Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-08-26
Directors of the Society Join
State In Asking For a Full
Investigation.
IRREGULARITIES ARE ADMITTED
Admission is Made That Officials Of
the Equitable Have Been Guilty o.
Improper and Illegal Acts Tho
Charges Answered by the Directors.
Claim Ignorance.

New York. Aug. 26.--The Equitable
Life Assurance Society has Joined with
the state of New York in asking for a
full investigation in court Of it's direct
ors and officers and their alleged wrong
doings In managing the moneys OF the
society.
The document which announced this
determination was the answer Of the
forty-nine Equitable directors TO
charges made against them In connec-
ton with suit brought against the
Equitable Life Assurance Society by
the state. This answer was filed with
Attorney General julius M. Mayer
Admission Is made that some officials
OF the Equitable have been guilty Of
improper and illegal acts. In all thir-
teen charges are answered by the di-
rectors. Among these answers they
admit the $250,000 loan to the Depew
Improvement Company. They admit
the $6S5,000 loan OF the Mercantile
Trust Company, but waive responsible
ity in this loan SO far as the board Of
directors are concerned. and indicate
Messrs. Alexander. Jordan and Dem-
ing as the persons. having the most
intimate knowledge of these transact
tons.
The charge that excessive salaries
were paid to officers of the Equitable
Is not directly answered. but admis
~ to T3a hat trt, nf "a L..
aries. excessive fees were given to cer-
tain Equitable officials who were also
directors in other companies. In de-
Tense the answer states that the prac-
tees were not known to the whole
board Of directors.
Outlining their belief as to- the best
policy to pursue in fixing the blame
for the Equitable scandals, the direct
ors say that the blame for alleged cases
of misconduct will be found to rest on
Individual officers and not upon the
directors as body Having made this
explanation, the answer then admits IN
a general way the wrongdoing charged.
The first charge specifically an
swered is that premises on Broadway
were let at inadequate rental to thu
Mercantile Safe Deposit Company. This
Is admitted, but9it Is denied that at
the time this lease was made James
Fl. Hyde, James w. Alexander, Will
lam Alexander, Gage e. Tarbell, VAL
entine p. Snyder, Thomas D. Jordan.
Charles B. Alexander, Henry .. Win
throp, Alvin w. Kreich and William
H. Mcintyre We're stockholders and
directors in the Mercantile Safe Depos-
it Company.
With certain reservations, admission
is then made that the capital stock OF
the Missouri Safe Deposit Company.
was acquired by the Equitable Society
which paid $3.50 per share, for shares
Of a par value of 500. The reserva-
lions in favor of the Equitable, In con-
nection with this charge. include
claim that these allegations are true
In respect to certain Of the Equitable
officers, but that the alleged purchases
we're never known to the whole board
Of directors.
Az to excessive and unwarranted
loans to agents the reply admits that
they were made.
The directors further admit that the
officers who permitted wasteful. I'M
provident and improper advances OF
money to agents may have been guilty
Of grave errors Of judgment but assert
that they have. no information sufri-
cient to confirm a, belief that these Of
ficers were not knowingly guilty OF
such improper acts. Instances are
mentioned in which the system Of
making advances to agents is neces-
sary and proper within reasonable
limits. 56
The consolidation Of the Western
National bank Of New York City with
the National Bank of the United
States of New York, by which mon
ey loss resulted to the Equitable so
ciety and profit to some Of it's direc-
tors is also admitted. But the direc-
tors say that the responsibility for
these losses must be divided among
those Individual defendants. who "di-
rectly participated in, or had. or by
reason Of their official duties and posi-
ton should have had knowledge OF
the transactions"
The table Of alleged improper sal
aries to Equitable officers, which was
embodied in the states charges, is de-
clared to be true statement OF the
figures A direct admission is then
made that these sums were paid with
out sufficient vouchers or auditing, but
the directors say their opinion is re-
served as to whether "such sums were
large and in all cases warranted,
Admission of greater latitude, how
ever, is made on the subject Of pen
sions and to the charges that money
under the guise Of fees was received
by directors and stockholders who
were simultaneously officers of the
Equitable and other corporations At
ter admitting that these moneys were
received as charged, the reply states:
Defendants Were Ignorant.
"Many of these defendants were ig-
uorant of said transactions which were
not of character necessarily known
to the whole board of directors"
Further on the report states: "Some
Of said pensions were found to be JUS
tifiable, other excessive and some i'm
proper"
RUSSIAN GRAIN TRADE KILLED.
Military Takes All Cars and Black