The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-12-17
ROBBINS CENTRE OF
n. H. COURT FIGHT
Eight Witnesses Testify az to
Absorption Of the Metro
pOlitan Steamship Line.
LARGE CHECKS TRACED

: The attack Of the Government in the
case of tho eleven former directors Of
tho New llovcn centred yesterday upon
Edward y. Robbins. former counsel and
director of the company.
Attempt was made through tracing
h lntric3cies Of the Metropolitan
Steamship Company manipulations to
establish that Mr.. Robbins was acting
for the New Haven aud not for himself.
as the defence alleges. Eight witnesses
Were heard during the day.
II was shown that In the steamship
deals Mir. Robbins made an apparent
profit OF abou, s6ai 600: that he re-
rcived the checks for the rent Of thu
Vale and Harvard sent to tho Pacific
coast trade. bu. 1t was no, show that
any OF tl,i3 1891, 900 found It's way back
INTO the treasury OF tho New Haven,
A partial outline Of the testimony. 81
Far as 1t could be followed, showed that
Warren n. Chase. "a lawyer for years
IN Mr.. Robbins's office in Hartford. or
ganizcd the" Metropolitan Steamship
Company Of Maine. known az No. 2.
which was designed to purchase the as
rcts of the METROPOLITAN steamship Com
pany of New Jersey from the Assets
Realization Company.
Large Losu Negotiated.
Then the New England Securities
Company was organized to raise the
$4,000, 900 capital OF the Maine No. .
company. h Billiard company here
came along and using gold demand notes
n the treasury of the New Haven COM
pany. Endorsed in blank. and kindly lent
10 tho amount OF 3d. 00, 900. as collat-
oral borrowed $1,000 200 from the Farm
crs Loan and Trust Company. s~i.55o.00o
~ which WAS lent to the Metropolitan
of Maine No. .. The balance was OBJ
tanned by another system 81 financing.
II was when the Government sought
to follow the various checks from tho
officers OF the corporations through tho
banks that tho trouble arose yesterday.
Some of the officers Of 1910 were young
men and admitted frankly that they did
not know what they were doing. Grover
G. Richards, "A young electrician Of Port
land. Me. told OF signing several million
dollar checks in New York. but he wa
hazy rs TO details. He had not kept
records.
George A. Mcintosh. who signed
checks for $4,000. 900. did not know any
ching about them. He acted under the
direction of Mr.. Chase. He remembered
that once he had gone to a building
somewhere uptown. where he a deliv-
cred an envelope 10 a man whom he did
not know. receiving therfor "A check for
$4,000. lie never inquired who the man
was. During the afternoon the parti-
cipation Of the late Gov. Hill OF Maine
in the Eastern Securities Corporation
explained by his counsel.
Hemingway on the stand.
Samuel Hemingway. the banker. OF
New Haven Was on tn. stand yesterday
morning and revealed llat he had re-
ceiyed ono-halt of the Sl5o.o 600 realized
ny ohm T.. Billiard In tho Boston and
Maine deal. Charles :. Mcllcn testified
that Mr.. Billiard had split the sum into
'hreo parts and had offered him $50
600 for his aid. The Mr.. Mellen re-
FUSED. Mr.. Hemingway said a Mr..
Billiard a offered him one-halr Of It
and he had taken IL.
II was a friend OF his for years ard
his financial adviser. assume tina he
me the money out of the kindness
Of his heart said tho witness.
isn't II a fact that YOU brought Mr..
Ncllen and Mr.. Billiard together? p asked
James W. Osborne. who has been exam
ming witnesses for the last two days.
1T II not" was the emphatic answer.
Mr.. Hemingway admitted tha the
o OF The Billiard company did not
contain any record that the assets OF
tho Metropolitan steamship Company
We're sold to Gov. HITS company.
h Government last night
that 1t had finished with the Metropoli-
tan complications. There are a half
dozen minor witnesses to be heard to-
day n then the defence vii, have is
inning. The defence will open with =
general argument to have the case dis
Thomas Thacher will make the prin-
opal argument. but II is expected that
for about all the defendants
viii supplement the main
This will take about two days. The case
goes On this morning.