The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1905-05-31
DIRECTORS SUED
BY STOCKHOLDERS
Charged with Reckless and
RuinOus Mismanagement
WHO THEY ARE.
A Review OF the Case and What the
Plaintiff will Endeavor TO Prove
Prominent Men Connected with II

Plaintiff will Endeavor TO Prove
Prominent Men Connected with II.
GREENWOOD, May q. The expected
has happened in the matter of the City
Bank of this place which closed it's
doors almost exactly two years ago to
the day.
Mrs. Lucy M. Seigwald, stock
holder, owning az shares of stock,
through her attorneys, Messrs. Cald-
we'll d Giles, of Greenwood has
brought suit against the directors of
the above named bank, charging them
with reckless and ruinous misman-
agement, " and further that "they had
failed to meet in consultation in even
two years, that "by gross and outra-
geous negligence they permit ed grossly
false statements to be printed in news
papers, whereby persons We're led to
purchase stock" and lastly that these
men allowed it to be wrecked"
through their own personal agent,
James F. Davis, called the president of
the bank though not owning dollars
worth of stock in the bank, and there
fore these men are responsible person
ally for the amount of the capital stock.
The complaint is closely written
typewriter document of II pages and
will be highly sensational when made
public. The following is a summary
taken from the verifcation of the COM
plant:
Wherefore, the plaintiff charges
that the said d. A. P. Jordan, presi-
dent and the said James F. Davis, the
personal agent of the defendant direc-
tors, styling himself with their sane
tion President of said bank, have been
culpably wasteful of the property of
the stockholders; that those two per-
sons, especially the said James F. Da-
Wis; have lost securities which he held
on loans by neglecting to record mort
cages in his possession; that the direc-
tors are personally responsible for the
misdoings and failures of the said Jas.
F. Davis, their own agent.
This is the crux of the whole matter.
The directors, all men of wealth. are
sued because they allowed Mr.. j. F.
Davis to act as president of the City
Bank when he did not own a single
share of stock in the bank, when the,
state laws require man to own not
less than ten shares, and that by so do
ing they are themselves responsible for
his acts as he was their own agent and
not the presidnt in law. The City
Bank was organized in 1891, by the
late d. A. P. Jordon. He was presi-
dent and the late DIR. j. c. Maxwell
was vice president James F. Davis
was the first cashier The board of di-
rectors is the same now with the ex-
ception of G. A. Barksdale, who re-
signed and the two deceased members,
d. A. P. Jordon and DR.. j. C. Max
well, the two members, E. S. Tinsley
and j. S. Klugh being put in their
places. There are no minutes to show
for any meeting at which these two
men were made directors nor in whose
place they were chosen, but they are
parties in the action The complaint
goes on to show how in some dozen or
more of cases Mr.. Davis accepted
mortgages for security for loans and it
was six months or more in each case
before these mortgages were recorded.
The most sensational statement is
that when the firm of Hall & Rice was
in business here, they were allowed to
check out $28, 900 without any security
whatever, and although w. P. Hall
surrendered his handsome home and
other property here, yet the bank real
lied not more than $4,000 from the
sale of this property and that therefore
the bank was the loser to the extent of
$4,000 by this carelessness. Although
no other stockholders are mentioned in
the complaint which has been served by
the sheriff on the directors, yet it is
understood that large majority of
them approve of the action and the
reason that they have not been made
parties is that they are too numerous
to mention" The bank had capital
stock of 100000, with shares at $50, the
share and therefore had out 1000
shares The failure Of this bank was
the greatest blow ever received by
Greenwood and one that has been a
keen wound ever since to the people.
Two banks have sprung up in town in
the place of it, and both are doing
well.
The following are the Defendants
who are sued for $50, 0,OOC: VIM. Bailey,
j, S. Marse, E. S. Tinsl.y, j. S. Klugh
and James F. Davis, in his own right,
and as President and Receiver of City
Bank. -Spartanburg Herald.
ID Thank the Lord!"
cried Hannah Plant, of Little Rock,
Ark, for the relief pot from Ruck