The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1910-04-27
MANY HIT HARD
By the Issuance Of Forged Cotton Bills Of
Ladins to Buyers BY
ALARCE COTTON FIRM
Which Recently Failed at Decatur,
Ala. With Liabilities OF Nearly Six
Million Dollars and Assets Of On
Iy Five Hundred Thousand Dol
lars to Offset the Huge Liabilities.

| e'~'
larS to Offset the Huge Liabilities
The Atlanta Journal says Southern
representatives OF New York cortol
firms. who rushed TO Decatr-. Ala.
from Atlanta and other cities Wed
nesday and Thursday. to ascertain
the true status Of agairS in connec
;ion with tie failure OF Knight, Yam
cey &: Co.. declarethat the gigantic
transactions involving millions
which preceded and prec!pitated the
crash. may end IN prosecution in the
federal courts.
1t is averred that forged cottol
bills OF lading attached TO drafts 70!
heavy sums were sent 10 New York
firms and TO big cotton houses iE
Europe. They say these drafts were
honored and paid. and that invest!-
CATION has proven many OF the bills
OF lading worthless.
New York firms. they beliere. have
lost about 100000. while the to-
tai losses OF European houses may
run between S4.000,000 and s5,009.-
900.
No southern cotton firms have been
involved in the smash-up, It Is said,
1t seems that all banks with which
knight. yancey & Co.. did business
are amply protected.
II is predicted. however. that the
affair will reyolutionize the cotton
business in this country By destroy
ing the confidence Of buyers in bills
OF lading. which have hitherto been
honored as II they were the actual
cotton itself.
The firm OF knight. Yancey & c..
Is composed OF J. ". knight. %
Decatur; ". J. Yancey. Of Memphis;
E. II. Sesbitt. OF Sdsrtanburs; and
". D. Nesbitt. OF Birmingham. All
OF the men are prominent in cotton
circles. W. D. Nesbitt is one Of the
best known business men Of the
south, is q state railroad commits
sioner in Alabama, and close friend
OF Governor Conner.
]. W. knight was in charge OF
the Decatur Office. In an interview
published in the Birmingham papers.
w. D. Nesbitt declares that he has
not been in active touch with the
business for four years ard that the
crash was terrible surprise and
to him. The irregulari-
ties. says alr. Nesbitt. appear to have
originated in the Decatur Office
The question cotton men are ask
ing all over the world today is wheth-
er or not the affair will end by a
criminal prosecution in the federal
court. While representatives OF
firms which have been heavily hit do
NOT hesitate to condemn the bill OF
lading transactions. no one is yet
ready to take the responsibility OF
saying that prosecutions will actually
be instituted. for the affair has not
yet been gone into deeply enough
and it Is not known what attitude
Knight will take in defense Of the
for which he is held
The knight. Yancey l. CD ilr:n.
on. OF the largest concerns OF It's
tind in the south. with Offices -
Decatur. Ala. Mobile. Huntsville.
birmingham and other cities. went
into involuntary bankruptcy on We'd
nesday.
The business OF the company has
been large. the bulk OF which IS
with European firms. Last year Co.
900 bales Of cotton were shipped
from the Mobile port to Earre alone.
Judge w. I. Grubbs. OF the United
States district court. at Decatur. ap-
po:nted Frost & Lowell receivers for
the bankrup. firm. Their bond ~as
fixed at 100000. According 90
Jere Murphy. referee in bankruptcy
the liabilities OF the firm will aggre-
gate. s5.771.90S. The assets are
estimated at about 100000. Cred-
itors OF the company. it is said. hold
securities to the amount Of SILL
157.