The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1905-02-18

| to take or underwrite certain number
Of shares. paying one dollar per share.
20 per cent. Of the purchase price. at
the outset and the balance within GER
tain specified times.
The understanding was, however,
that those who had underwritten the
stock would not pay the one-dollar price
unless the money became necessary for
the development OF the mining property.
the promotion Of stock sales, and 60 on.
That is. while they agreed to pay GER
tain amount should the exigency arise. II
It did not arise they would be SO much
more ito the good"
Resort to Washing.
Brokers who were members Of the ex-
change were readily found who were
willing to dispose Of q certain number OF
shares a month, and what they received
was to 60 60 per cent. to them and 40
per cent. to those who had underwritten
the stock in the beginning. 1t was then
decided that In order to sell the stock
at price above one dollar per share,
1t would be necessary to resort to the
process known as washing"
In other words. they agreed to them
selves purchase the stock at high fig
ure, in order to set that as the market
rate. Par being five dollars, and they
having obtained it at one dollar, they
arranged for street } sales at $3.50
and 50, themselves buying at that
rate, in order to show that the stock
was active and to induce the public to
buy at the same price.
In point Of fact, so as to make show
ing the stock were themselves bidding
on 1t, all the transactions being credited
on the books. 1t has been shown that,
lured by this system, one outsider
bought 1000 shares, at from $3.50 to So.
In dispOsing of the stock, Munroe &
Munroe washed" about 5000 900 shares
or more in the process of getting rid Of
about 10000 shares. for which they are
said to have paid the company not more
than $4,000 in all. The brokerage on
raising this $4,000 is more than $780,
600, because they had to pay commits
sions on the whole 100000 shares.
How Sales Were Made.
The Munroes would give orders to GER
tain brokers to sell and to other brokers
to buy. When they sold they would
get check the following morning, and
then they would use that check, turning
it over to the brokers they had employed
to buy. The result was that December
z, the cay of the failure, they received
checks in payment for the stock sold
the day before, and they used these
checks to pay for stock they had bought
the day before, but when it came to
their paying for the stock they bought
on DecembeE7, they had not the money;
the endless chain" broke, the Munroes
went into bankruptcy, and all these per-
sons are creditors for the stock.
Before this situation was reached,
however, the Munroes had their day of
prosperity, or, rather, George did, for he
is the head and front of the combina-
ton, even though his brother was SEN
ior member of the firm. When they
came here they were aggressive and en-
thusiastic young fellows, of the type
that is liked in Wall street, and they
quickly made friends. Mr.. LOOMS was
one of these. and Leach another, and
both Of these are names to conjure with
in financial circles. Loomis became
chairman of the syndicate's executive
committee, and it was through his in
fiuence that the loans were obtained
from the National City bank.
Reputed a Millionaire.
The friendship of men like these
brought other friends to the brothers,
and before long George Munroe was
reputed to be millionaire. 1t is said
he lived at the rate of from $4,000 to
$10O,000 year. this young man who only
a little while before had been a haber-
dasher. He had luxurious home on
East Fifty-seventh street, and another
at Southampton, l.. l., and often he &C.
cupied suite at the Waldorf-Astoria.
A Costly Junket.
He always did things In lavish fash
ion. When Montreal & Boston was
at the height of its exploitation, Munroe
thought 1t would be a good plan to lei
those whom he was trying to interest in
1t see the actual mine property. Now
1t lies away off in British Columbia, on
the foothills of the Selkirks, and it costs
money to take a party out there. He
never considered the expense. A pri.
vate car was chartered. loaded witt
everything OF the best in the commissar,
line, and the junketers started away
George could not go, but Alexander tooa
charge.
The party included senators, bankers
politicians, and newspaper men-every
body, In fact, who might be of some ale
in advertising the mine.
They stopped at various cities on thu
way out and had 4 jolly time.
Not Unlike Fiction.
The revelations In the Munroe cas-
make 1t not unlike the story told in on
Of Emile Gaboriau's novels in which
Partisan set of men in the sixties VIII,
needed Office furniture rented 1t by tn
week from firm whose business It wa
to outfit people who needed SUMPTION
Offices temporarily.
| fThe firm Gahoriau nictured could n,