The border vidette., 1920-11-20
BIG LIBEL SUITS.
A. M. Conard and L. E. Grimm Ask
 for $500. .OOO Damages.

The following article publish, ed in the Los Angeles Times. dated November 18th, will be of interest to many readers of THE BORDER VIDETTE, here and in the State of Sonora, Mexico, where MT. A. M. Conard, one of the plaintiffs in the $500, ,OCO libel suits, has for more than twenty years been well and favorably known. During the long years of his active operations in Ari- zona and Sonora, Mr. Conard has been honorable and fair in all his dealings and we hope he and Mir. Grimm will win their big libel suit.
 The Times says:
 Libel suits totaling $500, GOO, in which Ray l.. Riley, State Real Estate Com missioner is named as one of three defend ants, will be filed here today by Attorney A. L. Abrahams, the latter stated last night on be half L.. B. Grimm and A. M Conard as a result of Mr. Riley's letter to the county grand jurors asking for an investigation of accusations made in the letter.
 Shortly before the announce ment, Deputy District Attorney Stafford declared that he and the jurors will ask for additional information from MT. Riley to see whether the matter-is prop er1y a subject for grand jury in quiry. This action will be the direct outgrowth of Mr. Riley's letter, which lists promotions and re- organization of four diff ferent companies by Messrs. Conard and Grimm as fit mat ters for investigation. The accusations in the Riley letter come from Julius Lopez, a discharged employee" Attorney Abrahams said last night, and they are false and malicious. I have prepared two libel suits, each for $500, ,OOO, naming Lopez, MT. Riley. and the Sacramento Bee as defendants in each with MT. Grimm as plaintiff in one and Mir. Conard in the other. These will be filed today and will charge that Mir. Riley and the Sacramento Bee caused the pub . lication of the charges without proper investigation.
 "The acts of MesSrs. Conard and Grimm and their companies are open and above board. We welcome a thorough inquiry by the grand jury and will be glad k0 0n iDf command. We have nothing to cover up and I am sufficiently familiar with the affairs of the companies to state that the ac cusations are absolutely without foundation.
 Hundreds of thousands of dol lars are involved in the Mexican ventures of Conard and Grimm, MT. Riley's letter states. The companies which these men are declared to have promoted were organized for the exploitation of copper, castor bean agricultural and fishing lands and conces- Sions.
 First mentioned is the Inter national Copper Corporation, S. A, of Noria, Mex. Although it is true that little has been done toward developing this property, Attorney Abrahams says this inactivity has been due to dis tdrbed conditions iu Mexico and through no fault of Conard or Grimms.
 The second company referred to in the letter is the Interna tional Agricultural and Develop ment Company. formed under the laws of Mexico. and which has a contract for 13O,OOO acres of land near Hermosillo.- MT. Riley's letter says that Conard and Grimm had a contract for this land at S15O an acre and that they assigned their contract to the International Agricultural and Development Company at an advance of $1.5O per acre, or a total of S3 per acre. A pur- ported partial list of California stock holders is the given. -
 DENIES SECRECY.
 Attorney Abrahams states that the reference to the advance of $1 50 per acre in the price is cor rect, but that no attempt was made to cloak that in secrecy y and that the board of directors formally passed a resolution con [ In