The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1908-01-02
COMMISSION To
FEEL PROBE OF
The GRAND JURY
Failure to Uncover Fraud in
Trust Company to Be
Investigated
SEARCHING INQUIRY
Former Board to Be Called
in Effort to Fix Blame
for Remissness
PLAN INDICTMENTS
Others to Be Drawn Into
Bank Tangle by the
Inquisitors
PLAN INDICTMENTS


The grand jury will turn it's at
tention during the coming week to the
bank commission, with the idea of in
vestigating thoroughly how it was
possible for the mismanagement of
the affairs of the California safe de-
post and trust company to continue
over so long period without the
knowledge of the state board. AS
Assistant District Attorney William
Hoff Cook said yesterday:
I'VE vast to learn what the COM
mission did besides the mere counting
of the money in the vaults. w. know
they counted the money on hand. but
we desire to find out just how far
they Investigated the loans of the
bank"
Cook added that If the investiga-
ton showed that the commission had
failed TO do its duty, proceedings could
be instituted to have its members re-
moved. AS most of the commissioners
have been In Office but short time.
the investigation wiz REACH back to
their predecessors under whose admin
istration the abuses recently exposed
were allowed to flourish
Commissioners Herman Silver H. E.
Sherer, John c. Lynch and Garoutte
will be summoned as witnesses to ex-
plain how much the commission knew
in regard to the affairs of the bank
before it suspended Former Commits
sioner c. H. Dunsmoor will be asked in
regard TO HIS knowledgesof the banks
affairs and inquiry will also be made
Of kim as to the nature of the arrange
ment which existed between himself
and the bank. whereby he bought and
sold bonds on commission for the In
stitution. The investigation will reach
back over the administrations of for
mer Commissioners ]. c. Currier, n
Blackstock and Zoeth Eidridge.
WILL PROBE TO BOTTOM
"This line of investigation might re-
veal a case of nisdemeanor. but the
grand jury does not indict for that
We want to get at ne bottom of the
thing and the inquiry into the methods
of the bank commission is necessary
to that end" said Cook. while we
are on this subject we will also look
into the reports made out and sworn
to by the officers of bank. We will
determine how far these were based
IN actual conditionsy
The grand jury will resume its ac-
tfvity Tuesday Cook said yesterday
that he believed that hye or six more
sessions would clear up the bank scan
dal. He said that other indictments
would be prepared in the meantime. 1t
is asserted that ]. Dalzell Brown. wal
ter J. Bartnett and James Treadwell
will be indicted onsnew charges during
the week Just what these charges
are Cook refused to state, although he
admitted that the evidence was such
that he felt safe in preparing the in
dictments.
1t is understood however, that the
new charges against Brown and Bart
nett viii be perjury. based on state
ments made under oath and reports
also made under oath as to the banks
condition and as to the location of the
Cotton securities
Cook threw out q broad hint yester-
day that the investigation had revealed
matters which placed r. d. Fry, a
director of the bank. within the shadow
of an indictment. Fry borrowed
s1s7.O0O from the bank. Fry said yes
terday that all his transactions with
the bank had been regular.
~They are trying to mix me up in
this thing" said Fry. when. in truth.
don't know anything about it. 1
have been before the grand jury
already. and told them what knew
1t is also stated that others may be
Implicated before the Investigation
Continued. ON Page 2, Column