Omaha daily bee., 1909-08-31
Council Bluffs
BANK ANSWERS MIKE CASE
Denies Any Connection with Mabray
or His Operations.
cAsHEs DRAFTS FOR PLAINTIFF
Transaction In Usual Course of Bust
ness and PrecnutiOns Taken 90
See Right Parties Secured
the Money.

sec Right Parties Secured
the Money.
The separate answers Of the First Ma
tlonal bank Of this city, Ernest e. Hart,
president Of the bank; John J. S%pindler,
cashier OF the bank. and Ernest e. Hart
Incorporated we're filed yesterday in the
district court in the suit brought against
them by George +. Castle Of Britt, Ia,
one of the alleged Mabray Mikes who
claimed to have been fleeced out of 5000
| on n fake horse race IN this city on Sep
TENDER e. 1905.
This Is the first answer filed by the
bank. and its officers IN any Of the sew
eral suits brought against them by the
Mikes" who claimed ~ have been vic
tins Of the Mabray gang. Consequently,
this Is the first time that the bank and
its officers have made public their side
Of the story OF their connection with the
alleged victims Of tho "swindlhig syndl-
cate"
The answers IN thc other suits yet to be
filed, while they necessarily Will vary
somewhat as to details, will, according to
the statement Of Harl g. FINLEY, attor-
news for the bank and its officers, be
substantially the same.
on behalf OF the bank and it's officers,
specific denial is made of any connection
or confederation with the persons named
In the plaintiffs petition, namely J. c.
Mabray and his alleged associates, or that
they were engaged in or had anything to
do directly or indirectly with the alleg ed
swindIing games or devices for the pur-
poses alleged in plaintiffs petition. What
ever transactions the bank and its off
Gals had with the plaintiff were solely
OF a commercial character, as occurs daily
In the course Of regular BUSINESS.
Banks side Of Case.
The banks story Of its transaction with
Castle is set forth In the answer as fol-
lows:
That on or about the 18th day Of Sep
tembSr, 1908, on the occasion OIL plalhtllis
visit TO the defendant bank ine p5 M
after misrepresenting his business ana the
object of his visit to Council BluiIs, re
auested defendant bank to issue TO Dfm a
certificate Of deposit in exchange loI
his check drawn ON First NatlonAi pellh
Of Britt, Ia. for the SUM OF 95,OVi lnat
at the time he made said request the salu
plaintiff falsely and fraudulently repre-
sented that he desired 70 be provided with
said certificate OF deposit 10 enaDie mn
10 make a pas ment on the purchase OF the
controlling interest in some small Dahk
IN this loCanty; mat said false and fraud
| ulEnI statements were 81 AlAahG W liz
piaintiff Tor the wilful and fraudulent pur-
pose of oeceiving the officers OF defend
ant bank; that the plaintiff was a stranger
TO the defendant; that his letter OF IN,
PRODUCTION was presented in person ana
nothing to vouch for its genuinenessi that
it was indefinite as to amount and IN ac-
cordance with the general rules or BANK
ing the defendant declined to cash ms
check and furnish him the certificate OF
deposit that he requested, that he repre-,
scented that he was a stranger and knew
no one who could Identity MIN as being
the Identical person referred to IN tue
letter OF the First National bank OF Brllti
that the defendant was not acquainted
with the signature OF the president OF the
First National bank OF Britt and mad no
signature was genulnei that thereupon the
plaintiff announced that ne would send
10 the First National bank of Britt for
bank drafts; defendant further says the t
on or about the 18th day OF September,
1903, the plaintiff wrote a letter TO SAID
First National bank Of Britt, requesting
the sending Of bank drafts to him Tor
5000 and that pursuant to said request
said bank mailed one draft drawn by It
cage tor $1,000 ana a draft drawn by II Oh
Iowa National bank of Des Moines, Ia,
for S2,OOO; that each of said dpAtts was
dated September 10, 1908, and payable 10
. the order Of the plaintiff; that on the l1tn
day Of September, 1905, the plaintiff again
visited defendant bank and requested the
defendants to accept said drafts endorsed
Eby him, in exchange for a certificate OF
deposit; that the defendant had no &C.
Il AaaAtAAaAANN ~ AAI A1AAAA 1NAAN NAANAA
Was gained from his false and fraudulent
story and had no means of knowing
the person he represented himself to be or
whether or not he was in fact the ldentl.
cal person who was named as payee In
n said draft, or had the defendants had a
knowledge of whether or not the drafts
were In fact genuine drafts drawn By the
First National bank OF Britt nor did the
; defendants have any knowledge of whether
, or not such drafts were drawn on funds
available for the payment; that because
Of these facts the defendant declined tc
a pisintiff should be Identified, and until the
drafts should be shown to be genuine and
that the funds necessary for their pay.
I ment were available for that purpose and
TO the credit of the issuing bank; that OF
the 18th day of September, 1905, the de-
3 tiff to the First National bank OF Brit
I for verification and Identification and this
drafts were forwarded for collection to thC
respective banks upon which the amt
were drawn. The defendant denies spe-
officially that 1t cashed said drafts as al
: legged in plaintiffs petition upon identi
plaintiffs petition and alleges the fact 4
be that II cashed said draft upon tn,
: Identification OF the signature OF plain
tiff by the First National bank Of Brit
and the establishment of the genuinenesi
Of the drafts by the acknowledge ent from
the banks upon which they were drawn
that thereafter. towit, on the 18th day O
septem5eT 1908 the defendant paid t
q certificate Of deposit.
Letter of Credit.
AS evidence that its transactions with
Castle we're purely Of a commercial char
: acter and in the ordinary course OF bank
ing a copy Of the following letter, wh(h
is se-lf-eNplanatory, is attached to IN,
answer:
BRITT, Ia, Sept. IA, iS0S.-Ths First Nat
lonal Bank. Council Bluffs. Iowa. Gentle.
men. This will introduce the bearer
lAaDnEHA r. Castle a real ngNaNA Aaalau
capitalist and banker of Britt. worth ap
proximately $4,000, who Is visiting YOU
section of the state for the purpose o.