Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1915-04-27
HUBBARD-YALENT|Nf
CASE CONTINUED
Hubbard's Written Acknowledge
ment of Purchase of Stock is
Introduced.

W
purchase of the r. c. Valentine
stock, which Hubbard alleges he
signed under duress, an anonymous
letter Hubbard received six weeks
ago warning him that warrants for
his arrest were awaiting him II ne
came to the lawsuit now in progress,
and what is evidently part of a let
ter Hubbard testified he found in K.
G. Valentines waste basket, formed
documentary evidence introduced in
the Hubbard-V Valentine lawsuit
when Ross w. Hubbard, the plain
tiff, was recalled to the witness
stand yesterday. After Hubbard had
agreed to buy R. c. Valentines stock
for $1,000, Hubbard testified, R. G.
Valentine prepared an acknowledge
ment of the purchase and the rea-
sons for the retirement of Valentine,
which Hubbard signed. Hubbard
testified the document, which was
put in evidence and read to the
court, was in the handwriting Of R.
G. Valentine, and that Valentines
father, E. E. Valentine, and T. E.
Adams, signed i'll as witnesses to
Hubbard's signature.
This document, which was writ
ten on two sheets of the Consumers
Oil Company letter heads, and dated
Aug. 6, 1913, is:
To whom it may concern: This is
to certify that I, Ross w. Hubbard,
in purchasing the common stock
holdings of the Consumers Oil Com
pany from r. c. Valentine, am doing
so with the full knowledge of their
worth and am purchasing said stock
in its entirety and of my own free
will and accord. a
IT also hereby certify that the po-
sition of president and treasurer held
by r. G. Valentine in the above cor
poration has been filled by him dur
ing his encumbency to my entire sat-
isfaction, and that on the occasion
of his retirement I found all trans
actions handled by him and all &C
counts to be in satisfactory shape
and the way they should be in ev-
cry way.
II also wish to state that Mr.. VAL
entine's retirement is absolutely
voluntary on his part; no pressure
OF any kind having been brought to
bear on him, and the reason for his
retirement from said company is due
to his desire to be free from duties
and obligations connected with such
business, should an occasion arise
making Mr.. Valentines removal from
the city a necessity through one
cause or another.
~ also wish to state that the facts
a., heretofore mentioned will be ex-
PLANTATION set forth by me as to
causes leading up to Mr.. Valentines
retirement.
81 also certify that neither nor
my assigns, heirs or any other per-
sons will contest or cause to be con-
tested any collateral or other items
Of value given me in the purchase Of
said stock, as am thoroughly salts
fed with my purchase.
II also certify that the price am
to pay for such holdings is $6,630."
(Signed) ''R. w. Hubbard"
Witnessed: E. e. Valentine, T. E.
Adams"
Hubbard testified he signed this
acknowledgment under duress and
threat Of criminal prosecution.
Hubbard had testified earlier in
his examination that within day
or two after he bought R. G. Valen-
tines stock, he sold 100 shares Of it
to his friend, w. H. Steiner, then
city engineer.
Under cross examination by G. H.
E. Boardman, Hubbard admitted
that he knew that the stock was not
worth par, the price Steiner had paid
him for it. He excused himself with
the explanation that he intended at
that time to put more money into
the business to put it on its feet and
make the stock worth par. This he
said he attempted to do to the ex-
tent of $4,000 he borrowed on the
notes of himself, Mrs. Hubbard, and
the latter's mother, Mrs. Culver.
The cross examination developed
that after Valentine got out Steiner
was taken in as secretary at sal
airy Of $3.50 month, Hubbard drew
$50 as president, and o. w. Culver,
Hubbards brother-in-law, to whom
some of the Valentine stock had
been assigned, got $65 or $40 a
month. This line of questioning
was intended to show that Hubbard
had heen eytrayagant instead of