Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1910-09-27
w. c. RAMSAY, PROMINENT AH.
sTRAcT MAN, SAID 70 HAVE
SOLD FORGED MORTGAGES
AMOUNTING TO $e2,aoo.
ADMITS FORGERIES
WHEN ARRESTED
EQUITABLE INSURANCE COMPANY
OF DEs MONIES AND GERMAN
AMERICAN BANK OF 9uRAINo-
TON HOLD PAPER.

Abba, Sept. &C. Special "A sensa.
tion was caused by the arrest here Sun
day OF w. G. Ramsay, president OF the
Ramsay Abstract and Loan company.
on charges of forgery instituted by the
Equitable Life company of Des Moines.
which company holds $36,2O0 Of Ram.
says forged paper. The German Amer
ican savings bank Of Burlington lost
$26,1OO through Ramsay's peculations.
Accountants for the Equitable have
been IN Abba for week probing Ram
says affairs and the arrest was made
at the conclusion of this investigation.
A representative Of the Burlington
bank also is In Abba.
Admits ForgerIes to sheriff.
When Ramsay was arrested by
Sheriff Griffin yesterday he made no
resistance and seemed to be expecting
the officer. He told me he felt better
than he had felt for ten years when
served the warrant on him, said
Sheriff Griffin. He said that he would
waive preliminary hearing and asked
that the grand Jury take immediate
action on his case: Ramsay admitted
to me that his forgeries would aggre-
gate close to 100000
May Plead Guilty.
Mr.. Ramsay, when seen at the couIl.
" jail this afternoon, admitted the for
geries. He referred his questioner to
his attorney, Congressman Kendall.
Mr.. Kendall said Mr.. Ramsay's short
age Is as follows:
Equitable Life .......... sac, 10000
German-American bank ..... 26,1OO.00
ro+s.1 : - ...r y n
There were sixteen loans, the first
made in 1905. Congressman Kendall
said the grand jury, would be recalled
at once. 7 think" said Mr.. Kendall,
that Mr. Ramsay will plead guilty
and save the county the expense OF the
trial"
The System Of Forgery.
! 1t is stated that Ramsay executed
forged mortgages OF Monroe county
farms, furnishing what purported to
be a complete abstract OF each prop
erty. These mortgages were sold to
the Des Moines and Burlington institr-
tions. To allay suspicion Ramsay is
said to have made the interest pay
ments promptly and in this way the
supposed mortgagors never received
notices from the mortgages and had
no knowledge of the fact that fraud
ulent mortgages had been issued on
their property.
| How the Equitable secured knowl-
edge of the game is not known, as none
Of the parties to the affair are talking
for publication. The Equitable had
reason to suspect the validity OF the
mortgages. however, for they sent a
man quietly to Abba to conduct an In.
vestigation and the arrest was the out
come.
Mr. Ramsay has lived In Abba all
his life and has wide acquaintance
over southern Iowa. His home Is one
of the most expensive In Abba. the In
terror being finished in mahogony. He
was alone with his wife when Sheriff
Griffin arrested him yesterday, and
seemed to be relieved that the affair
had come to head he asked to 70
upstairs to attend to some affairs be-
fore accompanying the oficer, but this
request was refused, as Sherifn Grimm
feared an attempt at suicide.
An investigation is now being made
to determine whether any other in
stitutions besides those in Des Moines
and Burlington are holding any OF the
Ramsay paper.
| Equitable President Interviewed.
Des Moines, Sept. 26.-( Especially
Cyrus Kirk, president of the Equitable
Life Insurance company, who had
Ramsay arrested at Abba. said today:
| Two years ago he began securing
loans for the Equitable company He
| forged the names of fictitious persons
on the application blanks and then
| forged the abstract and forged the
county recorders seal and record
mark.
| He also forged the name of his
| father to an inspeotion blank which
] required him to have his father sign."
continued Mr.. Kirk Il had known
his father for thirty years and made
arrangements with him to inspect all
| farms on which the application blanks
/ said the owners wanted to borrow
money Loans ranging from $1,000 to
$4,000 were secured and when was
unable to get the address Of the bor-
K y l<~s- k<>S,Ip