New-York tribune., 1905-11-11
REBATES FOR HEGEMAN.
Low RATES FOR ". Il. READ
Stock Sales Under MGrket Price
CHARGED to Metropolitan Life.

"A Il
member of vermilye & Co., and later of W. A.
Read & Co., supplied the most interesting de-
velopments of the insurance investigation yes
terday. First. Mr.. Hughes sought to prove
that the Metropolitan had made large loans
to w. A. Read. at rate Of interest below the
prevailing market rate. Two loans of this sort,
one of 100000 and another of 81 100000, were
brought up. Following this. Mr.. Hughes
brought out several instances where the Metro
politan had sold stock either through
w. A. Read at a price under the market rate
prevailing at the time, shown by financial
journals of the date.
Still pursuing this trail. Mr.. Hughes
cred a set of private accounts between Vermilye
& Co., while Mr.. Read member of the
firm, and subsequently one with w. A. Read
& Co., in which Mr.. Hegeman. the president
of the Metropolitan, had received of
money a rebates interest in several private
accounts. There less mystery
about these rebates. Mr. Hegeman could not
supply the amounts; he testified that Vermilye
& Co. not credited with them and insisted
that he never received any transcript of them.
Mr. Hughess examination this point
seemed to imply that he searching into
this private account between Hegeman and
Vermilye & Co. and later with w. A. Read.
for an explanation of the apparent sale Of
Metropolitan stock through to Vermilye &
20. at less Jnan the marke1 price ana also
for the loans to Mr. Read at reduced rates,
but no real or apparent connection was shown
by the testimony yesterday.
One other somewhat surprising set of cir
cumstances uncovered regarding these
relations between the Metropolitan and Yer
miiye x Co. At the end of each year. the
testimony indicated, the Metropolitan was ac-
customed send the list of its securities TO
Nermilye & Co. for valuation. An examination
of the valuation set by the brokers and a COM
parson of it with values for the same stocks
quoted in financial journals showed that in
several instances the vermilye figures
higher. Moreover, it was also brought out
that these apparent overvaluations had occurred
in stocks sold to the Metropolitan by Vermilye
& Co. or bought for the insurance company by
this firm. Mr.. Hegeman insisted however, that
there was significance in this and disputed
the accuracy of the figures quoted by the
financial journals
SOME AMUSING MOMENTS.
In the general testimony Of the day there We're
several humorous incidents. First there the
mother-in-law joke, suggested by the letter of
| man who had insured his mother-in-law in the
| Metropolitan and obtained a paid-up policy for
| her. But instead of dying before the paid
| characteristic obstinacy insisted upon living
/ and the had appealed to Mr.. Hughes for
/ relief. The appearance of Joseph Howard. jr
the veteran scribe whose receipts for literary
! services from the Mutual Life had been men
| toned in earlier sessions. provoked some amuse
| ment, due to the mingled eaTnestness and pater
nalism displayed by the witness, There
general laugh when he explained the nature of
"readi.g notices." His explanation that
these were always marked in some way to dis
/ tinguish them from ordinary news matter. 'ex-
| cept ia the Of religious papers" He de-
| scribed himself the discoverer of the idea of
| the religious paper an advertising medium
! for insurance companies.
| William Barnes. ST.. a former State Superin-
| tendent of Insurance whose honorarium from
the Mutual testified to at earlier
sion was the most vOluble witness who has yet
appeared before the committee. He had a
voluminous statement to make. for which he
| received leave to print But ne managed to
| make a detailed statement of his services to
| insurance companies, the inquty of the Brach-
| EFT BILL which he fought before the legislature
last year. and finally the unchanged condition
of the Equitable, which, he declared, was still
a '-one man company He insisted the
! organization merely a substitution of
Thomas F. Ryan for James II. Hyde.
He showed clearly enough, however, that he
! had been paid merely for his legal arguments
at the legislature and had never done any other
kind OF work
Mr.. Barnes testified tha: he had appeared
before tho legislative committee after cor
| ference with Andrew Hamilton. anG had been
paid for MS work by both the Mutual and the
| New York Life
PAYMENT TO HAMILTON.
The trail of Andrew Hamilton and his legis-
; lative activities was reopened in another way
| when payments to him by the Metropolitan
| over . series of years were shown, aggregating
| $4,000 But nothing shown to indicate
| that there was Metropolitan yellow dog fund.
That the Metropolitan had also made cam
laiCH contributions was OF the Develop
| rlents of the morning session. Two of these,
| enc to The Palmer and Buckner Sound Money
Democratic: campaign fund of $1,000 and $500
+, the Republican National Committee, both in
| 1926 were testified to by Mr.. Hegemar. who
fe,'arna that these were the only contributions
| the Netrouolftar had made. and that they were
,,eearded more as discharge of moral obliga-
| i'm than as d mere campaign fund. Haley
l-iel, president of the Metropolitan, viii be
asked later to tell about the legislative work of
1he Metropolitan as he had charge of it
The examination OF sir HeEeman regarding
the relations existing between ". =. Read and
YerInilyc & Co follows;
a-Ar,ong The collateral luLnS nude py The
7lEfrencIftsn Life Insurance Company find under
80 ~ N43e- 20 1891, demand loan to William
! A Ieead of S2G9O00. at 152 per cent interest. Is
That e,,,tiS william e CO.. 1 hEe5 '''''' urn
~ Nav, it appears from The commercial and
I'm i;'!iSl nc vck ended May Il 1891 ranged at the
sta.k Exchange from 10 per cent with an
t|re,f stY,te az per cent. end that banks and
+I,,Ss+ Sor1rl,lies from per It. and for the
vyeek ended May y at the stock Exchange from
- iarks and trust companies. per cent II