The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-01-28
ASK FOR RECEIVER TELLS OF COURT
Suit in Federal Court Against
Lawrence Banking Firm.
Charge Is Made Funds Were
Used for Own Benefit.

Appointment of a receiver for Per-
kins and Company, investment bank
ers and brokers of Lawrence, Kan,
is asked in a petition filed in the
United States district court at Topeka,
late Friday afternoon by Frank
Strong, of Lawrence; B. F. Miller, of
New York. and William C. McGinnis,
of Harrisonville, O., who as creditors
charge that the company is insolvent.
Strong was formerly chancellor of
Kansas university.
The suit is directed against f. NJ.
Perkins, Rollin NJ. Perkins, e. Otis
Perkins and F. H. Perkins, partners
doing business as Perkins and Com
pany. Not only is insolvency charged,
but the three creditors allege that
money collected by or sent to Perkins
and Company for investment pur-
poses has been converted by the COM
pany land member thereof for their
own use and benefit"
Announcement of the suit created a
stir in Lawrence this afternoon and
brought back an echo of the litigation
brought about a few years ago over
the collection of a large amount of
life insurance carried by Lucius Per-
kins. father of F. NJ. Perkins who is
named as one of the defendants in
the bankruptcy suit. Soon after TAX
ing out a large insurance policy on his
life, the elder Perkins was killed by
falling from the roof of his home in
Lawrence. Much litigation followed
as the insurance company charged
Perkins committed suicide The
claim, however, was finally paid.
An Old Institution.
Perkins and company is an old in
stitutiOn in Lawrence and has carried
on business that has been of an in
ternational character in scope. Altho
no mention in the suit just filed is
made of the company's probable La
bilities, Ex-Chancellor Strong, over
the long distance telephone this after
noon, said he had reason to believe
the amount would be large. The COM
pany, it is reported, recently lost its
office building, one of the largest
structures of the kind in Lawrence, to
a creditor, and it is said that several
other suits are pending against the
company in -the Douglas county dis
trict court.
In demanding that the company
now be declared to be bankrupt and
that the federal court appoint a re-
ceiver, both Strong and McGinnis
charge that collections made for them
by the company during the past three
years have been misappropriated, but
that the alleged misuse was not dis
covered until within the last six
months. Strong says he has more
than $4,000 involved in this manner
and McGinnis states that he has due
from the company an amount in ex-
cess of $1,000. Miller charges that he
sent the company $1,150 in October,
1920, to be invested in real estate
mortgages, and alleges that instead of
investing the money In that manner,
the company and its members have
used it for their own use and benefit.
The three creditors further allege
that the company wilfulIy and know
ingly committed an act of bankruptcy
September 80. 1921, when it conveyed
a certain tract of land to Tom Harley
in trust for A. J. Hoppe for the pur-
pose of satisfying an unsecured claim
held by the latter amounting to about
SO, 900. Again on January IL, 1922,
it is charged that the company, for the
purpose of "hindering. delaying and
defrauding the unsecured creditors"
delivered to Oscar II. Poehlef, of Law
renee, a chattel mortgage on all of ics
office furniture and equipment to
cover a claim for 81 ,060 which Poeh1er
held against it Both of these transac-
tions, it is alleged. were for the pur-
pose of giving Hoppe and Poehler
preference over other creditors