Newspaper Page Text
♦
f t a .
A. K. SWIFT, Editor.
VOL. IV.
THREEBANKS CLOSE
Memphis Concerns Forced to
Suspend Business.
LARGE CAPITAL INVOLVED
Heavy Loans and Stringency Imme
diate Cause of Collapse—Depositors
May Get Every Cent of the Money
That is Due Them.
Anticipation of a heavy run on the
Merchants’ Trust company at Mem
phis, Tenn., preliminary intimation of
which was given by the withdrawal
of many deposits Tuesday afternoon,
was the immediate cause of the sua
pension of that zank and the appoint
ment of a receiver Wednesday.
The American Savings Bank and
Trust company, 176 South Main street,
which is dominated by the directorate
oi the Merchants’ Trust company, fear
ing that the failure of the other in
stitution would cause a run on its
own deposits, also suspended payment
until the affairs of the Merchants'
Trust company shall have been ad
justed.
Savings Bank Absorbed.
The American Savings Bank and
'Trust company, it develops, recently
absorbed the Mechanics’ Savings bank
at Main and Calhoun streets, and took
charge of the latter company’s busi
ness. It is stated by the officials of
both institutions that the depositors
will be fully protected and paid dollar
for dollar.
The stockholders of the Merchants'
Trust company, it is said, will suffer
to the extent of 20 per cent on the
capital invested, as the liquidation of
tlieT'bdlk’s finances is expected to
A^htail a Jishtjr^ . , __ f +
The assets of the Merchants’ Tr . st
company greatly exceed the liabilities.
The American Savings Bank and Trust
company, according to its latest state
ment, is in excellent condition, and is
carrying more ready cash than is
usual for an institution of its size.
The Merchants’ Trust company has
on hand only $30,000, the remainder
of its capitalization being loaned. The
fact that the bank had overloaned and
the stringency of the New York mon
ey market are given as the direct
causes of the suspension.
John P. Edmondson, a prominent at
torney of Memphis and one. of the
directors, has been appointed receiver
for the Merchants’ Trust company. A.
Y. Allen, cashier of the American Sav
ings Bank and Trust company, has
been appointed receiver of that insti
tution.
The decision not to open the doors
of the Merchants’ Trust company on
Wednesday morning was reported aft
er an all night conference of the
board of directors.
Felix T. Pope, president of the Mer
chants' Trust company, gave out the
following statement:
“The bank is amply solvent and
every depositor will be puid in full.
The stockholders will
realize a large percentage of tlieir
investments. The Merchants’ Trust
company had loaned too much money
and was unable to realize on its loans
fast enough to meet the demands, “i
am not in a position to make a state
ment now as to reorganization or fu
ture plans.”
W. A. Percy, attorney for the Mer
chants’ Trust company, and the direc
tors of that institution make the state
ment that all depositors, both of the
Merchants’ Trust company and the
American Savings and Trust compa
ny, will be paid in full.
Statements of the financial status
of the closed banks at the close of
business, December 26: Merchants’
Trust company — Assets, $3,665,0t>5 ;
liabilities, $2,132,319. American Sav
ings Bank—Assets, $758,703; liabili
ties, $758,703. The deposits in both
Institutions exceed $ 2 , 000 , 000 .
TWELVE THOUSAND CASUALTIES
Is Report Sent to a Lonpon New«pa„
per from City of Moscow.
The St. Petersburg correspondent
of the London Times, in a dispatch
dated December 26, says:
“Governor General Doubassoff, tel
egraphing yesterday (Dec. 25) report
ed that 12,000 persons had been killed
er wounded at Moscow.
“I am informed from a good source
that 2,000 persons were killed and
10,00U wounded. The revolutionaries
ore making no headway, hut they
show no signs of exhaustion.”
BRAVE ACT REWARDED,
President Remembers North Carolin
ian Who Defended Postoffloe
Against Burglars.
As a reward for defending the post
office at Emma, N. C., four years ago,
against four burglars, President
Roosevelt has waived the civil service
regulations on the recommendation of
Postmaster General -Cortelyou, 3.
H. Alexander’s Christmas gift was a
promotion from a laborer to a clerk
ship in the department.
Not only has the brave North Caro
linian been promoted, hut to accen
tuate the honor an official statement
was issued Tuesday, which gives a full
account of the deed. The attempted
robbery took place on the night of
February 6 , 1901, and the official ac
count says:
“After the store in which the post
office at Emma is located closed for
the night, Mr. Alexander, who had
been sleeping in the room adjoining,
heard a knock on the door and in
quired what was wanted, He was
told that some one living near wanted
bis mail, and he unbarred the door.
