Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1913-03-18
TESTIFIES TO r
FRAUD IN THE
LUMBER CASE


Lumber and Development company
timber
The government has established
that photographs Of the Laguna tim
Der we're printed in much Of the
companys literature and represented
as mahogany and spanish cedar cut
from the estate OF the international
Lumber and Development Company.
Pictures Interest the Jury.
The iury Was deeply Impressed win
the violence when District Attorney
Swartley allowed it TO inspect some
of these prfctorial pamphlets. The
photographs were Of piles Of mahong-
any. logs in. the lumben yards Of the
company at Mobile, Ala. The gov
ernmdnt conttnds. that those tilu-ing
evidences OF tie prosperity OF the
soncorn caused thousaRds of persons
IN this. and other countries % In
vest
Captain Patton identified several
~impoi9 ennies which acc )uated for
cargoos OF mahoRany taken From the
plantation at 1.aguna. Mex, to Mobile,
~-hcn he ives captain OF tho Nuelta-
halo. He WIS able 20 Identity only
one record OF logs taken from the
.'timber-rich" plantation Of the COM
pany. That was ON May "A, 1907, when
ISL mahogany logs we're RATED TO his
shin fro n the beach al ChenSan, an al
legged port maintained by the lntorna-
tional lumber and Development Com
pany.
Further testimony by Captain Pat
ION as in contradiction TO the claims
of the company that IL was reaping
enormous profits from the sale OF
lemons. lines. oranges and other
tropical fruits said 10 grow In great
abundance on its estate
When asked by Mr. Swartley II he
had ever lOa-ed anything besides ma
hogany, Captain Patton replied:
II once put a few bananas aboard
at Chenkan. that is all
No HarbOr There.
The witness also exploded the
claims of the company In It's alluring
literature that there was a splendid
harbor' at Chenkan.
"There, is no harbor there at all, he
said, 1T is just straight coast line
and II "a dangerous for ships TO, APP
proach too closely 10 the shore on
account OF the shallowness or the wa
ter. 7 always anchored about =
quarter Of a mile from the shore. and,
n there was any freight to come
aboard II had to be RATED to the
ship"
When asked II there was a dock at
Chenkan. he replied.
Eyes. a small pier, but never could
understand why Il was built, for only
the very smallest kind or boats could
dock there"
The witness described zone OF the
boats which was included In the
great international neet,' Of which
the company had much to say in ia
glowing literature. as a sailboat, nj
teen feet long.
When Captain Patton was called, h
idcutlhod 'import entries contain
ing records of four cargoes OF log
taken by the Nueltabajo from Mexic
70 Mobile. On March 2, 1907, he too
q, cargo from liaguna, a planta1io
owned by another company. sixt
miles from the estate of the Interni
tional Lumber and Development Con
rany.
May "a. 1907 he testified, he loade
1B2 mahogany logs at Lagnna and rs
logs AT Chenlan. and took them to Nc
bile on tho orders of Markley an
Miller. promoters.
Markley and Miller, again on Jul
10, 1907, ordered him to Iaguna Z
get a cargo OF timber. He said h
made another trip to Laguna in DC
tober. 1907, and took a large carg
Of mahogany 10 the lumber yards an
saw mills of the International Ium
Der Company at Mobile. so,
Il was shown by Mr.. Swartley tina
all through that period the compan
waH flooding the mails with literatur
announcing that il was cutting an
sailing mahogany from It's own plan
fatlon. IN the pamphlets and circular
which reached thousands OF prospec
tive stockholders. it was printed tina
the company was able TO pay s pc
cent dividends from enormous profit
derived from the many cargoes OF ma