The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-04-13
BROUGHT TO HEAD
Fight Between n. Y. Financiers
and McAdOO Reaches Climax.
Officials Charged
COnspiring to Wreck Bank.

New York, April 13.-The long
brewing fight between the treasury
department and the National CITY
Bank in New York reached it's climax
when Secretary McAdoo and Comp
troller of the Currency John Shelton
Williams were charged in the District
of Columbia supreme court with com
bining and conspiring lin a deliberate
attempt to wreck" the Riggs National
bank of Washington, an institution af-
filiated with the local bank.
This action spills much pent up bad
blood between Messrs. McAdoo and
Williams on one side and the Riggs
National and National City bank on
the other.
Behind Messrs McAdoo and Will
liams are all the resources and powers
of President Wilson and his admins
tration.
Behind the Riggs bank are the I'M
limited wealth and great influence of
the Stillman-Rockefeller interests,
though at the National City bank it was
declared that that institution had
nothing whatever to do with the legal
proceedings, a statement technically
true.
In financial circles the bringing of
so grave a charge against the highest
financial officials of the federal gov
eminent caused amazement, notwith-
standing the known strained relations.
The political consequences of this
challenge to the Wilson administra-
ton are expected to be momentOus.
In Sympathy With Bank.
The local financial community is
almost wholly in sympathy with the
banking interests involved. For this
reason:
When Mr.. McAdoo and Mr.. Will
liamS were called to Washington it
was understood they were anxious to
''get even with financial New York
in general and with the National City
bank in particular because of the ex-
periences these gentlemen had had
during their business careers. Mr..
McAdoo completed the "McAdoo tun-
nels' but his project was not support
ed financially by certain financial in
situations. Mr.. McAdoo's enterprise
finally went into what Mr.. Whiteridge
aptly called transformations bank
ruptcy' much to the chagrin of its
sponsor. Interests not identified with
the National City bank came to its
not in an amiable frame of mind to-
ward New York when he was placed
in charge of the treasury.
Mr. Williams, then a banker and
railway magnate in Richmond, Va,
had had an equally disagreeable ex-
perience with New York financiers.
He had been ousted from the Sea-
board Air Line railway, which he at
one time controlled, and among those
who assumed direction of the prop
erty were Frank A. Vanderlip, presi-
dent of the National City bank; Ben
jamin Strong, Jr. (now governor of
the New York Federal Reserve bank)
A. H. Wiggin, Charles H. Sabin and
others identified with the Ryan or
Morgan interests.
Woman i'm Case.
Soon after Messrs. Meade and Will
liams took command at Washington,
a young woman who compiled certain
treasury records for the Riggs and the
National City bank was unceremon-
iously ousted and a statement issued
by the department which brought
forth a pointed reply from the bank
ers.
''Sleuths" were dispatched to New
York to dig into the records of the
National City bank covering many
years in an effort to find some cause
for a fresh attack but all that was
found was Chicago railway loan
which was criticised but was not found
illegal.
Milton L. Allies of the Riggs bank
next had a sharp encounter with the
heads.
Mr.. Williams was accused of QueS-
tionable conduct in connection with
the Munsey Trust company's absorp-
ton of the United States Trust COM
pany of Washington.
And so the fight has been waged |
Now comes the climax