Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1915-07-01
CLAIM OF NOTE
FORGERY SUSTAINED
Jury Finds for VIM. Jones ,. IN
Sensational Lawsuit.

The case of State Bank of Buffalo,
Mimi, V. William Jones of Courtenay
was tried by jury Saturday and a
verdict rendered in favor of the de-
fendant. The plaintiff had a note
endorsed without recourse by the
Stutsman County Bank of Courtenay
with the name of William Jones
signed thereto, the amount of the
note being $685.. The defendant
claimed he did not execute the note
and that his signature thereto was a
forgery. Some sixty-three notes and
mortgages, cancelled, were intro
duced in evidence to show Mr.. Jones'
genuine signature, and these were
compared with the signature on the
note held by the Bank of Buffalo,
which was suing for collection of
said note. Mr.. Jones having been re-
leased by the jury from liability on
the above note, the next step to be
taken in the matter has not been an
nounced. ..
The Bank of Courtenay, it is un-
derstood is responsible for the valid
ity of the note to the Bank of Buf-
falo. Buck & Jorgenson represented
the Bank of Buffalo and Knauf &
Knauf the defendant.
1t was not known who executed the
alleged forgery.
Serious Allegations Made by VIM.
Jones.
In the proceedings of the district
court much interest is being aroused
over the prospective trial of the case
of Stutsman County Bank of Court
enay to recover on several promissory
notes alleged to have been signed by
William Jones, the well-known farm
er who operates large farm in the
northern part of the county.
Friday and Saturday last another
case against Mr.. Jones was heard in
the district court, that of State Bank
of Buffalo, MINI, which sued tore
cover on q note alleged to have been
given by Jones on November 1, 1913,
for $2,3S5 with interest at IL per
cent.
The defendant denied that he had
executed the note in question and
claimed that the same was a forgery
and did not bear his genuine sigma
ture and the jury found for the de-
fendant.
On the trial of the case the plain
tiff produced Loran Nichols, the ex-
president of Stutsman County Bank
of Courtenay, who swore that Jones
signed the note in his presence and,
on cross-examination, admitted that
he, Loran Nichols, had secured the
signature of Mr.. Jones to a $4,000
mortgage and a $19,4OO mortgage
and notes on May 5, 1913, while
Jones was not in the country nor
within 800 miles of Courtenay, all of
which notes he had gotten signed by
Mrs. Jones without her husbands s
knowledge or consent.
Mrs. Jones testified that Mr.. Mich
OILS came to her on May S, 1913, and
got her to sign these numerous notes
while she was attending to her family
washing at her home, he represent
ing to her that they were only small
amounts, possibly a thousand dollars
or such matter; afterwards that tIe
notes turned out to be for some $44,-
900 and she did not know whether
that was all or not.
1t appears that Mr.. Nichols had
witnessed the signature of these pre-
tended mortgages Of Mr.. Jones,
which he claimed were not signed by
him and were unauthorized by him.
Mr.. Jones also testified that he had
not signed this note sued upon,
whereupon the plaintiffs attorneys
produced five other notes which it
was claimed that Mr.. Jones signed
and all of them signed in the same
hand as the note sued upon. Mr..
Jones carefully examined each of the
notes and then testified he had not
signed either or any of the notes and
then produced some sixty-five notes
and mortgages which he had actually
signed during the past ten or twelve
years and offered them for compari-
son of handwriting, and the defense
claimed that the signature "Wm.
Jones" to the notes sued Ypon was
not genuine and that he had not
signed the same.
Ho also claimad md nffored nronf