Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-06-14
PLASS DEFENCE.
Took $4,000 from Fund
To Save Investment Co.
Counsel AvoWs Utter Absence
OF Fraudulent Intent.
Explains Minister'S Incompeteney
--Plass' Interesting Story.

Boston. June 13-That they took
$4,000 from the Redemption fund in
order to save the Redeemable In
vestment Company from ruin and
not to benefit themselves is the de-
Tense set up by Rev Mormon Plass,
Charles II. Brooks and John /. Ira
phagan to the charges of fraud on
which they are now on trial in the
United States district court.
Attorney John p. Feeney of coun-
sci for the defense. outlined their
side of the case at the opening of
court today. intimating that Rev. Mr..
Plass would take the witness stand
and tell all that he knew of the al
legged fraud. Mr.. Feeney declared that
owing to his lack of business training
Mr.. Plass himself had been defraud-
ed by lumber interests in British
Columbia and that when Brooks found
it out he forced Plass TO resign and
to turn back to the company all the
stock he held. His training as a min
lister and a college president. Mr.. Fee
ney contended, entirely untitled him
for a successful business career. This
was shown. he said, in a pamphlet
III AiliStl ltSS Aiieit an VI tiiN
property owned by the company was
clear OF debt. What he really in
tended to say, declared Mr.. Feeney,
was that the property had no imme-
diate indebtedness to meet. All fraud
ulent intent was denied. Whatever
was done, was done to save the COM
pany and the stockholders from ruin,
he declared
Regarding the erasure in the books.
he said that the officers had been au-
thorized by the directors to issue stock
to themselves for the purpose of turn
ing the idle redemption fund into a
working fund but when the names of
the officers appeared upon the books
it seemed thai a wrongful impressions
of the transaction might be given and
| for that reason the names of the offi-
GERS We're scratched out and those OF
employees inserted. That there were no
fraudulen intent behind this he said.
| the stock transfer books would show.
| In the latter the names of the officers
appear as the persons to whom the
stock had been issued. If fraud had
been intended, he said other names
| than those of the officers would have
| been used
| The entire difficulty, he declared.
| arose out of the failure of the sale OF
| the redecmable stock. In all 100000
| had been procured in this way. he
\ said when $750000 had been expected
| Seeing failure ahead, he said, the Of
| ficers started in to save the company
by abandoning the redeemable stock.
| Over 60 per cent of it was exchanged
for stock in the Santo Domingo Min
| ing Co, he said, before the raid oc-
| Cured
On the legality of their actions, At
torney Feeney did not dwell. He EN-
phasized however, the exigency of the
situation. declared that it was abso-
lutely necessary to abandon the re-
demption fund to save the investors
and the company from total loss.
On taking the witness stand, Rev
Mr.. Plass said that he was graduated
from Williams College, in 1882 and
from Yale in 1886 when he became a
Congregational minister. In 1902 he
became president of Washburn College
lat Topeka, Kas., remaining there six
Years.
On making a trip for his health IN
| Canada in 1888, he became interested
in wheat land, he said, and purchased
and sold out his holdings at a profit in
1903, '05, '06 and '07. Before starting
the Redeemable Investment Company
he had 10000 acres of wheat land and
| timber properties for which he hao
paid ST. 900 in cash and $4,000 In
stock of the Norman Plass Lumber
| Company.
| He first met Brooks, he said, May IL
| 1908. From him he purchased $40. 49,
| worth of Santo Domingo stock a year
before they formed the Redeemable In
vestment Co. Traphagen, he stated, had
! nothing to do with the organization OF
| the company. He testified that he tend
| ed to the work of putting the Redeem
| able stock on the market, but declared
| that the sales We're always very slow
and that they did not realize their ex-
pectations.