The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-01-19

amount. He then gave back to the cor
poration as treasury stock" 40 per
cent OF his holdings. and retained the
balance for himself. The work of sell
ing the treasury stock to the public and
acquiring Yukon lands then began.
rms much is admitted by both sides.
AS to how the affairs of the company
nave been managed from the very first
| Gays the different bills filed tell the
most divergent stories. VOLTAGE charg-
es that Vrooman has squandered and
mlsused some $40, 900 of the $50, 900 cash
that has been paid into the treasury.
He says that F. B. Vrooman, H. c.
Vrooman and Frank W. Davis have
controlled the property and misled the
investing pubic. One complaint is that
Mr.. Vrooman sold some worthless
dredging inventions to the company for
$4,000. Another is that he purcnas al,
ostensibly for the company, S. 900
worth of cigars which We're never de-
livered, and that he took notes Fl. m
the treasury to pay for them, blu. was
forced to disgorge. Then there is a
long account of the transac tions in the
purchase of an unfinished steamp .at,
the FLYING Dutchman, by which, 1t is
said. Vrooman got the boat for s., coo
and some almost worthless stock, and
sold 1t to the company for $4,000. Mr.
Vrooman is also charged with great en-
travagance in personal expenditures
out of the company funds, and w,.h
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT in paying $1,000 rem
tails for river leases to the Canadian
government, without having the crm-
pany in a position to make u.sa of the
leases or to get any benefit from
them.
Mr.. Nrooman answers all t.lese
charges by explanations which show
that not he, but the company was the
in nj 10
different light on each of them. As to
the steamboat. he says that .he credit
for $4,000 which he got n payment for
1t applied on a donation Of S75 COO in
cash and property which he voluntarily
made the company. The dredging IN
ventions. he says, We're appra' sei at a
value of 100000 by experts, and he
donated them to the company in the
same way at an appraisement of only
$4,000. AS to the Cana dian leases, he
argues that they are extremely valu-
able. being, in fact, the best property
of the company, and he says that the
company has money enough - ray
next years rentals and TO develop
them.
Wallace, Mr.. vrooman and the attor-
neys charge, is only .ool in the hands
of the Eastern men 10" the overthrow
of the company, and one OF the alter
neys says that he has verbal evidence
that Wallace has bean trying un:Ec-
cessfully to induce some Chicago stock
holders to join the ''wrecknrs.' Wallace
is an Ann Arbor graduate in law who
became associated with the company at
the beginning. A long story is told as
to how he has attempted to hold up''
the company as the attorneys put ~
for six months Or more past. After sell
ing stock on commissions ana taking
his commissions in stock III he mad
accumulated 5000 shares contract
was made with him tc head an expcdi-
ton to Alaska.
"Soon' says Attorney Moss, ''he be-
gan to demand more favorable terms
for himself At Washington he asked
for contribution of stock, and was
finally given some 81, 600 shares by Mr.
Vrooman personally. Then later he
asked to be allowed to purchase 5000
shares at SO cents a share in considera-
ton of leading the expedition. This
purchase was made and the stock paid
for. Then $4,000 wars. given him to pay
the expenses of his expedition. He took
it, bought goods in his own name, took
the expedition to Alaska, deserted It in
eight days, came back here, demanded
$4,000 more money to push the expedi-
ton through, and then refused to make
an accounting of what he had spent
We are trying to make him accoun, in
the courts. The men who are beniili
him in his suit hold only about SO, DOC. 900
OF the stock, and want all the prop
erty, because they know how rich It is.
Mr. Vrooman has recently had letters
from L. Orville Wilcoxon, a nephew of
President Mckinley, and from a MEM
Der of the Wallace expedition, exprass-
ing high opinion of the value of the
Dudley Taylor, Mr.. VILLAGES attor-
ney said:
wallace is simply trying to save the
men in his expedition from starvation.
He feels personally responsible for
them. The company does not pay for
them, and does not furnish them tools
The men Mr.. Vrooman calls conspira-
tors simply want to protect the iln1-
cent stockholders. They would be onlv
too glad to withdraw entirely if they
could honorably do So