The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-02-07
RECEIVER FOR TIE
RARO|. c ],MPAYY
Nobody Seems to Care What
Has Become Of the Man
w. H. Hardin.
PARTNERS APPEAR IN COURT
Charge Runaway With Embezzlc-
mcnt, But Do Not Ask Tor a
Criminal Warrant.
PARTNERS APPEAR in. COURT
ncnt, But Do Not Ask Tor
Criminal Warrant.

The w. Il. Hardin Company Qncorpo-
lntod), which has been doing broker
age business for something like year
past at 1lS South Fourteenth Street, Is
In the hands OF receiver. and placed
there ON namotlon III the Chancery Court
by the moncyed partners Of the concern.
BY order OF the court Mr.. Philip Meise.
Jr, becomes the receiver. And thereby
hangs tale.
w. il. Hardin, the president OF the
company, and the active manager or the
business has been missing from his ace
oustomed httunts for about three weeks.
All sorts OF stories have been made public
as TO the cause OF his absence. One
was to the effect that he was at the
bedside OF a Sick mother in South Caro-
lima, and another was that sick wife
in North Carolina claimed his attention,
and both stories had to Them postscripts
that the aIling relatives being better
physically, Mr. Hardin was. or soon
would be. on his way to Richmond. lie
did not show up, however, at the APP
pointed time, and the stories OF sick
relatives appearing to be off in color, his
silent partners became tired OF tho con-
dtlon of affairs and entered into an in
vestfgation.
Deplorable Condition.
l
dition. financially speaking, Among other
| things 1t was found that all of the avail
] able paper OF the concern had been con-
verted into cash. and that Hardin had
. utilized the Same to his own advantage.
| and, in addition, he negotiated the firms
I paper at d bank for So. 900. got the same
cashcd and handled the cash in his own
| way.
The bill in chanccry which Judge Grin
| nan acted on yesterday morning was filed
! by w +. Denl, G.. Q. Deal and l.. A. S.
| Deal, the men who put up the money to
| organize the company.
! These men, who are partners In the
| concern, fatty charge Hardin with ems
bezzlement, and on their representations
] tho court, appointed a receiver, who, about
| 4 o'clock yesterday afternoon, took charge
! OF the business.
Says He Fleeced Them.
The Messrs Deal aIlegc In their bila
that Hardin is a defaultcr and embeZzer
| to the extent OF s3,275.2s. and they assert
I! that he systematically feeced them after
! bamboozing them into partnership with
him. All OF these charges are set forth
i In the application for a receiver and de-
tails are entered into.
| According to these allegations, the W..
l II. Hardin Company, incorporated, was
I granted charter In March, 1906, and be-
| gan business with $1,000 paid In capital
Tho Deals backed the venture with their
4 cash, Hardin contributed his experience
i OF many years In the general merchant
J disc and brokerage business. :.
1 He was made president and general
manager; c. o. Deal was elected secrc-
4 tary and treasui ev, and these two with
4 w. f, Deal, formed the board OF di-
rcctors.
j Hardin's partners allcge that the firm
d was doing n profitable business when the
.{n
. tons. They specify that in March last
! Hardin went to the Merchants National
& Bnnk and discounted a note for 5000
without their. knowledge or consent; that
or November 2lst, November 26th. DE
comber Sd December 10Th he collected
debts duo the firm by w. C. Boyd. re-
ccivlng checks for $50, Sl74.cO.5 500 and S25
respectively; that he cashcd these checks
y and appropriated the money. Again OH
i December 10th they allege he opened 4
letter addressed to the company, appro-
priated the check Of Swanson brothers
a. Co. Of Danville, for $lo,.43 and en-
bczzled this amount,
in Hands Of Receiver.
Their suspicious being aroused that al
was not going lust as good business
should go. the Deals employed special
accountant to look into the books md into
the business generally. The special agent
had gone but a little may into tho bus-
ness before Hardin left for the South on
the claim that his mothers illness re-
CURED his attention. His failure to re-
turn at tho time specified Increased the
suspicious and the work Of investigation
was pushed with the result that the
I, business was placed In the hands OF a
receiver.
While the Msssys. Deal plainly charge
Il In their bill In chancery that Hardin has
been guilty Of emheazlement, they have
not MS yet made any criminal charge, nnd
no warrant for his arrest has been H.
sued, but that such warrant will issue
, there can be no doubt.
In the meantime nobody knows where
Hardin Is, His family. consisting OF q
wife and two children. arc said to haye
! left here before he did, hut where they
went nobody seems 10 know. excent tllili