The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1921-12-05
oossfnef len smsli 10 useln cevr,
Fight 70 Prove lnroesncs a
Charges rmbeEslsmsnt orea,
Gums state Cash.
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR
Is ALSO IMPLICATED
Curtis. Small Town Darker on Trial
Win Small; state Alleges They
Jvssies sioooo.ooo Tor Their
o~r Profits.
ny United Press.

Nnuh'tKaus W., Doc l.@t.nu
Small. Illinois governor. began his
court flsht today % prove his IN.
noccnuc Of charges ~ having jns
sled Millions Of dollars Of public
money for his own personal adsan.
tage.
Along with Vernon Curtis. a smal.
town banker. the ,taf,s chief cxccu.
tive went on ls'l before Judge
Claire Edwards IN Lake county cir.
cult court For the first time IN TIE
history Of the state her chief exc.
tuiive was before the bar on a Grim.
inai charge.
Tho specific charge which Small
aud his alleged banker accompllce
VIII stand trial. Is that they en-.
bozzlcd certain sums OF the states
money. amounting 10 approximately
ssoo.Ooo. Fred Sterling. lieutenant
governor who was Indicted with
Small and Curtis will be tried later.
Before becoming governor Small
served two years as state treasurer.
II was during his first term In the
treasurer's office that the alleged
embezzclment started. and con-
tined through the four year period
OF his term In office: through the
term in the treasurer's office served
by Lieut.. Gov. Sterling and up to
lats January. according TO the con.
tention Of the prosecution.
The state will attempt to show
that when Small became treasurer.
he deposited siO.01O.00O OF the /
states funds in tie Grant Park /
bank. private institution organized
and owned by the Curtis Bros. This
bank, the prosecution contends did
not do a regular banking business.
The State viii attempt TO show that
1t was organized merely to handle
the loan of state money.
Smalls defense Is determined to
show the bank was a regular, leglt-
mate banking institution.
On receiving the states money for
which the only security given was a
certificate of deposit the Grant Park
bank is alleged to have negotiated
loan to Armour & Company and
Swift & Company Chicago packers,
for $10.0G0000 worth of their short
times notes, on which the packers
Paid about 7 per cent interest. The
bank, in turn, Is alleged to have paid
the state only between 2 and per
cent for the use Of the money, Civ
ing an alleged profit of approx
mately per cent to the bank
Packers claim they knew nothing
OF the source of the money. The
bankers are alleged to have repre-
sented to the packers that the
money was surplus Of deposits
accumulated from their banks.
The Grant Park bank held the
securities until the first of this
year, when Edward Miller became
treasurer. Miller refused to accept
the certificate of deposit from the
Grant Park bank as sufficient secur-
ity and demanded the money. Dur
ing the term of the loan, a new law
regulating private banks in the
state had become effective. The
Grant Park bank had failed to come
under the law, and automatically
should have been forced out of the
banking business, the prosecution
contends.
When Miller made his protest to
Gov Small. the governor made q
hurried trip to Grant Park, obtained
the Swift & Armour notes and de-
posted them in the state treasury.
A grandafjury investigation was
started and the packers Immediately
took up the loan.
Edward Brundage, attorney gener-
al of Illinois, is understood to have
been back Of the entire prosecution
and directed its activities. Brundage
and Small are members of different
factions of the Republican party in
Illinois, Small being in the following
of Chicago, while Brundage was
supporter of the former Governor
Frank o. Lowden.
Actual presentation of the states
evidence at the trial will be in