The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-12-14
SECRECY IS
A MISTAKE
In Dealing With Mr..
Richards Absence.
NO NEW DEVELOP MENTS.
The Estate is Not Involved to the
Extent OF 100000.
STATEMENT MADE BY KILVERT.

"Ihere are no new Developments In the
w. W. kickard complication today, said
Alr. :. w. hiivert who Is now practi-
cally in charge of the W. W. Rickard
company affairs. No new claimant has
appeared, ana / do hot expect any very
serious difficulty 10 arise. The statement
thar the estate is involyed TO the extent
OF 500 600 Is not true. AS matter of
fact, It's Indebtedness is not over half that
amount and as l stated yesterday the
estate will pay all claims and leave
balance. II the creditors will give reason
able timo TO straighten out the papers
and bring order out Of the chaos in which
the business seems TO have been thrown.
"Extrayagant claims are said 10 exist,
but they only have form in the minds of
persons who are not careful about state
ments they make and when the bottom
lines hre reached they have no claims at
all. have found that out I'm severol in
stances
Mr.. kilvsrt also stated that he had not
yet ascertained where Mr.. kickard is. In
referring to the attachment placed on the
Rickard property late yesterday afternoon
byAttornevs Edwards and Angel. net
ing for Walter B. SwLr,s Mr.. kilyert
| said
Mr.. Swarts had the attachment placed
for his own protection. lie Is admins
traitor or trustee for the Mary A. Whit
ford estate ana ne did business with Mr.
| kickard and in the alarm incident TO the
| disclosure of the state of affairs be in
common with many others began looking
| out fef his own interests. The attach
ment was placed on the Blackstone Boule-
ward property and 1t is for S60U which tho
attaching party afiirms was for interest
money not received from MIR. Rickard.
| According to many rumors afloat.
which cannot be verified with any degree
/ Of assurance, Mr.. RickRrd Is accused OF
appropriating money earned by n num-
ber of mortgages to his own use. but no
| one stands up and makes an open cnarge
| OF dishonesty and the feeling Is common
that the absence of records anu accounts
is due TO the. .missingssman' loose way of
keeping run OF his affairs. There was no
| bookkeeping Of any system in tie West
minister street Office
Ii is admitted nearly everywhere In Mr.
Rickard s Office too, that the secrecy or
Mr. Rickard $ whereabouts is n mistake.
The greatest publicity to all of the trans
actions at tho present time would have a
tendency TO strengthen the belief that the
! absent man is the victim of circum-
stances and net betrayer Of trust or a
misappropriator of funds left In his pos.
| session.
One OF the most deplorable things as
sociated with the present trouble is the
ping out of property owned by persons
| VINO were under the belief that they had
! provided for rainy day. AS the investI-
/ CATION proceeds nc is ascertnined that
property held in trust has vanished frop,
| Rickard 8 possession. lie has used tl G
| funds in tie general business not with n
dishonest purpose in yisw, but with the
idea OF returning the funds when the sale
of rAai estate could to accomplished. Ee
seemed TO be always looking for tbs time
when real estate v1luts woul az vance al
| then he coulu meet all his otugations.
! That time never came. and SO ths posses
sions OF many persons have gore into the
| pile that was used to keep the land
s,hemes afioat.
Five transfers of mortgages from
William W. Rickard TO Henry Nalleau
! were recorded at toe city hall TO-DAY. II
Is understood that several of them were
nearly paid up. One was made by George
Il. Fairbanks and wife for 5000; one by
| Nora A. Wheaton for $500: one bv Mr.
and Mrs. Thomas + McHuRh for $1,000; two
by the First Swedish Baptist Church OF thi:
city for $500 and $4,000 and one by Thomas
| Curley anu wife for $500.
| AT noon today another attachment was
placed on the Richard property by the
trustees OF the Laura Il. Coose estate fol
the sum of $500. The property attached
is on Elmwood avenue, Wickenden street
and Blackstone boulevard. The attacn
mcnt was made To secure the value OF q
mortgage placed in the charge OF Rickard
and the trustees took this method tc
| secure themselves
It is more than likely that other similar
| attachments will be ade anu that the
Rickard business will find its way into
court for settlement.