The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-11

about noon on Feb. % and said, I have
a proposition l would like to submit to
you which think you will like; at
least / hope you will l asked him
what 1T was and he said: 7 want you
and your brother to take up your in
terest in the old company; I will get
contract that is equal to the old, if not
better; I will retain my old interest in
the company and buy VOTERS interest
and be glad to stay in with YOU I re-
marked, as previously stated, that our
relations would be unpleasant; but aft
erwards, my brother and Mr.. Bronson
having agreed I consented to the ar
rangement.
But Immediately after my accept
ance of the terms proposed, and as ar
ranged and agreed on by Mr.. Bronson
and my brother, Mr.. Bronson turn
dan, if you will give me that
$21, 200 worth of stock or let me
have it l can place it where it will do
US lots Of good remarked, I am
disguised with the whole proceedings
and turning to my brother I said, If
you want to go on with this I will con-
sent to give up the stock and take it
out of my portion
Then Mr.. Bronson asked what price
L
ought to be worth a certain amount.
He said, You should not ask me any
more than I paid you. for the stock
answered, We'll, go ahead and figure it
up, and he and my brother figured up
the amount and I told him that would
transfer the stock whenever the con-
tract was concluded.
VOTERS Apparent Interest.
"NIr.s Bronson, in his proposition when
asking US to rescind the contract, posi-
lively stated and asserted that he would
buy Mr.. VOTERS interest out; but
when the board left their room, as
above stated, for consultation with
view to submitting proposition to us,
Mr.. Wolfer, as l related first, said that
if his son had caused rumorS to be cir
culated as stated he would never allow
him to go into the prison again; and
then made the request, as stated, that
if l would come back with them he
would treat me right and see that
was protected From this remark I
was assured that Mr.. Bronson had not
bought out Mr.. VOTERS interest, and
the $4,000 worth of stock which he
had requested me to sell him and which
he said he could place to a good ad-
vantage, was going to Mr.. Wolfer.
Believing this in my own mindt to be
d. ldCl, L uclGI1IlluSu lIGQ dHQ llSIC "
throw the whole matter over, and did
so before leaving the capitol, where the
board was sitting. And l had every
reason to expect, after my interview
with the board, that if they published
at all they would publish the
whole. facts, as they were assured and
knew that I was ready at any time to
bring evidence, if my own statement
was not sufficient. The publications they
have given out are certainly wrong.
"Now, what 1 want to make clear in
the foregoing history is this: The firm
of w. B. & w. G. Jordan took this orig
inal contract for the state prison labor
in shoes after the failure of TarboX,
Schliek & Co. 1t was through the in
tervention and negotiations of Mr..
Wolfer, as I have described, that Mr..
Bronson came into the concern when
the corporation of w. B. & w. G.. Jor-
dan company was formed, capitalized
at 100000, of which $4,000 was as
signed to Mr.. B5onson, as has been
stated. Our contract, that is to say, the
contract of that corporation, would ex-
pire with the STAKE of Minnesota Sep
TENDER, 1904. Mr. Bronson, from the
formation of the corporation, was
member of the board of directors and,
with my brothzr, w. G. Jordan, Mr..
Conley and ~. Caldwell, were the Still
water members of the corporation.
Nov, when Mr.. Bronson informed
me on Feb. 3, as l have stated, that he
and Mr.. Wolfer proposed to bid against
our corporation for this prison contract,
1 became satisfied that the Jordans
were not being treated properly. l was
then prepared to protect our rights by
making to the state bid for this work
and continue this work with our cor
poration, notwithstanding Bronson and
VOTERS attitude; but when Bronson
proposed to buy the Jordans out, l pre-
ferred that means of getting rid OF the
entire thing and of an association
which was beginning, to my mind, to
appear entirely unreliable.
Protects His Interest.
TN the negotiations, between Bron--
son and Wolfer and myself up to the
time that we actually made the sale,
I was guarding my interest from the
contingency of their influence with the
state authorities, enabling them to
have an adverse bid accepted, and l
determined to compel them to either
buy out our interest or act fairly with
us in the matter. When the sale was
effected and Bronson came back with
his subsequent proposition that
should re-enter the corporation and
continue the matter in the old way,
that is, with the old corporation,
agreed to that, not on my account but
on my brothers account, as he had
built up the business and was anxious
to carry it out. But when [ further
found that Mr.. Bronson continued to
propose his further dealing in stock,
and that $4,000 of the stock should
further be disposed of by him where
he said it would do the most good, [
determined to cut myself loose from
any further association with Mr.. Bron-
son and Mr.. Wolfer, and this conclu-
sion was very strongly aided by Mr..
VOTERS attitude and remarks, as l
have related.
Il have fully informed the board of
Mr.. VOTERS connection in this matter
as 1 learned it, but not until after it
was effected; for at the time that 1
new corporation capitalizing it for
5000 900. letting him have $4,000 of
the stock, with some small amount to
Mr.. Conley out of our joint holdings
and some to Mr. Caldwell, l had no
knowledge that Mr.. Wolfer was per-
sonally interested in our corporation
or that he was to share with Mr.. Bron-
son in the stock which had been al
lotted to the latter.
Says Others Knew of the Facts.
1.-THE facts that have so far related,
together with all of the details sur
them and other details of the
action of Mr.. Bronson and Mr.. Wolfer
concerning the general features of the
matter, are known not only to myself
c.. n..,..,. n.,,. go.