Article Text

THE TRIAL OF BROWN Some Interesting Testimony in Case -Against the Storm Lake Banker HAD BIG PERSONAL OVERDRAFT Government Trying to Show That Brown Had Passed Worthless Certificates to Branch Banks When He Knew They Were Insolvent-Employes Give Testimony. Special to Times-Republican. Sioux City, Oct. 6.--In the trial of W. E. Brown, the Storm Lake banker, charged with fraudulent banking, some interesting testimony has been developed. The government is trying to prove that Brown used the Farmers' and Mechanics' bank of Linn Grove and. Sioux Rapids in order to reduce his personal overdraft at the First National bank of Storm Lake through the means of passing worthless certificates of deposit from one bank to the other. Brown, accused of falsely reporting to the comptroller of the currency and falsifying the books of the First National bank of Storm Lake, sat unmoved throughout the trial, toying with a pencil or marking down figures on a piece of paper. The testimony in question was given by L. R. Crowell, who a number of years was bookkeeper of the bank at Sioux Rapids. Crowell testified that the Farmers' and Merchants bank of Linn Grove and Sioux Rapids were owned by Brown. The direct examination was long, but the gist of his testimony was that Brown finding he had a personal overdraft of $10,800 in the First National bank of Storm Lake, issued a certificate of deposit from the Sioux Rapids bank to the one at Storm Lake for $8,000, thus leaving the personal overdraft of $2,800. This transaction took place when H. W. Mayne was cashier of the bank at Sloux Rapids. Shortly after the deal Mayne shot himself and the bank went into the hands of Receiver F. F. Faville. The latter, on investigating, found that no record of the issuance of the certificate of deposit was kept on the books of the bank at Sioux Rapids. "Who arranged these transactions?" he was asked. "Mr. Brown.' "How could he issue the certificate of deposit from the bank at Sloux Rapids without it getting on your books?" "Mr. Brown kept blanks for this purpose at his office at Storm Lake." Further testifying Crowell said in order to balance out the account at the bank at Sioux Rapids, Brown had issued a certificate of deposit from the