The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1917-09-12
BANK PRESIDENT
WAS EMBEzAER
Martindale of the New York
Chemical National Was
Short 100000
THEFTS CONTINUED
FOR SIXTEEN YEARS
Man Died Last July and Suspicious Were
Aroused During His Last Illness -
Money Obtained by Manipulating De
positors' Accounts.

WASHINGTON, Sept. l2-Disclos-
sure that the late j. b. Martindale dur !
ing the last sixteen years when he was
vice president and then president of
the Chemical National bank of New
York, stole 100000 by forged notes
and false entries was made yesterday
in statement by John SHELTON Will
Jams, comptroller of the currency.
Martindale died only two months ago.
! lie ives i'll in hospital when Vice
! President Twitchell, who succeeded to
the presidency Of the bank, began the
investigation that disclosed the thefts
i The story Of Martindale S speculations,
in the formal words of the comptroller,
follows
Investigations recently made show
that j. b. Martindale, the late presi-
dent Of the Chemical National bank of
! New York city, who died in July, 1917,
was an embezzlcr and forger to the ex-
tent Of about 100000, He had been
president Of the bank since December,
!. 1910, and prior TO that had been for
member of years its vice president
''Thc loss viii not impair in the
: slightest degree the capital and sur
pIus OF the Chemical bank, which
amounts at this time to Slo,000,o00, but
& viii he charged out of its undivided
profits, which at the present time
t1 4
Ing off the 100000.
+ The suspicious of the bank officers
were aroused while Martindale was alb.
seat from the bank. i'll in hospital
= shortly before his death; and the EN-.
= hclllcment was discovered as a result
=. of an inquiry instituted by Vice PreSi.
: dent Twitchcll, who was recently elect
:. ed president OF the bank TO succeed
i NJ. Martindale. The money was not
y stolen directly from the bank but was
: obtained hy manipulating the deposit
] SsrruuH 'ofr>a wealthy depositor fol
: whom Martindale acted as financial adj
adviser and trusted agent.
= Under President Martindale s in
!. etlnctions the statements OF this deposi
/ tor account We're rendered By the
IS bank periodically to Martindale. in
# stead Of direct to the depositor, anC
: Martindale then manipulated anC
I changed these before submitting then
. to the deposition.
The method by which Martindal,
8. obtained most Of the money was b,
+. withdl awning money from this deposi
If tors account, either through a forget
= check or by a debit slip signed b,
- himself as president He would presen
tt these checks for $4,000 or $4,000, o
- whatever the amount might be, to tn
bank teller personally, explaining tina
& the deposition had asked him to dray
y this money from the account for dc
Id nation to some hospital so that tn
e. name Of the donor might not be known
u OF that the dcpositor desired the matte
handled in this manner for some othe
plausible reason. and he would the
/ appropriate the cash so withdrawn {
1 his own uses.
In explaining to the depositor q
1 the end of each month these withdraw
| ais, Martndale S plan was to infori
I the unSuSpecting depositor that he ma
laced the sums so Withdrawn from I'll
Il Chemical bank TO the depositor s cred
in certain trust company i'll New Yor
city one Of whose depositor pass bool
he had obtained and in which book |
would enter up in his own handwritir
l as deposits with the trust company Il
amounts of money which ne had wit
/ drawn from the Chemical National bar
through the means of the forged checl
or debit slips.
~ He also forged the depositor S nan
TO certain demand notes to the exte
Of about $4,000, which amount he al
~ got from the Chemical National ban
and personally appropriated.
est The aggregate amount of the forg
Nv notes placed in the Chemical bank al