The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-05-13


cases where the defendant does not appear.
- -
BIG FOUR BUILDING ASSOCIATION.
Its President Declares 1t Is All Right.
and Answers Charges.
Wymand J. Beckett. president of the Big
-Four Building ASSOCIATION yesterday made
the following written statement to the Jour
nal:
In your paper OF the 18th inst. you re-
POI tgd the suit of Oliver +. Slack against
the Big -Four Building Association, asking
Tor q receiver. and stated in substance the
charges made by Stack in his complaint
the flrst one OF (which is that the associa-
ton agreed TO pay him $1,000 at the end of
I'VE years IL he would pay $40 month into
the association. In other words, that the
ASSOCIATION aSfEed to mature his ten shares
CT stock-$lM Il share-s+in five years, or six
ty months. I'm the first place. the associa-
ton made no such am agre ement. and the
certificate of stock which he files with his
complaint contains the following stipula-
ton: There shall only be monthly assess
shares shall mature as soon as such month
~ dues. with the earnings thereon. amount
10 the par value of the shares and they
shall be surrendered by the holder and cam
ceIed, and the paSaYaIue paid therefor in
cash by the association. And in the sec
ono place, no man Of common sense would
It's money at 10 per cent. could mature stock
In flVe Years by monthly payments of 81 a
month; and, in the third place no honest
man would ask that the association would
pay him more than it could earn, and there
by rob other stockholders The facts on
which he bases his complaint for a receiver
are as follows: His certificate of stock is
dated January, 1893. and his withdrawal is
dated January, 1893 afThe book shows that
$40 each, which would be $500 The equated
tme the association mas had the money is
thirty months, or two and a half years
New. his. demand is that the association
nj fnl fXHFn II
one-half years. This would be at the rate
or $l6O a. year. 26 2-3 per cent per annum
and because the association will not pay
hum 70 2-3 per cent opsh his money when its
loanlng rate is only, lQ-per cent, he thinks
there is mismanagenient somewhere and a
receiver ought to be appointed. The fact
Is that the association has never at any
time refused to pay Mr.. Slack the with
drawal value Of his stock. but it has refused
and does refuse to rob the other stockhold-
Another charge which he makes i'm his
complaint is that the money of the associa-
ton has been recklessly loaned on INSULT
else to cite a single Instance where the as
ISOLATION has ever lcstM by any loan that
This charge is Absolutely groundless and
false. Another charge which he makes in
his complaint is that the association is in
debted to its stockholders for matured GER
titicates in excess Of $4,000 This is like
wise false. There is not a matured certifi-
cate in the. association unpaid. Another
money paid out in sale rieS has been in ex-
cess of the amounts provided by the by
laws. There is as little ground for this
charge as any other The facts are as fol-
lows:
Secretary's salary. including stenog-
rapher and bookkeeper's wages per
President and ATTORNEY, per month
Vice president who lives at Knights
town, Ind, and attends board meetings
once month and pays his own ex-
Treasurer, per month Observation-Disclosures. 4
Kent per month OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 10
Total operating expenses per MONTH $40
Again he charges that the association
has borrowed money and has pledged the
stock as security for the same. In answer
of stock pledged in the,5 association to Sc
cure one dollar of borrowed money. and the
only money that the association has bor-
roWed is $1,000 which it borrowed of the In
diana National Banks he,secretary is pay
ing Off Withdrawals strictly in their order
and the charge that favoritism is being
shown in this particular is also false; in
fact, the complaint from beginning to end
is falsehood and a Islander against the
association and is filed for the purpose of
doing the association injury simply because
it would not accede to- his demands and rob
the stockholders for his benefit. The assoc
citation is carefully managed and is perfect
in the way of withdrawals as promptly as
any large association in the city. Under
the bylaws the association Is PROMPTED
from paying out more than one-half of the
monthly receipts to Withdrawing members.
but by unanimous action of the board of
directors that provision of the bylaws has
been waived aad the association is paying
out the entire monthly rec oipts when neces-
sary TO accommodate the withdrawing
stockholders. The attempts for co-opera
tion in the public press referred to in the
plaintiffs complaint is merely blackmail-
ing scheme on the part of the stakeholder
who inserted the notice for the purpose of
compelling the association to pay more on
Withdrawals than the Withdrawing MEM
bers are entitled to. He admits in his COM
plant that the withdrawal value of his
stock amounts to more than he has paid
into the association, yet he claims that the
management has been 50 bad that he and
other stockholders have been defrauded.
The complaint for receiver is drawn with
out any reference to the condition of the
association by one who had no knowledge
Of its condition and who had no other OBJ
ject in view but 10 crafty his personal re-
Ven%e because the association refused to
submit to his sand-bagging scheme
While TOwie. Was President.