East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1910-05-13
SCR|DER'S DEFENSE
BROKEN BY CATCH
NATIONAL BANK EXAMINER
GIVES IMPORTANT TESTIMONY

Bank Which Refutes Theory of
Monomanfa Made forgery After
Forgery, Asa b. Thomson Note Be-
ing First.
Claude Catch. national bank exam
iner. told the story of the defalca-
tions of ]. W. Scriber in the United
States court today, a story of the
wreck of the Farmers and Traders"
National bank of La Grande, says
yesterdays Portland Journal of big
shortages in tie cash accounts. OF
sheaves of forged notes written by
Scriber to cover up these shortages
and to deceive the examiners and OF
admitted forgery and deceit
| 1t was a tale that brought no. good
to the defense, that shattered, in so
far as the statements of Catch could
the theory of the defense that Scriber
was sick man and not mentally re-
sponsibe for his misdeeds, and it was
a story that brought no credit to the
name or reputation of Asa B. Thorn
son, former receiver of the land office
at La Grande, who is held by Scriber
to have been the cause of his first
forgery and his consequent descent
into the valley of banking dishonesty.
Shortage Revealed.
Mr.. Catch testified that he had
found approximately 500 depositors
recorded in the records of the insti.
tuition and that their approximate de-
posts totalled $104,776. There were
savings accounts approximating s15,-
299 when the bank failed. The books
showed that the bank was short $12,-
4S1 to that fund when he made his
investigation. Scriber had explained
this shortage at the time by saying
that he had been forced to make in
vestments and that he had invested
the saving account fund in bonds of
the Grand Ronde Electric company.
and the Hot Lake sanitarium. These
bonds. which were not listed as as
sets of the bank on the books. were
found in a pouch on top of the safe
and were about $400 short of the ac.
count.
Catch said he had found a pri-
vate ledger kept by Scriber, in which
he had noted entries concerning the
notes forged by him. the false certi-
ficates of deposit and other entries
showing his illegal transactions, to-
gether with the interest paid on them
in order to keep the books checked
straight with the record
Catch said that he had talked with
Scriber about the condition of the
bank long before the failure. Scriber.
had told him of having been advised
to sell the institution, and Catch, az
an old friend, had advised him to sell
out and get into another field. He
had told him that he was at outs with
many of the. people of the community
with whom he had to do business and
that as he had opportunity to sell at
, profit, it would be wise for his own
| interest and that of the bank to ac-
cept these offers. Scriber had told
him, however, that he intended to
"stay with it."
Thomson Forgery First.
After the bank had failed, Catch
5 testified, he had asked Scriber what
had been his first illegal act, and the
banker had told him that it was the
forgery of Asa B. Thomsons note for
$4,000, and had explained the deal to
him.
said, that he and Thomson had been
associated in the land deal with men
from Heppner, and that Thomson had
I put his note for $4,000 in the bank
After the note had been in the bank
, for some time, so Scriber had told
, Catch, Thomson came to the bank
, in the absence of Scriber and demand
Z ed the note of Guy e. McCulloch, the
J assistant cashier. At that time Thom-
son had said that A. r. Greene
= special agent of Secretary of the In
. terior Hitchcock, was coming to in
q vestigate the La Grande land office
and that he would come to the bank
to check his account. He said that
if the note were found showing his
q connection with a government land
, deal that it would get him into trouble
with the department, and that it was
' necessary to preserve himself to have
, the note covered up and out of the
> way. He had demanded it insistently
of McCulloch, who had finally deliver
4 ed it to him.
d After his return to La Grande, sc
, Scriber told Catch, he had been told
of Thomson's action and had gone
. to Thomson and demanded the note
or its payment, but Thomson had re-
fused. Then he heard that Banl
Examiner Maxwell was coming to the
city, that he was then in Pendletor
on his way to La Grande to make the
regular check of the La Grande bank
and that he knew he would be shor
! without the note. Face to face with
, this situation he had again demanded
! the return of the note Of Thomson
! and that being refused he had forged
, a duplicate of the note and put it II
: the pouch in the place of the origina
8 and genuine note. The bank exam
> iner had come, had checked up the
bank and departed, satisfied. and tha
It had seemed so easy and successful
that he had forged note after mote
as occasion demanded to keep thu
failing and weakened condition of tho
institution from the knowledge of the