The producers news., 1926-07-23
Continued from page One)


the banker is still at large. There
are some transactions in the Bilstad
case which the bank officers pulled OF
which would make expert confidence
men turn green with envy. The story
of how r. ID. Sutherland, Vice Presl-
dent Of the First National Bank of
SacO, took Bilstad into the bank Just /
before that institution closed its doors |
and got him to transfer $1,000 in cash |
for two beautifully engraved certii-
Gates Of stock resembles one of the |
transactions Of POnzi. Bilstad was /
persuaded to hand over his remain
ing $1,000 on the plea that he was
saving the bank. He signed his name
on the dotted line of an agreement
which is a masterpiece Of legal leg
erdeman. The ink was hardly dry
on the agreement when the collateral
thus obtained was used for other pur-
poses and the doors of the bank were
then closed. The earnings of life
time in sheepraising are gone and
poor old Bilstad's money disappeared
and all he has in return are some
{. DIS and other Autographed papers.
Bankers Indicted.
Three bankers have been indicted
50 far but one of them, Sheldon, Is
operating a chain of banks in Min
nesota while he is fighting eNtradi-
tion to this state. The attorney who
expects to handle the case against
sheldon, if he ever comes TO trial IN
Valley County, has been hired by
Sheldan at various times and only
very lately was given a mortgage to
by Sheldon. We are not insinuating
that the prosecuting attorney will be
nnfaithful to his trust or that he will
fail to press the case against the
Minnesota banker in the way Justice
and public policy demands, because he
is in receipt of fees from Sheldon.
We are only stating pertinent facts.
The affairs Of the National Banks
that went down have not yet been
investigated by a grand jury but the
matter is here publicly brought to
the attention of the u. S. District At
tOrney and he is assured that there is
enough evidence at hand to present to
a Federal Grand Jury so that such
body may consider returning an in
dietmont against the guilty parties.
Thirty Millions Stolen By Bankers
in Four Years
The breaking of the banks in Val
ley couny were particularly .disast-
erous because the people were as
sured that the orgy of bank wrecklng
in Montana had passed. People who
had buried their savings in tin cans
had confidence in the banks restored
in them and "fell again" They had
forgotten that the bankers Of tht
state had Just finished getting $780,.
100000 away from depOsitOrs. They
thought they were safe. Their tive
representatives in the last leglsla
ture RuffcOrn and Johnson had NOT
ED AGAINST a bill which would, i
passed, have saved them the none!
they had so blindly trusted to the Gus
tody of the bankers.
The Black Record of RuffcOrn
Let us digress here to examine
the facts of how this bill, which
would save every Valley County
resident the money he lost in the
recent bank failures, if such men
as RuffeOrn and Johnson had not
voted against it, was thrOttled in
the last session of the legislature.
RuffcOrn, who is now candidate for
the State Senate was approached
and asked to vote for this bill. He
was on the Banking committee of
the house which tried to strangle
il in Committee. He was leader
Of the House which voted it down
on the floor and his name appears
as having voted against it IN the
final roll call. If there is any
doubt in anybOdy's mind where
Ruffcorn and Johnson Of Valley
Hanson of Daniels. Ryder of ROOse-
welt and other men sent down tO
Helena to serve the peoples inter
ests stood, that doubt will be dis
PEELED by reading the history ol
House Bill No. 2, known as the
"Ban Guarantee Bill IN tht
House Journal Of the Nneteentf
Legislative Assembly. And turn
ing over to page 353 Of that jour
nal he will find that the following
legislative representatives NOIEl
AGAINST the Bill that would pro
tect the people againsbt the loss o
their deposits in closed banks:
Members of Legislature Who Vote
Against the Bank Guarantee Bill.
Ayes: AinswOrth, AkOfer, An
dersOn. BergstrOm, BesansOn
Brandt, Budas, Burns, Caplis, Cas-
ties, Clarke, Cusick, Davis, DellWo
Donalds0n, DOran, Duncan, Eaton
Fairgrieve, Fitzgerald, Flachsen
har. Fletcher. Gordon, Graybill
Green. HANSON, Harris, Hawley
Hendrick. Higham, Hoffman, Holt
HoltOn. Johnson (Fergus), JOhnsO
VaUev) Kennedy, Kinville, LarsO
(Cascade). Leavens, Lincoln, Lobe
Masters, Miller, MOriarity, Morris
Moss, MoultOn, Murphy, McAtet
Mccarthy, McGrath, Nagle, Ne
son, Nelstead,e Parkin, Patterson
Peat. Peterson, Plank, Reed, RIe,
RUFFCORN, Rupert, r \ ID + !
Sales, Sehoening, Smith Oewis an
Clark. Smith (BeaverheaO, StOd
dard. Strange, Tinsley, Troy, Waite
Walker. Walton, White, WOl'
Wuerthner, Zeh. TOtal-T9.
Bank Bill Scientifically Drawn.
The Bank DepOsitors Guarante
Bill. against which the above men
hers of the last session Of the les
islature voted was a scientiticall
drawn bill, closely modelled afte
the law now in force in Nebraski
under which not one single deposit
or in that state lost a dollar thr
closed banks It was examined an
passed on by the Direct Legislatio
Club of Montana, the same organ
zation which first sponsored II
Metals Mine Tax which was passe