The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-05-05
Tucker Charges Topekan and
Others With His Troubles.
Said That They Are Responsible
for Attack on Company.
ON THE STAND TO-DAY.
Much Difficulty in Securing
Definite Replies.
His Wife Succeeds Him in Wit.
ness Chair.


"Mulvane and this man Krauthoff
and several others are responsible for
this attack and attempt to wreck
this company" said H. H. Tucker, jr.
this morning in the witness chair.
Charges like these, varied with the
usual descriptive expressions of
'wreckers," thieves" 'tspies,'' were
sprinkled literally in fuckers ram
bling defense.
At times he made frank answers.
but they were few and far between.
He either misunderstood the ques-
tions directed at him by H. J. Bone,
United States district attorney, or at
tempted evasion, for Judge Amidon
frequently was compelled to direct
the questions himself at Tucker in
order to elicit the Information desired.
Evidently he was surprised at some
OF the statements contained in the ad-
vertisements of the company for
when he was asked about line in
an advertisement stating that the
net receipts from the sale of stock in
the Uncle Sam Oil company amount
ed to $4,000 daily he asked, you
mean $1,000, don't you?'
mo. I mean $4,000. That's what
it says here in the advertisement"
well. we might have made deal
like that once or twice." laughed
Tucker, "but they were rare
He made frequent reference to the
Standard Oil company crediting them
with a major part Of the bankruptcy
and fraud order proceedings. He took
up with his scheme to secure the
company against control by outsiders
and especially against the Standard
Oil company and said: "Oh, it's very
ga Sv
dard Oil, you can almost smell a
Standard Oil man."
Query after query was directed at
Tucker in order to get a statement
from him that Appropriated either a
denial or affirmation that John j.
Jones, an attorney formerly employed
by Tucker, had been engaged by the
company to get up new set of min
utes.
you afterwards arranged with Mr..
Jones to revise the records Of the COM
pany?"
az did not. He went over the books
but he never did try to make any
things false in them"
at never asked you about that fea-
ture. 1 want to know If Mr.. Jones
made up a new set of minutes?"
well we talked that matter over
with them and that it should be done
by them, our attorneys. The minutes
were kept on several sheets of paper
they might be-
well but did you engage Mr.. Jones
for that purpose?"
1--WE engaged Mr.. Jones as our at
torney. He had charge of the minutes
| of the Kansas corporation. He should
| have kept the minutes up right along.
In reply to another question of the
same kind he said: II have found out
since that Jones was Standard OH
attorney and he made some attacks
l Qcknnw-
ledge what he might do or have done
| because 1 don't want my folks dis
| graced."
| Marking time in this way, Judge
| Amidon broke in himself and directed
| the question at Tucker, who finally
said, well, think 1 did,
| A book purporting to be the book In
| question was produced but Tucker re-
| fused to acknowledge it as being the
! book. 81 don't know anything about
| that book. 1 never looked over it. 1t
| was sent up to the office at Kansas
City, Kan, with some other things. II
| was stolen out Of the office by the
postoffice inspectors"
In the stock journal of the company
are two entries, a charge to J. H
| Ritchie of 100, 900 shares at $1,000 and
| another of LOCO, 900 shares to H. H
Tucker. Jr., at $4,000
| Tucker was asked If he had ever paid
| for that stock, If he could show 1t.
| Sparring resumed between witness
and the governments attorney again
| "You stated in your advertisements
that you had paid for your stock. didn't
your"
Il did I paid in about $1,000 and
turned my lumber yard in on the deal,
replied Tucker.
"You never paid for it except charge
it on the books. did your"
"Well, the books of the company will
show. IL you can figure what was paid
out and what was taken in you will
find that 1 paid out over more than
50 900 than got. My contention is that
the auditors can go right over the
books and find out what was paid III
and turn right around and figure what
what was paid out and they Will find
about 1900 in my favor" returned
Tucker after repeated questions.
He was asked If he could show from
the checks and if he had made out q
statement covering this ground.
IT haven't had the time" said he. 81
have been kept pretty busy by this
gang of eleven lawyers trying to stea
this property and spending one-half OF
my time in Jail, but I have got every
one of those checks right here"
Then he made several long state
ments of having borrowed considerable
money from this bank and that on his
personal note. He refused to commit
himself to the question. There was
money put into the treasury and mon
ey paid out" said he when asked If he
had paid in the money for this stocl