The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-03-26
MORE SCANDAL IN
SILVER KING SUIT
Sensational Charges Made
Against Scion Spiro and
Other Mine Directors.
KEARNS WING RETALIATES
TWO FACTIONS IN PARK CITY
WORKINGS INVOLVED.

! y
sensational suit was filed in the Third
/ district court which seeks the appoint
/ ment OF receiver for the Silver King
| consolidated Mining company, the Ousting
/ OF Scion Spiro, its president, and the
/ cOmpulslon Of Spiro to. account for $751;
| 2O0.26, which he is charged with hav-
/ ing Illegally held from the company S
/ funds.
Startling charges of Misrepresentation.
fraud, misrepresentation of funds and mis-
| leading and false entries in the COM
| pany's bOOks-theSe direct accusations
| and wealth of insinuations are made
/ by Joseph Brandt and the Park City
Meat company, plaintiffs. The suit is
/ directed at Scion SDiro, William Pischel,
| q. Wesley Browning, Harry 2. Clark,
| Henry COhn, d. L. Werthheimer and 0.
/ X. Lewis, all directors of the company.
While SpirO is made defendant in this
/ suit ne and his associates are plaintiffs
| IN suit for accounting, involving SINH
/ lar and as serious charges, now on trial
| IN the federal court. In the case before
| Judge Marshall Spiro is charging Thorn
as Kearns and associates in the Silver
King Coalition Mining company with
stealing ore from properties adjacent to
the Silver King at Park City. Scandals
that have been whispered in mining cir
cles in Utah for years cropped out in the
hearings in the federal courts.
The same interests involved in the liti-
cation il the federal court are now en-
meshed in the legal tangle in the dis
trict court, and relative positions are
reversed. The filing of the suit yester-
day promises that more unsavory de-
/ tails of the unearthing Of valuable ores
at the Silver King and adjacent work
ing will be given, and that the method
Of alleged juggling of records of both
sides viii be given thorough airing.
Second Chapter in Case.
The sensational charges made yester-
day come as the second chapter to min
ing suit which will prove one Of the most
interesting in years in Salt Lake and
will prove of unusual interest to men
of the mining world. The first chapter
was written when, after months Of fight
ing in the courts, BrandPs fight for a
look at the books Of the Silver King
Consolidated cOmpany's books was sue.
cessful in the supreme court. 1t was
claimed by Scion Spiro, in the first &C
ton, that Brandt was seeking this infOr-
nation for the use Of the Ontario mine,
a competitor at Park City, and thus
STAYED off action for months.
1t was held in the lower courts, how
ever, that as Brandt was a stOckholder
in the company he had a right to in
vestigate the books. This same attitude
was taken by the supreme court about
four months ago, and the revelations in
the suit yesterday are said to be the
direct result of the audit of the books
showing the juggling of accounts by the
president of the company, Mr. Spiro.
1t is claimed that Browning, secretary
of the company, knew Of the alleged Jug
Cling of accounts and Illegal methods Of
President Spiro, and that II. P. Clark.
treasurer Of the company, should have
known of this. 1t is charged that for
years Illegal assessments have been lev
led on the stock OF the company and that
the stockholders have been forced to
pay this, while Spiro has managed to
dodge the payment of the assessments
on his own stock, that of his wife and
her father, by charging company funds
10 his own account in other funds, and
thus making it appear on the books that
he had paid his assessments. In this
manner, it is claimed he has held the
SS7 205. ., which it is sought to have
turned into the company treasury.
Debts of Silver King.
The debts of the Silver King Console
dated Mining Company Of Wyoming were
said to be S102. 1883, but that when the
Utah company Of the same name was or
ganized in 1908 for the purpose of absorb
ing the Wyoming company, Spiro showed
the debts to be STATES, In which he
benefited generously. OF this amount, it
is claimed that S60O4.29 was charged
against the company without authority.
In detailing the manner in which SprO
is ALLEGED to have lodged assessments,
the complaint states that since the or
ganizatiOn of the Silver King ConsoIl-
dated Mining Company of Utah the d.
rectors have assumed to levy on the
ing in the aggregate to s. cents share,
and that the total amount OF receipts
therefor, in cash and credits, aggregates
S2S2. %. Of this amount 1t Is alleged
that S117,25O. Is is due from Spiro person
aIlv and as agent. and from Mrs. Scion
SpirO and that this amount mas been
charged to various accounts for the con-
tracing of which no authorization was
given. It is also alleged that S09, l44.e5
the difference between the amount paid
in cash and the amount said to be due
from SpirO, was also charged to vari-
Gus accounts. The complaint states tnat
SpirO has never paid any part OF any
assessment in cash and that sums equal
ing his assessment have been Wrongtuliy
and fraudulently charged to supposed and
non-existent Indebtedness alleged ana pre-
tended by him to exist against the Wyo-
ming corporation.
has wrongfully and fraudulently charged
the company and taken credit Tor large
sums Of money upon his assessment at
the time each assessment became que, aB-
Eregating not less than SSl.2O5.25, and COM
posed of items for work alleged to nave
heen done BY him and expenses alleged
to have been incurred. il is claimed tnat
these expenses were incurred at llIne
when Spiro was drawing a salary OF 500
a month as manager of the compa ~ ana
that these services were within the usual
and ordinary duties Of a manager under
such circumstances.
Wyoming NameB Ianked.
The complaint reeites that the Wyoming
corporation was placed in the hands of
a receiver at the instance ana SUIT OF
Spiro on July /, 1907, and continued IN
the hands of said receiver until May It,
1908 In the suit filed by Spiro he al
legged that the company was indebted 10
him IN the sum of 1880, in note ana
omen account, and that 1t owed sundry
individuals an aggregate Of about SI5,VOO.
m 1osr fofa according n
formation and belief these sums were ap-
proximately correct and that all indebted
ness fn excess of 81, 800, afterward claimed
Spiro, was wrongful and fraudulent
and IN excess of the true amount.
The complaint further recites that at a
pretended meeting of the board OF d.
rectors of the Wyoming corporation held
on May z. 1908. SpirO Wrongfuny ana
fraudulently caused resolution 10 Dc
passed for the sale to him as agent Tor
certain alleged underwriters. whose names
do not appear, of 2 $50 Sc shares OF stock
at 10 cents per share, notwithstanding the
fact that at many times he has always
claimed conversation at 81 per snare Tor
all stock which he assumed and pretend
ed TO loan to either the Utah or the Wyo-
ming corporation.
It is further alleged that Spiro, on Janu-
airy 26 1910. wrongfully and frauduiently
caused himself to be credited, and the
wyoming corporation to be charged, with
Sl4070.S6, which was to apply on 75.09
shares of stock lent to the company, ana
that said sum was attempted TO be ap-
piled in payment Of assessment No. 9 of
10 cents per share on stock held by So
lon Spiro; Scion Spiro. agent; Mrs. Scion
Spiro and G. w. Browning and FAMILY,
amounting in all to 49, 0S1s shares.
It Is asked that a receiver be appoint
ed who wiz have the right to institute
suits against the defendants to account
for the alleged transportation of funds
and property of the company; that Scion
Spiro be made to give an accounting for
the SS7. 525.25 which It is claimed he owes
for assessments, and that pending the
ftffl trial Of the case the receiver con-