The Penn's Grove record., 1909-10-15
M0RsE's APPEAL FAILS
HE GOES TO TOMBs
Unanimous Opinion Of United
States Court Upholds Verdict
fINANcIER GETS is YEARS
Former Ice King Returns to Prison
His Hope is in the Clemency of
the President, Who Has the Pow
er Of Pardon.

Ell of Pardon.
New York City. - Charles w.
Morse, financier and former Ice King,
lost his appeal to the United States
Circuit Court of Appeals from the
judgment of the lower court that he
be imprisoned at hard labor for
fifteen years in the Federal prison in
Atlanta for juggling with the books
and cash of the National Bank of
North America. He is back In the
Tombs now, having surrendered him
self to United States Marshal Henkel
Immediately after the unanimous adj
verse decision had been handed down.
He slept in his old cell there. I'm
less the United States Supreme Court
~intervenes in his behalf he will be
compelled to serve fifteen years,
which practically will mean the rest
of his life. Martin w. Littleton.
counsel for Morse, applied to the
United States Circuit Court of APP
peals at once for a stay of execution
for forty days, pending application to
the United States Supreme Court for
a writ of ~certiorari, the object being
to carry the cas- up to the highest
court in the land for final review. 1t
was granted, but the question of adj
hitting the banker to bail was left
open. IT the United States Supreme
Court decides against Morse nothing
can save him from doing time except
a pardon from the President of the
United States.
Mnrcn rra oc1xnE 10 L0 hNl ~--xls--
to say to the public about his ill-for-
tune.
Naturally I am disappointed that
the Circuit Court of Appeals did not
reverse the judgment of the lower
court" he replied, "but 1 feel sure
that the Supreme Court will not up
hold to-day's decision, and that l will
get another trial. / am not cast
down or discouraged. On the con-
trary, I expect to remain cheerful and
confident, and, SO far as / am allowed
any liberty, I will continue to use all
my efforts to repay those who are
supposed to have suffered through me
and>my acts"
Passing to the false entry ice stock
counts, on all ten of which Morse
was convicted, the Court said:
we see no escape from the propo-
sition that If the defendants were
properly convicted on two of these
counts the judgment must be sus-
tanned. Count No. 3B, for instance,
charges that on December 8, 1905,
the defendant, being vice-president
OF the National Bank of North Amer
lea, unlawfully, knowingly and fraud
ulently did wilfully make in a book
OF the bank known as Call Loans,
on page No. 5188, a certain entry as
follows: sDavison-Brown, 114,712.85,
6 Dec. 8, 1905, 1000 Am. Ice, Secy.
Conn.,; that this entry purported to
show and did in substance indicate
that a loan in the amount of S114,-
712.S5 had been made by the bank
to Dawson Brown, with 1000 shares
OF American Ice Company as security;
that said entry was false, first, be-
cause no loan in that am ount had
been made to Dawson Brown by the
bank, and, second, that 1000 shares
or Ice stock had not been placed as
security for that loan, but were in
fact the property of the bank.
%That false entry was made by the
ue1eAuoAs w n InIenr 70 injure and
defraud the ank and its shareholders
and to dece re the other officers of
the bank ant any agent appointed by
the Comptrc Ter of the Currency to |
examine the affairs of the said bank.
The broad fundamental questions
underlying several of these counts
were: Who owned the Ice stock, the
bank or Morse? If the bank owned
1t, was this fact concealed by false en-
tries in the lfooks and reports made
by the DIRECTION or procurement of
the defendait? ' These propositions
were clearly and fairly stated by the
Court, and the jury was repeatedly
informed that the crucial question
for it to determine was who owned |
the stock, and they were told again
and again that if Morse was the real
owner he mist be acquitted. The
finding of tie jury that the bank
owned the ST ok carried with 1t, al
most as a mSdter of course, the other
ingredients of a crime. It cannot be
maintained that the entries were
consistent with such ownership and
the jury was justified in find not
only that they were false, but were
made with intent to conceal the true
situation, so that the only question
is whether there was any evidence to
submit to the jury, or if there were.
whether it would have been error to
have granted a motion for the direc-
ton of a verdict for the defendant"
Regarding the counts charging
false reports to the Comptroller of the
Currency the opinion of the court
says:
The motives which actuate men
can be aseertained only by a scrutiny
OF their acts. One who passes a coun-
terfeit coin knowing it to be counter
felt, and receives value in return, is
not permitted to say that he did the
act with innocent intent, and the
same rule applies to the crimes we
are now considering.
"a bank officer who wilfully mis-
applies the funds of thesbank or who
makes or causes to be made a false
entry in its books, knowing it to- be
false, cannot be allowed to say that
he did the act in ocently.