The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1903-02-19
COUNTERFEIT SEALS.
Gold Bond Companies Used Bogus
Documents.

Lies MONIES rep, lf.--FOuT Oh Inc
well known financial institutions of
the city of Des Moines, or rather three
that are in existence and one that
lately retired, have been neatly caught
in trap which places them in a very
bad light before the public, to say the
least, and leaves open a question as to
whether or not their leading officials
have not been guilty of serious in
fraction of the laws of the state. These
are the well known insurance COM
panies organized under the laws of the
state, but issuing what are known as
''ten-year gold bonds" on which inn
mense profits are promised. They are
the National Life and Trust, the North
western Life and Savings, the Mutual
Life and Tru-t and the late Security
Life and Savings. These four COM
panies were organized a few years ago
when the building and loan laws were
becoming too stringent for good bust
ness to carry on a similar investment
enterprise. The promoters drew into
them a number of state officials and
prominent business men of the state,
and these have been quietly drawing
out for some time, since the insurance
departments of other states have been
making too close Investigations. When
State Auditor Carroll came into his
Office the first of the year he made
careful investigation of the Office rec
ords and he discovered that while
these had been during most Of their
existence good customers of the state,
paying into the state treasury regular
ly many dollars in fees for a certain
class of work, they had almost ceased
this some time ago. He set on foot
a little investigation into the cause Of
the loss of business. He soon found
out, and therein he has done not only
the state a good service, but has done
a good service to many in other states
who were being deceived by a clever
forgery of the official seal of his office
SSs
For a number of years it has been
customary for the insurance COM
panies to procure from the state audi.
tor certificates for their use in certain
cases. These consist of quotation Of
that part of the law which required
that all companies organized under
the Iowa law shall deposit with the
state auditor securities to cover the
face or redeemable value of the pol
icy obligation out. This is the main
stay of Iowa insurance companies. In
addition the state auditor has certi-
fed that the company sending out the
certificate, naming it, has in fact com.
piled with the law and has these Sc
curities on deposit. This is signed by
the state auditor and his official seal
placed thereon, so that the customers
everywhere may know that the bust
ness is in accordance with law. The
state has been realizing from $1,000 to
$4,000 a year out of this business.
The companies send them to their
agents to show to doubling persons,
and of late they have been sending
them out enclosed in every policy,
that the recipient may be treasured.
But this demand for the certificates
from this class of companies had sud-
denly ceased. The safe got fifty
cents for each and every one for affix-
ing the official seal. The loss was
quite noticeable. Mr.. Carroll set out
to discover the cause, and by little
detective work soon had in his posses
sion some of the certificates now be-
ing used. They were in the usual
form, but with a printed facsimile of
the former state auditors name or sig
nature and an imitation of the state
auditors seal. He consulted with the
attorney general and with other state
officials in regard to the legality OF
this, and having satisfied himself that
the whole scheme was a barefaced
fraud and an imposition on the state
and the people, he proceeded to put
stop to it.
He called before him Secretary
Flynn, of the Mutual, and asked an ex-
PLANTATION. Mr.. Flynn excused himself
by saying that he did it because the
others were doing so and he had been
informed by the printers that it was
all right and legal. He called Presi-
NGuI OLcl4 NO. VI NlLS -NtlIlO44tllB bNAOAN
him and put the same questions . Mr..
Starnes cOntended that it had been
authorized by Mr.. Merriam, the form
er state auditor, whose signatures were
being used. Mr. Carroll pointed out
that it was clearly illegal to make use
of an imitation of the seal of a state
official. He insisted that the custom
be dropped at once and secured the
name of the printer. This was George
A. Miller, one of the Oldest job print
ers in the city, and it appeared that he
had been doing business for all the
companies in this way. He was sent
for and said that the order had been
placed with him by the representatives
of one of the companies to fill and he
had been assured that it was entirely
legal. But to make sure that he was
not transcending the state laws he had
also sent his solicitor to State Auditor
Merriam and had been assured that
there was no objection to his proceed
ing to make the certificates in this
way. All the parties protested inn