New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1920-08-14
P.ollzi and A
Others Put
Behind Bars
icontinued from page one,

with the hanover Trust Company. He
had been criticized for leaving the
director after the latter's prison
record had been revealed
The arrest of officers of the Old
Colony Foreign Exchange Company
came after a frenzied run by note
holders upon the company's Offices on
Devonshire Street. One of the results
of this run was an imperative notice
served upon President Brightwell by
the trustee of the building to vacate
his quarters within an hour and half
Shortly afterward the Offices were
closed.
More than hundred note holders
were inxthe exchange company's outer
Office this forenoon when a man
emerged from the inner Office and an
nounced that Shy order of the District
Attorney" no payments on notes would
be made "for three or four days"
Brightwell said later that this an
nouncement was erroneous so far as
mention of the District Attorney was
concerned, but that the company had
decided to suspend payments tempo
rarily on advice of its attorney.
The announcement brought loud
cries from the waiting crowd
/ owe want our money!" several of
them demanded.
There was a rush toward the inner
office. Guards employed by the con-
Germ struggled to keep the people back.
Threats. We're made against Brightwell.
"I'll break his neck!' one man
shouted.
Finally the guards succeeded in clear
ing the Offices and the doors were
closed and locked but the crowd re-
manned in the outer hall and surged
against the doors with such force that
the glass was broken.
Payment Promised
Through the broken doors some one
announced that in about half an hour
the company would begin making paw
ments at another Office
ITS d lie." shouted man in the
crowd. "They are not paying there.
We were there and they locked the
| Offices up. We want our money"
An hour later the Devonshire Street
Roffices of the company were reopened
and payment of principal on I'M
matured notes was resumed The
notice to vacate came soon afterward
and again the Offices were closed. A
notice posted on the doors said that
further payments would be made at an
office on Oliver Street beginning next
/
would be made tomorrow
Attorney General Allen, who has been
Investigating the activities of Ponzi
and of the Old Colony Foreign Ex-
change Company, said to-day that he
knew that the Exchange Company had
sent large sums of money abroad. He
declined to make any further statement
with regard to its affairs. During the
day the Attorney General was busily
engaged IN examining notes on Ponzi
sent or brought to his Office in re-
| Spouse to his request, and in inter-
viewing note holders. Up to date he has
heard from 1000 unpaid noteholders.
Some OF those who came to his Office
told pitiful stories of their experiences
with Ponzi.
One Victim Soldier
One OF these was young man who
fought in France, was wounded twice
and is still suffering from the effects
of poison gas.
81 turned over to Ponzi," he said
my 500, all that the government gave
me The doctor had ordered me to 20
to Arizona and promised him I would
A day or two later l heard about the
way money could almost be doubled
by giving 1t to Ponzi. l thought the
more [ can get the longer [ can stay
out there, and without saying ANYTHING
to anybody | put it in. Well, you know
the rest of the story. I stood the gaff
before. | guess | can stand it again
AN ltanan couple reported that they
drew $500 out of bank with the in
tentlon of sending it to relatives. They
had talk with Ponzi shortly after.
ward and decided to invest the money
with him.
A carpenter who had originally it,
vested $3.50 with Ponzi was stricken
with illness. Hoping to get enough to
pay his Doctors bills and other ex.
/ penses while he was i'll, he asked his
wife to scrape up all the money she
could among her relatives. She got to-
gether 5000, and it all went to Ponzi
The Attorney Generals office also
was engaged to-day in studying the
statutes and legal precedents in order
to determine whether any action could
be taken by the state to compel persons
/ who had cashed their notes on Ponzi
with or without the so per cent interest
which he paid OH notes that had run to
torty-tive days, to turn the money back
into common fund for equal distribu-
ton among all noteholders. The Attor-
ney General was not prepared to make
any statement as to the results of this
/ inquiry.
In this connection an examination OF
the Federal bankruptcy laws today
brought out the fact that they state
specifically that all creditors of q per
I son petitioned into bankruptcy who
have received money from the bank
rupt within four months previously tt
the fling of the petition are liable tt
be sued for the recovery of such
money. Funds thus recovered, the
laws provide, are to go into genera
fund for redistribution later among
all creditors at such rate as the referee
IN bankruptcy determines.
The total amount of Ponzi's liabili
ties is still undetermined. Edwin L
Pride, the auditor engaged by the Fed
eral authorities to go over Ponzi's &C
counts, said that although his worl
was not yet finished he had found liza
bilities totalling $S.0O0,000, and tina
Ponzi had told him that his asset.
amounted to S4,00o,OOO. AS the Han
over Trust Company some days ago an
rounced that Ponzi had paid out S.,
100000 in checks on that bank, the
minimum amount which passes
through his hands in the operation O.
his company approximately was $14,
100000
E~.Ruv,Lor nouioc pov,z1