White Pine news weekly mining review. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1910-1920, 1911-07-16
STORY WITHOUT FOUNDATION
State Startled by Rumored In
diCtment and Arrest of Form
er Bank Commissioners
REPORT OF THE EUREKA GRAND
JURY STIRS UP A MESS WHICH
EXTENDS BEYOND NEVADA )
BORDERS.

The report Of the grand jury of
Eureka county on the affairs of the
defuncs Eureka bank, including as
| 1t does, the Indictment of the former
bank officials, while sensational
enough In itself has been produc-
tive of greater sensations which set
the state in turmoil, and kept 1t boil
| ing for the week. The first surprise
after II had become known that in
dictments had been found. was news
that the warrants to be served upon
those indicted had been placed in the
hands of the state police. Next, fol-
lowed the arrests of o. j. Smith, w.
E. Griffin and C. H. German OF Reno.
..ho we're taken to Carson City wnerei
they sued out writs of habeas corpus
In the supreme court. Warrants
werc known to be out for Bert L.
Smith of Oakland, John Hancock of
Goldfield and in fact all the officials
of the defunct bank
Early in the week the startling
news was sent broadcast that the
members of the former banking COM
mission, Former Govdrnor Dfcker-
son, Sam Belford. A. B. Witcher. all
of the Ely district, and Charles S.
Sprague of Goldfield. had been in
cluded in the batch of indictments
returned by the Eureka county jury,
and that warrants had been served
on them. 1t was known here at the
time that there was no truth in the
report of the arrest of the three men
that no indictments were found
against them. The old banking
board was criticized and censured in
the report of the grand jury for not
having closed the Eureka bank soon
er than 1t did. This, on the part Oh
the Bank Commission. 1t is claimed,
j was done in the best interests of the
entire state.
Over the wires of the Associated
Press has the story of the alleged in
dictments and arrests gone, and has
been brought back to this community
from faraway places. Not the least
startling of the stories was that of
the Reno Gazette, which In bold
headlines, stated that the arrests of
Dickerson, Belford and Witcher had
been made; that the warrants had
been given to the state police to
serve. The week surely was brim-
ming with sensations, and Captain
Donnelly of the state police, denies
that he ever had any warrants to
serve on the men named. The Gazette
has been filled with denials since the
publication of its first story, and is
authority for the statement that no
indictments were found against the
Ely men.
The Carson Appeal contains the
following wire from Governor Dicker-
son, In answer to a request for an
interview regarding the rumor of
arrest:
ELY, New, July S.-Have
not been served with warrant
and do not know why should
be. | have learned that the
Eureka County Grand Jury has
brought or intends to bring in
dictments against me for not
closing the Eureka County
bank. sooner
81 can convince any un-
prejudiced mind, that the
former Banking Board is not
guilty of any wrong doing, but
performed valuable service to
the depositors and to the state
in general
"If served with warrants will
offer no resistance, provided l
can be tried by fair Judge and
jury.
| "Will exhaust every resource