“Two masked men entered, covered
him with revolvers and commanded
him to give up his own revolver and
epen the fireproof safe. While one
of the burglars, Frank Johnson, who
had laid his revolver on the desk near
the safe, was stooping In the act of
looting the safe, and during a moment
when the other burglar, Ben Foster,
had his head turned, Alexander seized
the idle revolver and shot the latter
near the heart, He attempted to
shoot Johnston also, but failed to
do so, as the revolver snapped.
“A desperate struggle followed. Fos
ter, although seriously wounded, pur
sued Alexander and shot him in the
abdomen, the bullet coming out at
the back. Alexander, .^eing Foster
about to shoot at him again, swung
Johnson around so that the bullet
struek Johnson’s left shoulder from
the rear, passed through his neck and
lodged in f.s right jaw, from which It
ext. ..4ed. *
hands vers badly cut and bruit ’•«»
fore he overpowered the. burglars.
“Alexander managed, however, to
put them both out of the buildjng, to
call out a signal of distress and the
fainted. The postmaster, hearing tl e
signal, came to Alexander’s relief and
found him lying weak and faint a
pool of blood,
“His bravery is the more aocen
tuated when it is known that Mr. Alex
ander is a man of small stature, prob
ably not more than 5 feet 6 inches
tall and weighs less than 125 pounds.
It would seem that he must have
been possessed of almost superhuman
strength to oust the two despera
does from the postoffice. Two accom
plices who were waiting on the out
side carried away the wounded bur
glars to a house, in which they were
arrested the same night.
“The two burglars above mentioned,
with two accomplices, after trial were
given the extreme penalty of the law,
which for the offense committed in
the state of North Carolina is death.
Afterwards the sentence was com
muted in the case of two of the bur
glars to life imprisonment. The other
two were hanged on February 26,
1902.”
NATIONAL WEDDING PRESENT
--
Proposed to Be Raised for Miss Alice
Roosevelt—Ten Cents Limit.
An effort to create by popular sub
scription a wedding present for Miss
Alice Roosevelt, who is to be married
to Congressman Nicholas Longworth
in February, has been started by cit
izens of the eastern part of Oregon.
It is the plan to have the subscribers
live in every state in the union, the
amount being remitted to various
state treasurers, who will in turn for
ward it to the secretary of the treas
ury at Washington. The subscription
will close on February 8 to enable
,
the present, which is to be about
$800,000, to be turned over to Miss
Roosevelt on the day of the wedding?
Individual subscriptions will be limit
ed to 10 cents.
GAMBLING JOINTS WIDE OPEN.
District Attorney Jerome Biffs Politi
cal Leaders in New York.
That gambling houses and poo!
rooms in New York are as wide open
as ever and that many of the em
ployes in these places are given po
sitions by political leaders as a part
°* the patronage of their district was
charged by District Attorney Jerome
in the court of general sessions Fri
day. There were a large number of
l )00 ' room and gambling house case-.
on the calendar and Mr. Jerome ap
peared in person as the prosecutor.
“GO FORWARD,”
WOODBIN– GA,, FRIDAY. JANUARY 6, 1906 .
CAPITAL FOR SOUTH
Moneyed Men Hurrv to Inyest
Coin in Dixie.
AGENTS ARE KEPT BUSY
General Prosperity, Cotton Prices and
Wide-Spread Advertising Prove to
Be Drawing Factors as
Never Before.
With the wonderful increase in the
business of both freight and passen
ger departments of southern railways,
industrial agents are responsible for
The statement that never was there
such a time as the present, so far as
investors and homeseekers in the
south are concerned. These officials
say that the advertising which the
south enjoyed the past year in news
papers all over the country on ac
count of the high prices paid for cot
ton has been attracting the attention
of capitalists and investors as never
before.
Never in history have the agents
received so many queries as to con
ditions and favorable opportunities,
etc. And the number of persons who
are coining south at this time for the
purpose of looking over the ground
personally is quite in keeping with
the heavy volume of correspondence.
Winter is always the time when the
land and industrial agents are busiest,
for it is at this season that men of
the north, east and west come down
to Dixie both for the purpose of get
ting away from the hitter cold and
at the same time to get in touch with
chances for investing their money to
the best advantage.
