The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1909-06-20
Edmund Burke, Man of Varied
Shady Enterprises, Is
Accused
Was One Who Accused James
S. Sherman and Also
Chris Buckley
Mixed in Many Deals in Los
Angeles Which Fell
Through

Through
7 DMUND BURKE. author of the
New Mexican timber land fraud
- charges made against James s
Sherman just previous TO the last cleo
ton, an attorney with Offices in the
Mills building, and the man who fled
two suits against Christopher A. Buck
ley, the former political boss. for $780,
600 as an official Of the United States
wireless telegraph printing company.
was put on the defensive yesterday by
the issuance OF a warrant charging
him with a misdeneanor in having
represented himself as a duly qualified
attorney at law, when, it is stated, he
never has been admitted to the Cali
fornia bar Reinforcing these charges
is an army Of allegations that term the
harrsssed man Of law-everything from
a promoter OF numerous mines that
did not operate to the lobbyist at Wash
ington Of railroads and the corpora
tons
PinkertonS' Record
In the Office Of Attorney Albert P
Wheelsn, who represents d. n Bibb
president Of the wireless company, the
complainant IN the warrant issued yes
terday. Is a mass Of data regarding the
attorney gathered by the Pinkerton
agency from New York, Chicago, Los
Angeles and other cities that detail the
history Of the attorney for the last
several years, and treat him anything
but gently.
Burke himself, however, has not been
heard from, and when he speaks the
painstaking garperiags OF the sleuths
may fare badly It is admitted that
the attacked attorney has never been
convicted, as he himself has stated.
-of either felony, misdemeanor or
violation Of an ordinance"
Burke was under police investigation
in san Francisco recently as promoter
Of the Commonwealth oil company
Detectives steve Bunner and Jack
Freel, who were searching unsuccess-
fully for the attorney all yesterday
afternoon and evening to serve the war
rant on him. few weeks ago went to
his oflces. rooms 3, 4, 6. Z. s in the Mills
building. to discover whether or not he
was selling stock IN the company.
which had never been incorporated.
Burke stated that he WAS acting as at
torney for the stock holders of the
company and that no stock had been
sold. This the detectives found to
be true.
Career in Los Angeles
It was IN Los Angeles that Burke ex-
perienced the most tempestuous parts
of his career. There he represented A.
K. Moropulous, a fruit dealer living at
$50 South Main street, in the southern
city. in an attempt 20 exact from the
national government a large sum of
money for Alcatraz island, in San Fran
cisco bay, which Moropulous claimed he
owned by right of an ancient grant
After two years had passed the fruit
man became impatient and sued for the
return Of his papers, but Burke re-
fused to give them up until he had been
paid fee of $500.
Then in February Of 1904 William
sosslin sued Burke for a note of 81, ZOO
and J. H waddIngham for SLIPS he
claimed to have advanced Deputy
District Attorney G. w. Pearson prose-
cuted the attorney for embezzlement
and q suit was pressed against him
charging that. as head of the TivoIi
amusement company, he had conspired
to wreck il.
Borrows Gold Bricks
The most remarkable suit in which
Burke became involved was one insti-
tuted by A. n. Deal. a mining man,
who charged that the lawyer had
borrowed two real gold bricks from
him IN order TO promote the sale of
some mining stock and then neglected
70 return the articles. This suit Burke
himself. defended and had the proceed
fngs conducted for time behind closed
doors.
For time the attorney conducted
the Tonopah Goldheld mining company
and became defendant in suit filed
bv ]. G. Burgess, who was awarded
50 577 by the court on his claim that
Burke had sold him 100000 shares in
the mine and then refused to deliver
them. william II Watson sued Burke
also on the charge that he refused to
show the books of the company and
usurped the Offices.
ANOTHER proposition carried on by
Burke in Los Angeles was the coloni-
zstion Of san Nicolas island, barren
spot in the Pacific ocean off San Pedro.
u he attorney rented a launch and car
he'd prospective purchasers of stock
back and forth TO the ocean domain
The National distillerH warehouse
company. the Mexican trading COM
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