Omaha daily bee., 1910-10-18
r. l.. Metcalfe's
Friends Reused
By Hitchcock
Declare His Slap at Former Employe
is COwardly-Metcalfe Refuses
to Talk of Case.

LINCOLN. Oct. l7-(Special )-Lincoln
friends Of r. l.. Metcalfe are incensed at
the manner in which Congressman Hitch
cock brings his name into the dealings he
had with state Treasurer BARLEY. They
brand the statement Of the Omaha editor
as cowardly, saying that when during the
primary fight, it was charged that Met
calfe had signed the petition for BARLEY
parole and had written an editorial in de-
tense Of granting such parole the Omaha
editor, under whom Metcalfe was working.
had no work to say in defense OF Metcalfe.
AT the time IL was not generally known
that Hitchcock had himself been on terms
OF intimacy with the defauting treasurer,
but had kept behind the cover of his edi-
torial writer in taking a stand on the mat
ter OF pardon. They query why Hitchcock
should have found it necessary to name
Metcalfe as his Intermediary in the deal
ings with BARLEY when Metcalfe, himself
under fire because Of his public attitude
on the BARLEY pardon and parole, had said
no word which light implcate his chief
in the same things, although the two were
opponents in the primary fight, and al
though Metcafe must have known that
Hitchcock himself was the real man in the
confidential relations with BARLEY and
Metcalfe but the agent
Mr. Metcalfe would say nothing on the
matter this morning except this: ANY
part l may have had in the transactions
between Mr.. Hitchcock and Mr.. BARLEY
was that Of a confidential nature and
can say nothing. What is said must come
from Mr.. Hitchcock, for whom l was
working on salary at the time"
The Exchange bank Of Atkinson was the
institution that BARLEY ran for a number
OF years. IT was Incorporated on Decem-
Der 4, 1884, and went into a receiver
hands on May II, 1897, right after BARLEY
got into trouble
At the time that it was turned over Ia
5. b. Howard. receiver, the cashier filed
and Howard receipted for all of the notes
on hand. A list of these may be found
with the reports of the bank in the state
banking department. The name Of Mr.
Hitchcock does not appear thereon as a
debtor Of the bank, but as this list was
prepared two years later than Mr.. Hitch
cock had his deal with BARLEY. as Der
the letters printed, this proves nothing
as the notes may have been paid before
None Of the banks reports on file gives
a list Of debtors OF the bank on any other
date than that of the failure BARLEY
owned the bank himself, four others hold.
ing a share each in order to qualify as
directors. The capital stock was $4,000
and at the time of it's failure it's books
showed surplus of $4,000 deposits OF
S6S, 3l6 and loans and discounts of $50, 734
The bank was in bad shape, being
bolstered up by credit entirely by the
fact that BARLEY himself had $4,000 on
deposit, although his personal account was
overdrawn SIP. The money was undoubt-
eddy that of the state, but it was to
Bartley's own credit. Later Attorney Gen
eral Smythe filed suit against the bank.
asserting that BARLEY had filed no claim
of ownership, but being indebted to the
state, the attorney general wanted to get
for the state whatever dividend was paid
thereon. Later heicofected s67OO on this
claim. Outside or EBartley's big deposit
there were deposits only of $4,000 A
Lincoln attorney said today that when
| BARLEY was running for treasurer he
! forced the collection of 5000 BARLEY was
owing an eastern bank, and that the i'm
preston he got was that BARLEY had nc
large amount of private funds on hand