The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-04-10
LOAN CONCERNS WOE.
Receiver Wanted for the
Empire Investment
Company.

Counsellor ST. Lawrence, of Pater-
son, applied this morning to Vice
Chancellor Emery for an order ap-
pointing a received for the Em-
pire Loan and Investment Company, of
this city, and restraining the company
from doing further business. The appli-
cation was made on behalf of Robert Kin
ner, Ernest R. Portebouef and Augusta
Wemmerschoff, all Of Paterson, who are
shareholders in the concern. According
to the papers filed in the case the COM
pany began business in 1898 in Newark,
but subsequently moved to this city and
opened in the Fuller Building Offices
which it fitted up in sumptuous manner.
The projectors of the concern flooded the
local newspapers with alluring advertise
ments in which they held out inducements
to the provident to invest their savings
with them. Among these inducements
were the promise of loans to sharehold-
ers for the erection of homes on the most
favorable terms. The petitioners saw
these advertisements in the Paterson
newspapers and convinced of the advan-
tages of belonging to the company invest
ed in stock.
The concern was conducted much on
the plan of the ordinary building and
loan association, and those who took
shares paid in regular monthly INSTALL
ments upon them According to its
scheme when certain number of these
assessments had been paid the sharehoId-
ers were entitled to a loan. Last October
Kinner had reached the loan limit and
made application for his loan, but his ap-
plication was refused. Thinking that
something was wrong he consulted James
H. Cocker a justice of the peace of Pat
erson Cocker wrote to William Bette,
the State Commissioner of Banking and
Insurance asking for information concern
ing the Empire Loan and Investment
Company. Mr. Bettle wrote back a long
letter in which he said that the officers
of the concern were: Alonzo B. Cornell,
president; James Gilfllen, treasurer: John
r. Loomis, Secretary, and G. W. Cross
man, general manager. The company
had not filed in the department any
copy of its certificate of Incorporation, by
laws, etc, as required by law. The re-
port of the concerns business and stand
ing, Mr.. Bettle said, would not be due un-
til the close of its fiscal year.
Upon receipt of this letter the three
petitioners went to the office of the COM
pany in Newark and demanded state
ment of it's assets and liabilities but all
information was refused there. The next
time they went to the office they found
that the concern had moved to Jersey
City. They called at the Jersey City
office on several occasions and always
found it closed and no one in the building
seemed to know where the officers were.
At this time Kinner had $127.50 in the
concern; Portebouff, s11, and Mrs. Wean-
merschoff, $40. They consulted Counsellor
st. Lawrence and instructed him to bring
suit. 1t is charged in the bill that the
expense of the concern exceeded the re-
| ceipts and that the shareholders money
| was used for carry on the concern.
| The Vice Chancellor gave Mrl st.
| Lawrence an order requiring the officers
| of the company to show cause why they
! should not be restrained from doing busi-
ness and why receiver for the company
shall not be appointed.