The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-07-22
IN THE susPpEENDED BANKS.
ARosN SAYS TIE CORPORATION
ATTORNEYS OFFICE SEEMS TO
BE TO BLAME
RH rTTI .aH
TREASURER RATHER DISPLEASED
81
Because the Republican Council Has
Given So Much Publicity to
His Office.

|
of making an investigation of the de-
posits made by City Treasurer Horst in
the Allemannia bank was held yester-
day afternoon 1t developed at the
session that the city treasurer has a
very fixed idea that the affair is owing
to a personal grudge entertained by
one of the members of the council.
President Arosin, of the assembly, who
introduced the resolution calling for
the appointment of the investigating
committee, and who is chairman of the
joint committee, denied that he had
any grudge against the city treasurer
or his office, and said that he was &C
tuated solely in the public interests.
Certain reports had reached him, and
as a public officer he deemed 1t his
duty to have the same either verified
or diSproVed.
Present at the meeting yesterday
were Messrs. Arosin, Kirke and Dix,
from the assembly, and Aid. Kenny
and Lindahl from the board. Aid. San
born was reported out Of the city. Mr..
Arosin called the committee to order
promptly at o'clock. City Treasurer
Horst, having handed the chairman
SNllulS VI " pc-WIlllGH
word was sent to the corporation at
torney to put in an appearance, and
the members settled back to listen to
the statements presented by the treas
urer Mr.. Arosini stated by way of
explanation for the benefit of Mr..
Airke, who was not present at the first
meeting, that Mr. Horst had refused
to say whether he had examined the
BOND of the Allemanhia banks but had
informed the committee that he had
prepared a statement which would
state FULLY the facts as to the deposits
III the Allemannia bank. The follow
ms winch had been prepared by City
treasurer Horst, was then read:
III June, 1894 after haven taken office from
Will was ousted by Mi. rWagener l found
n rrg oomqs OF banks given to city treasurer's
Ter, my predecessor in office I was Informed
that he never had possession of or in his Gus
touy any bond given by any bank for funds
| deposited by the city and he assured mo
| that his predecessor never had.
Aitef inquiry, l found that there were some
81 sucn ponds IN existence, and that they were
fn CUSTODY OF the, city clerk, who refused to
j denver them on demand, while this contro-
| yersy was on hand l. was ousted At that
| time drew the attention of my successor to
t the lact OF the controversy and his rights in
I When took Office, l went to the city attor-
| neys assistant, Phillips, to ask him about
the bonds, drawing his attention ito the fact
mat lntehe case the bond Was given, by the
I 'Comnerclal bank, and ethat the bank had
/ changed its name to the, AlIemannia and
t that IN another case Chat Of the Merchants)
4.1he bond was. dated 1887, and that in that
| case one. of the bondsmen had been dead for
| some years. In both cases he held that the
! Donds- We're good and sufficient. After some
further talk, he agreed to prepare a resolfi,
tlon advertising for new bids which would
| lead to new bonds all around in accordance
| with the letter of the law
After seeing him again several times on
TINS question of new bonds, the council on
July %, 1896, did advertise for bidders for
the deposits of city funds.
On oct. - 1896 quite number of banks,
VINO were repositories of city funds executed
bonds and rendered them to the city either
by handing them to the committee, the city
clerk, or city attorney, all of which have
since been approved by. the council. Of the
number of banks that rendered bonds at this
time the treasurer had no knowledge of at
the time. =. -.
On Nov. 9, 1896, the council passed q reso-
luton accepting the bids of the different banks
IA matter Of los days after the advertisement
and 30 days after the bonds had been exc
cuted and delivered), and, casually at the
end of the resolution, which occupied five
and one-half running inches of small type
in the official print, occur these words, viz:
Resolved, further, that each of said banks
execute and deliver to the city of St. Paul
bond with such conditions as shall be ap-
proved by the corporation attorney, and with
such security as shall be approved by the
common council before any funds are deposi-
ted in any of said banks pursuant to the
terms of this resolution
What did the council mean to convey by
this resolution? An order to the city treasurer
to withdraw the moneys deposited under their
order? Or was it an order to deposit at his
peril? If the first proposition was the one
intended by the council, resolution of so
grave and vital Importance as the withdrawal
of the city funds from our city banks at that
time, virtually declaring that in the opinion
of the council they were not safe, would have
created a financial panic that would have
swept the city, so that today there would be
but few solvent citizens to be found in it.
One of the councilmenI felt so alarmed at the
time that the Allemannia and Germania banks
closed their doors that he advised me to draw
out the city funds from all citv banks, hire
a strong box in some vault, and put it in
there. I repeat that if the council intended
by that resolution to draw out the city's de-
posts it should have in no uncertain man
ner notified the treasurer of the fact No
such notice was, however, sent. In addition
to my word for it is the report of the council
committee at a regular meeting held Jan. r.
1897 of which the following is a copy:
Committee on w. and NJ reports upon the
report of the city treasurer for December,
1896. The committee recommending that the
attention of the city treasurer be called to
the resolution of the common council on Nov.
9, 1896 wherein it was requested that before
any funds were deposited in any bank
form of bond should be approved by the city
attorney and the common council, the COM
mittee showing by said report that no bonds
had yet been approved from the Merchants
National, the Northern Exchange the State
and the Union banks.
Report of committee and report Of city
treasurer accepted and placed file.
And the further fact that / rendered re-
port of city funds to the council in December
and January without any question in my
mind that the old bond held over until an
nulled or replaced by the council (See char
teri Also rendered statement of the funds
on hand and where placed each day to my
superior in Office
That the Allemannian-was an exceptionally
strong and safe institution, i was led to be-
leve by the act of the council (who being
on the outside body or representative bust
institutions than one confired in office with
the work of double board of public works
to contend with, in transferring the inter
the sum of $3.50, 042.26 from the Bank of
Minnesota to the Allemannia' bank with but
a light bond of $100,Cos. If the councils in
tention was simply to Jestog{ further deposits,
der of the council. (See schedule of deposits
and Withdrawals for Noveh1ber and Decem-
ber 1850 The existence of "a bond approved
by the council is surely a fact, and it is only
| to the city Immediately after the reorganiza-
ton of the bank. or that Of 1895. That is a
point of law which the council (many of
whom are learned in law are better informed
to pass upon than l am: II
question of what forms an acceptance
purchaser of goods, even though the goods
are not up to the standard of the sample,
held by the purchaser beyond a reasonable
time cannot be returned. Much less IL by
some after act it is by him acknowledged to
have been so, to. wit Equal to what the
sample called for
For party and friendship sake 1 have had
wish at any time to shoulder any blame
of the citys misdeposits on any one. have
silently allowed gossip its sway, knowing
| F1,oA4 Ion to- I4RA-