLAME
For the Wrccking of the National
Bank Of Illinois.
A STATEMENT FROM HAMMOND
Witch Pats Some roopio In n Had Light.
The Loan, 10 the Calumet Street Rail-
way Carefully Ieepi n secret From tho
Dirertors-Thrir Method, Unbu,Inem-
like, or They would Have niScorered Il.
\ Conspiracy and It's Purpose.

CHICAGO, Dec. 23.-w. a. Hammond,
second vice president OF the National
| DaIk OF Illinois. who has been charged
with pulling the wool over the eyes OF
the directors OF the dcrunct bank, would
not talk to-day when seen in his palatIal
homo at Evanston. Through an intl-
mate friend, however, lie made gtNtc-
mcnt which ~ calculated 10 inculpatc
several OF the directors NJ well ~ two ur
three men who are not connected with
the bank. The Post makes tho above
statement and gives the following:
| "W. A. Hammond 10 10 DO made the
| scapcgout OF the failure OF the National
Bank OF Illinois," said the friend. "lium-
mond is Il broken man to-day, but he Is
not any NOR. TO blame for the amount ut
money loaned on Calumet securities than
are the members OF the finance commit
tee OF the bank and Its directors. II was
necessary TO the purposes OF q man con-
ncctcd with the South Chicago railway.
md an officer OF ono OF the best known
| banks OF this city. to dcpreclate the Cal
umet Elecrtlc roads stocks and 10 this
end these two men brought ubou, the
wnrcklng OF the National Bank Of Ill.
nols.
"Of the banks fund s247J,OOO had been
| loaned on the Calumet securities. The
pnn for wrecklng WAS brilliant. Cause
| Investigation, IeprcCiate Calumet stock
and buy II. Then combine this valuable
| property OF slNty-three miles Of new
truck. equipment and franchise with the
| South Chicago railway, eventually COM
| Olnlng with the Chicago city railway
| ~ YFNn Af ~.
five or ten years.
"The truth " the matter ls, members
OF the finance committee and certain
directors of the National Bank OF Illinois
| have known the amount OF the Calumet
loan and have Hoped 10 make individual
! fortunes on the success nf the venture.
-Four years ago W. V. Jacobs, who start
ed the Calumet road. borrowed $4,000
ana paid It up in full. After that the
road passed into other hands and loan
| was made On the securities with n full
knowledge Of the finance committee OF
the bank and By President Schneider
| himself. This loan wIf too large but II
had been supposed 20 he for 4 few weeks
only and the bank, finding itself inYolv-
ed. either had 10 take the loss, ruin an
enterprise, or 80 ahead.
Director Pages Startling Statements.
"Nevcr did see on the book kept for
The purpose ofintoruIug the directors OF
the bank rs 10 who We're applicants for
loans. the name oc the Calumet Electric
railway"
The. above atat-man. was brought
about In conversation with Director
| Page, OF the dctGnCt National Bank OF
Illinois to-day, as to how such large
| loans were made by the bank and osteR-
| s!bly given with the sanction OF the dl-
rcctors. Mr.. Page went on 10 explain
how the business OF the bank, as FAR as
the directors werG concerned, was con-
Quoted. Said he:
The directors appointed from among
themselves what you nigh: term. for
convenience sake, an auditing commit
tee. The plan was 10 let one director
drop out each month. som" other taking
his place. Each day the committee
would meet at the bank. it3 business be-
inE to pass upon the applications for
loans. A record OF thesa appllca dona
was kept In a book designated for the
purpose. In this book was also kept op-
poSite the name OF each applicant, re-
cord OF the collateral offered 10 effect the
loan.
when the committee was ready for
business. Mr.. Schneider would come Into
the room. bringing with him this book,
and with It another book In which was
recorded the daily balance OF the would
be borrowers and also u record OF how
much he had previously borrowed"
You say that Mr.. Schneider used to
bring this in?"
Almost Invariably. Seldom was Mr.
Hammond before the committee. At
odd tImes he would be called IN to an
swer some question aH to an applicants
Al II. 4.
some collateral offered. But Captain
Schneider was almost always the bearer
OF the books. tho committee would look
over the books carefully and in some !n-
stances refuse TO sanction n loan. in
others the loan asked for w@uld be cut
down and cases where the applicant and
security was all right, the nccommodI-
tlon was. OF course, Ganted."
Did the committee never ask to see
the actual collateral offered or did It
simply take the word OF Mr.. Schneider
or Mr.. Hammond, that the security was
actually In the bank and was actually
what purportrd to be In the mcmorln-
DUN b0ok2"
"Wc have been busy with Mr.. SChnrl-
der and Mr.. Hammond. many OF us for
thirty years" answered MIR. Page. ITO
have madr such demand of them
would have been personal Insult"
Were not the suspicious OF the COM
mittce ever nousCd by the large loans 10
the Calumet Electric Company"
Then came the statement referred 10
above: Never did SEQ the name of the
Calumet Electric Railway appear OF this
book ns an applicant for loan"
"Hhat have you 10 shy about the pub
llshcd statements regarding Mr.. Ham
monGg connection with the unexplained
trhnsactlOn'2" :.
"Thoy are all true, every one OF them
Schneider Declines TO Talk.
Captain Schneider the president OF the
National Bank OF Illinois, lives In a
rather showy brick residence Mt No 1000
Michigan avenue. He Is scventy-thrcc
years OF nge and In rather feeble health.
When called up0n to-day hy a rcprcScn-
tatlre Of the Associated Prc47, he said
he should have no Siatmcnt whatever 10
mike, and he seemed quite broken by the
calamity which had hrfIllcn him. lie
was alone, and denied himself to CirllnrS,
| although he has been most OF the morn
INK talking over the telcphnn" with Inc
bank pcOplH. There are nn poSpCct3 OF
the banl; rcsuminE and 1t " by no
means cctan that It Will pay It's depoSI-
TORS I'm full as Mt first promised.
DEP0slToRS WILL, NOT LOSE.