Morgan County democrat. (Versailles, Mo.) 1900-1906, 1905-04-28
friends were in the court room during
the brief proceedings

lieving MI. Bigelow from the presi.
dency Of the bank, Henry Coll. assist
ant cashier, was also removed. The
removal Of the assistant cashier was
due to the statement Of President
Bigelow that he was aided by Coll in
%concealing the shortage In the banks
accounts.
The method adopted was an old
one. Collection accounts were manip-
ulated to the extent Of 40 and in some
cases so per cent, to make It appear
that the reserve fund was intact and
the amount of the increased collection
fund was diverted to special stock
operations. The reserve maintained in
eastern banks was tempered with, the
books of the First national being fixed
so that the reserve appeared to be
larger by several hundreds of thous-
ands Of dollars than it really was.
These and other methods were pur-
sued by Bigelow In obtaining money
from the bank. In the classifying of
records and the manipulation Of the
reserves, Bigelow declares he was
aided by Assistant Cashier Coll and
the two bookkeepers in the bank.
These bookkepers acted on the orders
Of Bigelow, and they have neither been
discharged nor suspended, and they will
be called as witnesses in the criminal
proceedings against the former bank
president.
AS oon as the directors as~certained
the full extent of the populations steps
were taken to protect the depositors
and other creditors. Charles E.
Pfster subscribed 5000, 900 to a fund to
make good the surplus; John I. Beggs,
president Of the Milwaukee Electric
Railway & Light Co., gave $500 900;
William Bigelow, a brother of the pres
ident, added 100000 to the amount.
Other directors subscribed lesser sums
until the amount raised reached ST.
635, 900.
Prior to this the directors had been
In conference with the leading bankers
of Chicago and New York, Three Chi.
cago bankers, Presidents j. l.: For
gan of the First national bank; Orson
Smith of the Merchants Loan & Trust
Co., and Ernst A. Hammill of the Corn
Exchange national ~hank-three of the
leading financial institutions of Chica-
to Milwaukee on an early
train and went into conference with
the directors of the First national. AS
a result of this meeting 81 ,000. 900 was
sent to Milwaukee by Chicago banks
to reach the city before the news OF
the defalcation was made public. Sew
cral hundred thousand dollars In gold
was transferred to the First national
by local banks, so that institution was
prepared for the run that was inevita-
BILE, Every precaution had been taken
to keep the fact of the shortage from
the public until the affairs of the bank
could be put in condition to meet any
emergencies that might arise.
When the bank closed its doors
Monday afternoon more than 1000 de-
positors were clamoring for their
money. Nearly 5 1000, 900 had been paid
out in the course of two hours, and
but q small percentage Of the customers
demanding the closing of their ac-
counts had been served. One Of the
first callers was a business man who
a check for $lOO, 900. the n
tire amount of his account. He was
followed by the city treasurer who
drew out 100000 of the city funds.
The throngs on East Water street
were besieging the Wisconsin Trust
CO., the savings bank department OF
the First national bank, and here the
run assumed the greatest proportions.
When the doors of the bank closed
fully 1000 anxious men and women
surrounded the doors of the bank and
the trust company, clamoring for their
money, But while many dcpositors
were seeking TO withdraw their funds,
other people who believed in the
soundness of the bank were coming
forward with deposits. And 80 per-
sistent were the friends Of the bank
in offering money for deposit that when
the bank closed there was a line OF
depositors IL waiting in opposition to
the line awaiting to withdraw their
money.
Money Is on the way from New York
to strengthen the OF the
Dank, anu lle ulrtCtoIS eAPc'' W ~
able to met all demands promptly.
They claim that the actual condition OF
the bank has not yet been impaired by
the Bigelow defalcation.
At nine o'clock Monday night every
thing wa quiet in the vicinity OF the
bank. Posted on all the windows and
the stone columns to the entrance 10
the bank were printed notices issued
-, ~ li,o,,,r, etatiup tho yariouS