The San Francisco call., 1898-12-01
RUNNING DOWN
 THE THUNDER
Suit Filed to Force Moses H. Sherman to DiS-
 gorge.

IhS history OI lue SISdl DoiAh iOOe has not been written in vain. Through the pages of that plain, unvarnlshed tale the victims are looking backward over the work of as unconscionable gang of scoundrels as ever called stand and deliverl" By the telling of simple story the blade of justice gleams aveng- ingly and by that gleam daylight shows down the dark road, whither went the plunderers with their golden booty. Each column of narrative as told in The Call has been as a broad highway over which the minions of the law are, at last, hurrying toward their covering prey.
 The Call" said an attorney for the depositors last evening, made clear the way. The present managers of the Pacific Bank were fairly well satisfied where and how the funds went. But the light shed by The Call showed the ways and means, and the management is now moving to recover at least some of the stolen funds.
 Late yesterday afternoon a com plaint was filed by the law firm of Den son, Oatman & Denson in behalf of the Pacific Bank against Moses H. Sher- man to recover one-half of 25, 800 shares of stock loaned to- Sherman-or rather squeezed by sherman out of the bank. The suit also seeks to have Sherman adjudged a trustee in the matter of the shares and to require him to ac- count for them.
 Judge DenSon stated last evening that there was an abundance of docu- mentary evidence as well as witnesses to prove all set forth in the complaint The disclosures published exclusively in the Call, he averred, have brought back the whole matter to public mo- tice and not only that, but have given testimony not to be doubted. The pres ent managers of the bank, he stated were pursuing an inquiry slowly along these lines when The Call turned the light of day upon wonderful revela- ton. Judge E. D. Sawyer, one of the attorneys for the Pacific Bank, made in substance the same statement. and expressed the same unbounded confi- dence in the ultimate outcome of the suit and the complete disagreement of at least Moses H. Sherman.
 Judge s. c. Denson gave the follow ing substance of the complaint which contains the story of the banks ad vance to Sherman of funds for the re- lief of his Los Angeles Consolidated Electric Railroad:
 sherman was the organizer, or at least, one of the early managers of the Los Angeles Consolidated Electric Rail- road Company, and was backed in the scheme financially by the Pacific Bank under the Mcdonald management Th1 company issued bonds upon it's prop erty for money to construct it's lines and to fully equip them. The bank advanced money, taking some of the railroad bonds as security to the extent of over S300,000. AS a part of the ar 1 engagement between Sherman and the | bank 1t was agreed that a majority of | hn crfH Hnly bot E1 or - | shares, should be controlled by the bank and Sherman. And to that end that amount of stock was placed in the hands of E. O. Carr, Sherman's broth er-irsaw. The 49 per cent of stock or 24,50O shares, were to be disposed of to | other people.
 Presently Sherman reported to the bank that more money was wanted That institution, under the Mcdonald system Of princely spendings, was be- ginning to feel a squeeze and objected to this further drain. Sherman said the money must come, and threatened to levy an assessment on the stock, which the bank would have to pay. but i finally proposed that if the managers would deposit with him the 51 per cent of stock, the 25,500 shares, he had a friend who would advance $150, ,000 This stock was te be returned to the bank when the $150,0O0 was paid out of the proceeds or earnings of the rail- road or otherwise.
 sherman got possession of the stock but did not procure the loan; neither did he return the stock. In 1894, by rep resenting himself as the owner of all | that stock, he made a new deal in which he procured other stocks and bonds upon the surrender of the orig inal stock. Within the present year he has sold those stocks and bonds, so the bank is informed, for s500,0 900.
 "This suit is to adjudge him trustee | to the extent of one-half of the 25, SOC shares of the original stock and to re- quire him to account for the profits and proceeds of the same. It is confidently expected that the bank will recover a 1 Judgment of not less than $250,000 The | evidence produced seems to me amply sufficient to establish the averments and the bank ought to recover the en- tire sum-"