The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-08-07

half paid up. Lewis subscribed 10 "
SIS ont of 10000 shares and said he
bought the stock with his own money.
The following March the capital was
increased to 81, 5e0. COG with $500 10000
paid up. 1T developed later that this
So 900 600 had been entirely subscrib-
ed by 60, 600 persons throughout the
country, mostly women, who We're
reached through the Woman's Maya
zine and Farm Journal
Complaint was made to the post
office department that Lewis was
using the mails TO defraud in connec-
ton with the hank, and in July. 1905,
fraud order was issued against the
bank The department was moved to
act, because OF Lewis statements con-
corning the bank in his periodicals,
one Of which said:
Never before have the people of
moderate means been permitted to get
In on the ground floor of a great bank.
am not only putting nearly million
dollars into it myself. but am so doing
as to add my share of its earnings to
the reserve OF the bank, thereby dou-
bling the value of your stock from
year to year. / would advise my own
mother to put the last penny she had
in the world into it tell you frankly
your profits will burn your hands. |
will sacrifice the flesh on my body be-
fore the purpose of this great bank
shall be moved one inch from the path
laid out, and / ask ron in turn for
that confidence and love. as it is the
sweetest wine that can ever pass
mans lips. hope to see the day when
an election to the board of this bank
will be hard to gain and more sought
after than an election to congress.
The evidence upon which the post
master general issued the fraud order
showed that Lewis had not put in a
cent OF his own money, but that he
had received and held as payment for
stock. 1920, 600 and has accounted to
the bank for only $4,000, 600. He had
represented that there were seven di-
rectors, Independent. strong, capable
men, standing between the intrigue
and influence of the cold-biooded bank
ing business and the peoples money
but investigation showed that there
were only five, and they consisted of
Lewis, the editor of his magazine and
three employees of the publishing COM
pany.
Out of the paid up capital of $4,000
900 Lewis lent himself 100000. The
state OF Missouri finally acted and a
receiver was appointed in August,
1905. At that time the bank had about
$1,000, 900 left, and Lewis represented
to the stockholders that he was the
victim Of persecution by the money
powers and notified all the stockhold-
ers that no one should lose dollar
and that he would assume all the
loss.
He induced them to send him their
stock and he gave them in return his
trusteed notes, which were secured by
! a trust deed on his income above his
| living expenses. He then increased
the stock in his publishing company
to s3,500,000 and traded it for bank
stock, with the result that he got bach
81 700 900 of bank stock. When the re
/ ceiyer finally paid S. per cent on the
bank stock Lewis presented what hs
had and got 100000 in cash and hat
| 100000 OF his notes paid.
In 1900 Lewis started daily papsl
called the Woman's National Daily
which was used to promote various
new schemes, one OF which was TIL
United States Fiber Stopper company
It was to manufacture shoppers of pa
per or fiber, and he represented tina
! the English rights had been sold TO
$500, 900. This proved to be untrue an,
the stock has never been worth any
thing.
4 In 1903 Lewis announced througl
the Woman's Daily, so-called read
ers' pool Every person who sent il
. S. in subscriptions to the paper woul
have a certificate Of membership i
the pool OF each SIS remittance s
was to be set aside and when the fun
grew large enough land was to be pul
chased for the members OF the fund.
y Finally Lewis announced that he IL
/ tended to close the pool on certai
7 date, and urged that enough be ser
for fifty acre lot. to cost $4,000
When the time was up Lewis said h
i had more than enough to buy fift
( acres. Since that time the members
r the pool have been unable to get a
! accounting to find out how much Ian
/ was bought or what was paid for it.
q Following the readers pool cam
. the most pretentious scheme OF al
n He organized the American Woman
y League as an auxiliary Of his publis
q Ing company. In his first literature b
/ proposed it as scheme for paying h
debts.
g Membership was to be secured
d sending $50 worth of subscription
z his paper One-half the money remi
It ted was to go for subscriptions ar
II the other half into fund for the ben
r fit of the league membership, whit
a was TO be limited to 1,000,0o0 person
e and would give an endowment Of So
D. 100000. The league was to own Il