For the last few years this num
ber has been growing very rapidly
because of the wonderful resources
of the south and the marvelous de
velopment tirade possible by the grow
ing prosperity of the farmers, plan
ters and people generally of, this sec
' --vj?V ■?: :
•
| made morn in so , but they
have gone tc their old homes . and
told, their friends and neighbors of
the exceptional opportunities offered
to small or large capital in Dixie,
To a man railroad officials are
agreed that tile wholesale advertising
resulting from the great profits de
rived from cotton this year is re
sponsible and also the fact that the
many banks which are springing up
in the south in agricultural districts
everywhere are responsible for this
influx of millionaire immigrants and
others who have plenty of money for
Investment, even if they have not
reached the seven figures stage ot
wealth. The stories of southern banks
having been forced to send their
money east and west to secure inter
est on loans because ol’ the citizens
of the south having ready money of
their own and more on deposit with
no occasion for borrowing; have crept
into the newspapers of the entire
country, and spread abroad the con
ditions existing below the Potomac
and Ohio rivers.
Industrial agents of southern rail
ways say that it is not so long ago
that they had the hardest kind of a
time getting anything of the true sto
ries of' southern conditions in the
northern newspapers, because of the
prejudice. This prejudice was not be
cause of the civil war, but of the
reputation which the south and south
erners had had this long time, be
cause of the debts and the hard timea
which had existed for years.
DRY DOCK BEGINS JOURNEY.
The Dewey Started for Philippines
at Rate of Two Miles an Hour.
The floating dry dock Dewey start
ed from Solomon’s Island Friday on
her long voyage to the Philippine
Islands.
The Dewey only travels some 25
miles in eleven hours. She has over
14,000 miles to travel, and at the
rate of two miles an hour, it will
take her upward of nine months to
make the voyage, with smooth
weather.
PRESIDENT DISAPPROVES IDEA.
Does Not Wish National Wedding
Present Given Miss Alice.
The press dispatch from Baker
City, Ore., announcing that a ten
cent subscription was to be started in
Oregon and extend over the
for the purpose of raising a sum to
be presented to Miss Aiice Roosevelt
on the occasion of her marriage to
Representative Nicholas Loligworth
has called forth the disaproval of
the president to the proposition. Me
states that while he appreciates tilts
evidence of good will, he hopes noth
ing of the kind will be undertaken.
HE KEPT NO ACCOUNTING.
Attorney “Andy’’ Hamilton Wont Tell
What He Did With Money of New
York Life Company.
Andrew Hamilton, the legislative
agent for the New York Life Insur
ance company, who, according to testi
mony, has been entrusted with hun
dreds of thousands of dollars by the
company, and has not accounted for
$235,000, has been heard from by the
legislative insurance investigating.-.
committee, but has declined to make
an accounting.
A statement by Mr. Hamilton was
read before the committee Wednes
day. It was presented by Secretary
John C. McCall of the New York Lite,
who went to Paris to secure an ac
counting from Hamilton. In his state
ment Mr. Hamilton says that he is
unable to produce any books or ac
counts because he undertook the legis
lative matters for the life insurance
companies with the express under
standing that he was to make no ac
counting. Absolute secrecy was nec
essary in retaining assistants, there
fore no checks were used in making
payments.
Mr. Hamilton went into an exhaust
ive explantion of the reason for or
ganizing this confidential service, as
he characterized it, covering his meth
ods or Work, and citing a number of
legislative bills in which he had been
interested. A list of expenses from
1899 to 1904 was appended to the
statement. The sum of $236,000 un
accounted for, he says, would be
greatly reduced by the running ac
count still unsettled and open and as
a matter of good faith pending a
settlement, he offers to deposit $ 100 ,-
600 with the company.
Secretary MteCall was questioned by
Attorney Hughes as to what further
light he could throw on the statement
of Mr. Hamilton, but he said.,* could
give no information. He hau asked
Mr. Hamilton for a full statement and
relied on his honesty to explain every
thing MTe did jnsist that Mr. Hamil
luce ^
\ ’but ton i r Jlllaimftcn had or. none. dhfla^faao ks
V Wh lr. McCall was excused, Hen
ry D. 'Appleton of the state insurance
department, was called. He complet
ed his testimony begun last week and
during the examination was told that
Mr. Morgan, former president of the
Bankers’ Life Insurance company, had
testified that Mr. Appleton had said it
would cost the Bankers’ Life $50,000
to reincorporate. Mr. Appleton some
what heatedly said: “If Mr. Morgan
said that he is a liar.” He was called
to order by Chairman Armstrong.
NOTED GEORGIAN PASSES AWAY.
Walter B. Hill, Chancellor of State
University, Victim of Pneumonia.
Hon. falter B. Hill, chancellor of
the Georgia State University, died at
his home in Athens at 3:10 o’clock
Thursday morning from an acute at
tack of pneumonia.
