The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-05-29
santa FE TRAINS COLLIDE; TWO KILLED
HEAR NATIONAL
CITY BANK MAN
IN SMALL CASE
Says Grant Park
Bank Not Men
toned in Deals.

! Waukegan, Ill, May 20 (By the
, Associated Press.) - The Grant
Park bank, supposed depository of
state funds, was not mentioned
when the National City company OF
I Chicago borrowed nearly a mil
lion dollars from its president, the
Z late Senator Edward G. Curtis, ac-
cording to Roscoe Watts, treasurer
of the company, testifying today at
the trial of Governor Len Small
! The only banks mentioned in the
/ negotiations, Mr.. Watts said, were
/ the Grant Park Trust & Savings
! bank, and the Curtis Trust COM
pany, two other Curtis institutions
at Grant Park. The state is trying
to show that the loan to the Nation
/ al City company was part of the
| S29,000,000 in state funds deposited
in the Grant Park bank-an alleged
non-exiStent institution-by Cover
nor Small and Lieutenant-Govern
Fred Z. Sterling. during their
! terms as state treasurer. The
/ Grant Park loans paid two per cent
interest to the state, while the
/ prosecution claims that Mr.. Small,
Mr.. Sterling, Mr.. Curtis and the
latter's brother, Vernon S. Curtis,
conspired to pocket $1,50O,000 to
$2,000,000 which the funds also
earned.
Identifies Checks and Notes. J
Mr.. Watts identified the endorse
tment of his company on number
of checks and notes.
On Oss-examination, Mr. Le-
Forgee, chief counsel for the gov
ernor, brought out that Senator
Curtis might have had transactions
with other departments of the Ma
tional City company without the
witness knowledge.
Mr.. LeForgee asked him about
Mr.. Curtis purchase of $50, 900 of
Jacob Dold Packing company
stock, 100000 of Liggett & Meyers
notes, S135 900 of Pennsylvania
railroad bonds; $4,000 of Ameri-
can Thread bonds, s55, 900 of Chi
cago & Northwestern bonds; $38,-
900 of St Paul union depot notes,
$50, 900 of Bethlehem steel stock,
$4,000 of American Telephone and
| Telegraph notes, $50,000 in bonds
of the Evansville, Indiana, Public
Utilities; S100,000 of Armour & Co.
notes; $4,000 of Cudahy Packing
company notes and a number OF
other isues.
To each question Mr.. Watts re-
piled he was not familiar with the
transaction.
Totals $1,50O.O00.
The purchases, as read by Mr..
LeForgee, included large amounts
for a half dozen Curtis banks in
downstate towns outside of Grant
Park.
The list tota1ed between $1,000
900 and S1,5000OO.
Joseph L. Cooper, cashier of the
Illinois Trust company, and A NJ.
Speer. cashier of the Peoples Trust
& Savings bank of Chicago, were
called to identify signatures and
stamps on checks which passed
through their banks.
George E. Keys and Addison
! Corneau, vice presidents of the
Ridgeley Farmers & State bank OF
| Springfield, ILL.,, arrived this morn
ing to testify for the state. Mr.
Keys, who is a well-known poll
tician, was defeated by Mr.. Small
for the nomination for state treas
urer in 1916.
The state plans to question MI
Keys and Mr. Corneau about tho
consolidation of the Farmers anl
Ridgely banks in which Governor
Small, Senator Curtis, Lou Emmer
son, secretary of state, and Andrew
, Russell, state auditor, acquired
r stock.