The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-04-02
HOW LOBBYISTS
 DID THEIR WORK
 FOR THEIR CLIENTS
Remarkable Powers Con tained In Charter Granted
 By N. Y. Legislature
Hotchkiss Springs Big Sur prise at Insurance Inquiry
 By Disclosing Books

| New York, April 2.-when the insur- | ance inquiry was resumed yesterday
 volve E. B. Mccall. now a justice o1 | the Supreme court. in the operations l of William H. Buckley, the successful l Albany lobbyist. Stewart Browne, the broker, first president of the Interna- l tional Banking & Trust Company, and
 organizer and for three years vice
 president of the National Surety Com pany, who wrote Hotchkiss defending | Mccall, was questioned at length. He explained that he was broker, organ izer and Hay woodshed lawyer. which
 versed in the law.
 Browne is an Englishman, never ! having become an American citizen. For several years he was connected with the New York Life Insurance
 Company and was for a time conf
 denftal representative of John A. Me
 Call. He denied that in the organi-
 zation of the International he repre-
 scented Mccall. He declared that he
 represented Mccall and the New York
 Life but once in Albany and that was
 when he tried to help along the repeal
 of the bill which favored the foreign
 insurance companies.
 He declared he never discussed the
 charter of the International with Mo Call.
 sI wanted the charter of the com pany right to do any business that had to get it through the Legislature. It was drawn up by MT. B. E. Mccall, then practicing lawyer, and myself, and was introduced in the Senate on March 8. 1899. The company was then called the American Bond 6 Mortgage Guarantee Company
 "Why did you call the company by that name?" Because the charter was so broad we hoped to get it through without attracting attention. Had it been known we were trying to have met great opposition and have Lad to exert greater influence to get the bill through the Legislature
 The enterprise, Browne said, was launched in the hope that it would be- come the greatest financial corporation in the world. Section of, the char in the United States or ''elsewhere.'.
 Browne said his company wanted all the advantages given any cor poration by law but none of the legal minute book of this famous corpora ton charter-'' began Hotchkiss. that book ?'' demanded Browne. .I have it; that is sufficient. I do not intend to tell you. You see have many more books of your corpora ton and l am going to keep them
 Browne said he was the first presi- dent of the concern and then enter Hotchkiss producing the books, say ing the superintendent had no legal right to diVuIge their contents Why did you write today to the Mercantile National Bank to refuse to allow me to examine their books, especially as that bank succeeded the Seventh Na- tionaI Bank in which you kept your account?'' asked Hotchkiss. Be cause such books are privileged and you have no right to make them pub lic."
 There is something sinister in those accounts and your. refusal to allow us to examine them. Why ?' 1 Because the government has no right to give out the things in these books
 Browne said the bill was held up in committee a month, Browne said. My understanding was" he said, l that it was held up by the Republi- can state organization but that when the organization learned who intro duced the bill it was allowed to pass