Walter Barnard Hill, educator and
lawyer, was born in Talbotton, Ga.,
September 9, 1851. He was a son of
Judge Barnard and Mary Clay Birch
Hill. He graduated from the Univer
sity of Georgia in 1870 and from the
university law school in 1871 with the
degree of A. M. Emory honored him
with the degree of LL. D. in 1899, as
did the Southwestern Presbyterian
University in the same year, He
practiced law in Macon from 1871 to
1899, when he became chancellor of
the University of Georgia, which po
sition he held at the time of his
death.
Among Chancellor Hill’s literary
productions are the Code of Georgia
from 1873 to 1882, Memoirs of the
General Conference of the M. E.
church, South, 1886-94. Memoirs of
the Western and Atlantic railroad. He
was a trustee of Vanderbilt University
and a mem b er 0 f the Georgia Bar
Association. He was president of the
Georgia Bar Association in 1888. He
W as also a mem ber of the American
Bar Association and was at one time
c h a } rma n of the committee of judicial
administration of the latter associa
tion He has wr itten several promi
ueat works on literary, legal and ethl
cal subjects.
PRICE OF LUMBER ADVANCED.
Committee on Values Raise Figures
on Certain Grades.
Advices sent out to members of the
southern Lumber Association are to
the effect that the committee on val
ue s, which has been in session in St.
Louis, has made a big advance In
prices of certain grades of lumber,
the increase per 1,009 feet over pre
vailing prices being:
Flooring $2, all grades; ceiling
$ 1 . 50 , all grades; siding, $ 2 , all
grades; inch hoards, $1.30, all grades;
fencing $t.50, all grades; dimensions
$ 1 . 59 , all grades.
Terms: $1.00 Per Annum in Advance..
GASH WAS SCARCE
Call Money Reached High
Rate in New York,
UNCLE RUSS TO RESCUE
Veteran Wall Street Financier, Sage,
Made Ten Strike by Loaning Six
Million Dollars at the Rate of
One Hundred Per Cent.
After having reached 110 per cent
on the New York stock exchange and
12’5 per cent on privately arranged
loans, the rate for call money late
Thursday afternoon fell to 6 per cent.
Just before the close it advanced
again and closed 15 bid, offered at
20 .
As the money rate fell, the stock
market advanced, approximately the
highest prices of the day were reach
ed at the close. The stock market,
except for an early decline in indus
trials, was fairly steady throughout
the money tension.
The advance in the interest rate
was sensationally rapid, From 60
there was a quick advance to 75, 90
and then 100 per cent. When 100 per
cent, was touched all records since De
eember, 1899, were broken. In that
year 186 per cent was paid for call
loans. After lending at 100 Thurs
day, there were loans at 90 per cent
The 90 per cent quotation did not last
long, and at 11 o’clock 110 per cent
was paid for funds, and shortly after
wards a loan of $400,000 at 125 per
cent was reported.
Russell Sage, through his represen
tative, was reported to have loaned
$6,000,000 at 90 to 100 per cent. More
than the usual discrimination was
shown by the banks in the collateral
accepted by them for loans. 1 he
i ate for 60 and 90-duv loans 1 hurs
day was 6 per cent “commis
sion/’ wcartif m«kir^%uch lo£ ' a rfc ‘“ h ' ~
! 0
demand; for mdney teemed to have
een largely supplied and money was
lent at 60 per cent, falling later to 20
per cent. From 20 per cent there was
a further drop to 6 per cent and at
2:45 o’clock the quoted rate was 6 to
10 per cent. President Hepburn of
the Chase National hank said, in an
interview:
“The enormous volume of business
which obtains throughout the country
is making a strong demand upon the
banking power and naturally has ma
terially advanced the rates of interest.
“The foreign exchange credit which
the country would normally have is
much curtailed by the shortage of
cars, which prevents the rapid mar
keting abroad of cotton and grain,
and also by the concerted withhold
ing of cotton for higher prices.
“Normally, we would anticipate such
exchange by our credit abroad, but
Europe has troubles of its own. Hence,
we are called upon to finance our
great volume of business practically
with our own resources. It is unfor
tunate that at such a time and under
such circumstances that prices cf list
ed securities should be persistently
advanced day by day. It has add
ed to the money strain and is pri
manly responsible for the high rates
of interest.
“Stocks (if worthy) would have
found a higher level in a normal man
ner without creating an unusual strain
and without causing conditions fraught
with possible danger.”
COYOTES ON THE RAMPAGE.
Children and Domestic Animals Be
ing Destroyed by Them in Mexico.
A San Antonio, Texas, dispatch
says: Great loss of domestic animals
is being sustained in northern Mexico
from coyotes and wolves with rabies.
Cattlemen from the Rio Grande coun
try say practically all the coyotes be
yond the river are mad, and the cat
tlemen are scouring the country and
exterminating them.
