The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-09-30
Witness Tells More About Illinois Central Graft
HISTORY OF CAR COMPANY
A. c. Goodrich Tells How OstermaDn Made Out Checks in Formers Name By Which Payments Were
 Made for Repairs

Chicago, September 29.-A. c. Goodrich,
 a self-confessed ''go-between," and Henry
 c. ostermann. former president of the
 Ostermann Manufacturing company, vied
 with each other before Municipal Judge
 Bruggemeyer today in stripping bare the
 secrets of the alleged combination which is charged with swindling the Illinois Central Railroad company by car repair frauds.
 Goodrich, like Ostermann, was placed on the stand as witness for the prose-
 cution. He described in detail methods which he said Illinois Central officials
 used to conceal their identity as stock
 holders in the Ostermann repair concern. In testifying yesterday Ostermann had said that certain payments to the rail-
 road officials were made by checks to Goodrich When placed on the stand today Goodrich began his testimony at this point.
 The checks were made out in my name" said Goodrich. Frank B. Har-
 rirnan had asked me some time previously | if would agree to let him have checks made out in my name and accept cer- | tain payments for him. l agreed. l do not know what sources the checks came | from, but received a number of them. I know. however, that they were issued by this company, of which I have been | reading in the newspapers. I indorsed
 them and placed them to my private ac- count in the Fort Dearborn National | bank.'
 Photographs of Cheeks | Photographs of $35,00O worth of checks signed by F., H. Niles, who is president of the Blue Island Car and Equipment | company, were then introduced by At torney Fisher for the prosecution. Good 1. 1f~ <i1 xxxtkI IIax x.,-fx ,f l as having been made by him. Niles went
 on the stand several days ago and testi- fled that payments for Hartman were made to GoodIich. Most of the checks were paid on December 1s 1909. I The name of Ira 6. Rawn, late presi- I dent of the Monon railroad. and former
 vice president of the Illinois Central, was again brought into the proceedings l when Goodrich testified that on De-
 cember IS, 1909. he wrote a check for
 s10,000 to Ira G. Rawn, which was cashed 1 by Rawn on December 21. That $10,000 check, he said. was in return for two
 $5000 checks which had been sent to Good
 rich on December 13 and were signed
 by Niles
 Did you talk with MT. Rawn about
 these checks?" asked Attorney Fisher. | T never met MT. Rawn except for
 a formal introduction" replied Good
 rich. " talked with MT. Hartman at
 his office and he asked me to send
 him checks from my bank for the ones
 which I received from him. On MT.
 Harriman's instructions I did the same
 for MT Rawn."
 "To whom did you deliver the checks?"
 .In every instance I sent them by United States mall"
 | Ostermann was recalled to the stand when Goodrich had concluded his tes- timony.
 Formation of Company In connection with the formation of the Memphis Car Repair company, Os- termann told how stock was issued and to whom. The new names, those of H. H. McCourt, general superintend- ent of the Illinois Central line of the Ohio river, and W. s. King, general superintendent of the Yazoo and Mis- sissippi Valley Railroad company, were mentioned by Ostermann in this con nection.
 "stock was issued in certificates of 161 shares each in the Memphis Car Repair company" said Ostermann. This stock was divided among Ira G. Rawn, F. B. Hartman, J. E. Buker, w s. King, H. H. McCourt, William Rem sh aw, J. M Taylor and Secretary Ward of the Memphis Car company. At the suggestion of MT. Buker I had all the 5tOCh lHdue out III my own name. 1 know thta Mir. Rawn, Hartman and
 Taylor got their shares and expect
 the others did, too."
 The witness then went into a detailed
 history of the organization of the Memphis Car company. He testified that J. E. Buker of the Illinois Gen. tral called upon him and said there was room for another car repair plant. They then took up the subject of a possible location, said Ostermann.
 "I made trip to St. Louis, Kansas City and Litchf1eld, Kas., hunting for suitable location" said the witness 'but labor and materials were not just
 right and came back to Chicago with out selecting site. then went to Louisville and Memphis and we decided
 to locate in South Memphis MT. Buker. H. H. McCourt w. 8. King and my self then organized the Memphis con cern. Later on I was told to issue stock to MT. Rawn and MT. Hartman" !"