The evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1907-1908, 1907-10-15
WINS YET ON JOB
WILL HAVE THOSE MISSING
BOOKS DUPLICATED.
Prober Into Inter-Met Affairs Not Easily
MISUNDERSTANDING at Work
on Reconstruction.

NEW YORK, Oct. 15.-William M. WINS.
counsel for the Public Service Commission
in the 1nterborough Metropolitan invests
CATION, has undertaken to reconstruct the
Metropolitan's missing books from 1892
to 1902. This is the period which covers
all of the mergers of the surface lines.
The Metropolitan's officers have testified
that the books for this period were sold
in 1903 to a junk dealer with the under
standing that they were to be destroyed.
The reason given for the destruction of
the books was that they took up too much
office room.
The Public Service Commission has
traced the sale of the books and has salts
fled itself that they we're ground into pulp.
Without some approximation of the rec
ords Contained in these books it would
be impossible for the commissions lawyers
to bring out the facts about the various
mergers.
Mr.. WINS has a small force of account
ants at work and the reconstruction is
well advanced. The necessary information
for the work has beer obtained after dill
gent search in minute books, stub checks,
official reports, various financial publica-
tons and other miscellaneous records.
The accountants when they get through
expect to have a set of books that will
show at least the details of the merger
transactions, and that. in the opinion of
the commission, is the most important in
formation contained in the destroyed
records.
This work and a number of new clues
that have been turned by Mr.. WINS will
probably prevent the taking of any testi-
mony this week. Mr.. WINS said today that
he possibly would be In readiness to con-
tinue the examination on Thursday and
Friday.
According to news items which have been
coming out from Philadelphia for several
days p. A. B. Widener was due today to
appear at the offices of the commission
with the formal announcement that he
would be willing to go on the witness
stand whenever the commission wanted
him. Chairman Wilcox said at the close
of his office hours that he had not seen
Mr.. Widener,~ and MI. Wins had not
noticed him down around his office in
William street.
It is doubtful if the commission would
put Mr.. Widener on the stand unless he
would waive all right to the Immunity
which his appearance woul confer upon
him. That is the stand which the commas
sion has taken in regard to several OF the
other prominent Metropolitan directors.
wall street nedIu that VA
Thomas Dolan, Thomas f. Ryan and otner
Metropolitan persons concerned IN the
Wall and Cortlandt street ferries deal met
on Sunday at the home of THOMAS a.
Nevins, IN East Orange. 1t was said that
the conferees desired to get eacn other s
opinion as to where they stand as a result
of last wcekas disclosures.
Urdn~htedly one of the topics discussed
was impre ssion created by the Wide
ner-Dolan explanation that the Anthony
N. Brady checks for Sill, 652.7 IS received by
them were in payment of loans which they
had made to William C. Whitney. Mr..
Nevins declined to be interviewed on the
reported conference.
Mr.. Nevins came into touch with the
Ryan Dolan. Widener. Elkins interests
through his father, who, before he went
to live in Ireland, had acquired large tgac-
ton ana gas holdings.
District Attorney Jerome conferred with
Chairman Wilcox of the Public Service
noon, but neither had anything to say for
pul0ication in regard to the meeting. Mar.
Wilcox did have something to say in re-
gard to the published reports that the com
mission has already taken up with Gov
ernor Hughes the ad~visability of appoint
ing a special prosecutor for the traction
cases.
I'VE have not made any such request"
said Mr.. Wilcox. NOR have we sent any
communication to the Governor bearing
upon the subject. We have sent day by
day a full report of the testimony taken
at the Investigation to District Attorney
Jerome, but further than that l do not
care to discuss the matter at present"