Several Mexican children in Coahui
la have been bitten and died, The
spread of rabies to Texas is feared.
NEARLY SIX HUNDRED MILLION®
Is Value of Property of All Kinds in
the State of Georgia.
According to the returns made to
tax receivers all over the state of
Georgia by individual property owners
and those made to Comptroller Gen
eral Wright by corporations, the value
of all the property in the state for
1965 is $577,967,938, or $47,073,183
more than in 1904.
The total returns as shown on all
the county digests were compiled some
time ago, hut the compilation of the
corporation returns made to the comp
troller general, has Just been com
pleted.-
NO.'8
COAST LINE PROGRESSIVE?
Great Rillroad System Maturing Plane
for through Route to Sea Via
Georgia Capital.
In Saturday morning’s Issue the
Atlanta Constitution published the fol
lowing: By securing a connection in
Atlanta with the Louisville and Nash
ville, which it owns, the Atlantic Coast
Line railroad proposes to establish a
through route from the west to the
Atlantic seaboard, according to the
latest gossip current in railroad cir
cles.
The Coast Line is now the owner ol
everything necessary to create this
through trunk line from the west with,
the exception of the short connecting
link of 88 miles between Atlanta and
Macon, and this, so far as the report
goes, ft has taken determined steps?
to secure.
In other word’s, the Atlantic Coast
Line is said to have submitted a deUf
nite statement to the Southern rail
way and the Central of Georgia that
it must have a traffic arrangement
with one or the other of them foi
its through business between Atlanta
and Macon, and in the event of a re
fusal of both of these systems to
enter into such an agreement, the
Coast Line will, it is stated, build an
Atlanta-Macon line of its own.
It wou i d ap p ear that the Atlantic
Coast Line has had this plan In view
f or SO me time past. The Coast Line
appeared upon the scene as the pur
c haser of the Macon, Dublin and Sa
vannah railroad about the time the
L, ou i sv lll 0 and Nashville began active
work upon its plans for getting intd
Atlanta.
a question was raised in the United
states courts which for a time looked
Uke , a ser ioua one, as to the Coast
line's right to buy the Macon, Dub
and Savannah. Thin question was
recently decided in the United States
CO urt of appeals at New Or,t
t kr . coast Line’s favor, and th
Tj ne ncrw becomes the owner
MfeSSS.- npfcjhv fy *
.
The Macon, Dublin and S i vannah
runs in practically a straight litae from
Ma»con to Vida, la, in Montgomery
county, a point on the Seaboard Air
Line.
By building from Vldalia to a point
on the main line of the Atlantic Coast
Line between Jesup and Savannah, a
distance of about 60 miles, the Coast
Line will secure a through line from;
Macon to Savannah, shorter than that
of the Central of Georgia—in fact,
practically an air line.
The Atlantic Coast Line is the ad
mitted owner of the Louisville and
Nashville, and within the next three
months will be running its own trains
into Atlanta from Cincinnati and other
western points. This will come with
the completion of the Cartersville cut
off and the work being done on the
Western and Atlantic in order to pre
pare that portion of the latter road
between Atlanta and Cartersvile for
handling the increased business.
Thus it will be seen that all the At
lantic Coast Line needs for the pur
pose of establishing its through west
era trunk line is, as stated, the short
connecting link between Atlanta and
Macon.
It is understood the Coast Line de
sires this traffic arrangement solely
for the purpose of handling Its
through business from the west to
the Atlantic seaboard, and would not,
of course, interfere with any local
traffic.
If, however, the Southern and Cen
tral both decline to enter into any
such arrangement, the indications are
that the Coast Line is ready to build
an Atlanta-Macon branch of its own,
FAKE HOLD-UP A TRAGEDY.
Joke Played by College Students
Causes Death of One of Them.
Louis Roquela of Colombia, a stu
dent at Notre Dame Seminary at
Notre Dame, Ind., Friday night, shot
and almost instantly killed Claude
Bagby of Durango, Cal., when Bagbv
and several other students as a prac
tical joke held up Roquela, mistaking
him for another student.
“LID LIFTERS” IN TROUBLE.
Would-Be Reformers in St. Louis Are
Subjected to Heavy Fines.
Officials of several of the organiza
tions popularly termed as “lid lifting
clubs,” which were raided recently un
der instructions of Governor Folk,
were arraigned In police court at St.
Louis, Wednesday, on charges of vio
lation of the liquor law. Fines were
imposed in sums ranging from $50 to
$ 100 . Judge Tracey denounced the
organization, declaring that in nearly
every instance they are merely sub
terfuges for the evasion of the Sun
day closing law.