Merchants Loan & Trust Company (Paterson, NJ)

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Trust Company Closes Its Doors

PATERSON. July 9.-The Merchants' Loan and Trust Company suspended today The liabilities to depositors amount to $15,000 perfectly secured The stock hold is will realize about filty percent. Application has been made by the directors for a receiver The company was hartered as State institution about five Connecticut capitalists are largely interested in it The cause of the suspension WITH busitessdepres.on insudiclous purchases of paper. and investment 111 runi The capital was $200,000.

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Business Embarrassments

PATERSON, N. J., July 9.-The Mer. chants' Loan and Trust Company suspended to-day. Depositors probably safe. The stockholders will lose heavily. The capital of the company was $200,000. Cause of the suspension, business depression, injudicious purchases of paper and investments in real estate. PATERSON, July 9.-The liabilities of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company to the depositors is $45,000. Secured stockholders will realize fifty cents on the dollar.

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Bank Suspension PATTERSON, N. J., July 9.-The - Merchants Loan and Trust Company sus pended to-day. The depositors will probably be safe. The stockholders will loose beavily. The capital of the company is $200,000. The cause of the suspension IS business depressi-n. injudicious purchases of paper and investments in real estate.

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NEW JERSEY

Suspension. PATTERSON, July 9. The Merchants' Loan and Trust Company suspended to-day. Liabilities not stated. Depositors probably are safe. Stock holders will lose heavily. The capital was $200,000. Cause, business depression, injudicious purchases on paper, and investments. Death. ELIZABETH, July 9. Col. J. W. Woodruff, the oldest officer in New York division of the Pennsylvania Railroad, died from paralysis yesterday.

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Another Bank Broke

PATTERSON, N. J., July 9.-The Merchants' Loan and Trust Co., have suspended. The depositors probably are safe. The stockholders will lose heavily. Capital $200,000. Cause of the suspension is injudicious purchases of paper and investment in Real Estate.

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DRAWING FROM A FAILING COMPANY

The cash account of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company of Paterson, N. J., is short about $26,000. This institution collapsed on July 9. The next morning the teller of the bank made out a paper showing the amount on deposit to be $71,000. The Treasurer, J. F. Preston, made a statement showing it to be $45,000. This difference in the two statements could not be accounted for by the Receiver of the corporation. J. C. Todd. It has now come to light that a day or two before the suspension of the company some of the depositors were allowed to draw out various sums of mone y, which aggregated $26,000. It is claimed that they turned over to the bank stock of the Paterson Fire Insurance Company. which has since gone into the hands of a Receiver, claiming that the bank had agreed to purchase 80 much of the insurance company's stock, which they held in place of their share of the assets of the banking institution. It is not yet known who the perbe sons directly concerned are. but an investigation will made at once. It Is reported that some of the directors of the bank were engaged in this transaction. The Treasurer, Mr. Preston, claims that he did not know that it was an illegal proceeding to allow the money to be withdrawn in this way.

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A Bank Cashier Indicted

PATTERSON, N.J., October 3.-It is understood that the grand jury has indicted J. F. Preston, Cashier of the suspended Mercbants' Loan & Trust Co., for illegally disposing of the assets of the company after it closed. Preston claims that his motives were to protect the best friends of the institution.

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Bank Officer Indicted

PATTERSON, N. J., October 3-It is understood that the grand jury bas indieted J. F. Preston, cashier of the suspended Merchant's Loan and Trust Company, for illegally disposing of the assets of the company alter it closed Preston claims that his motives were to protect the best friends of the institution

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INDICTED

PATERSON, N. J., Oct. 3.-It is understood the Grand Jury has indicted James F. Preston, Cashier of the suspended Merchants' Loan and Trust Company, for Ulegally disposing of the assets of the Company after It closed. Preston claims his motives were to protect the best friends of the Institution.

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INDICTED FOR CONSPIRACY

-The Paterson, N.J., grand jury has indicted James F. Preston, the treasurer, and David Henry and E. K. Rose, two of the directors of the late Merchants' Loan and Trust Company, which suspended on the 7th of July last, for conspiracy to defraud the depositors and in removing assets after the failure of the bank for the benefit of themselves and other favorite directors and depositors.

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Applying for 12 New Receiver

PATERSON. Oct. 16.-Onapplication to the ViceChancellor, all order was issued today to show cause on Monday next why a new receiver. vice J. C. Todd, should not be appointed for the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company.

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THE EAST

The remains of the late Archbishop Bayley were buried at Emmettsburg, Md., on the 9th. The steamship England was seized at New York on the 9th by Collector Arthur on the charge of being connected with silk-smuggling frauds. The Susquehanna Coal Company's men at Nanticoke, Pa., resume work at 10 per cent. advance. Ex-Gov. Hendricks arrived at New York from Europe on the 9th. The Philadelphia Permanent Exhibition Company is insolvent and has appointed a committee to treat with its creditors, who are said to be willing to accept 50 per cent. Tweed's statement submitted to Atty.Gen. Fairchild a short time ago is made public. It contains the name of twenty-one Senators paid for votes or silence. An Oil City dispatch of the 10th says a 2,000-barrel well has been struck in the Bullion district. The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company has declared a 3 per cent. dividend on the main stemstock, This, with the former dividend of 5 per cent., makes 8 per cent. for the year 1877. The remains of Gen. Custer were interred at West Point on the 10th with military hon ors. The Federal Bank, of Allegheny City, Pa., suspended payment on the 10th. The suspension appears to be due to the fact that depositors wanted their money. The Lehigh Valley miners refuse to resnine work at less than 10 per cent. advance. The President, Secretary McCrary and Atty-Gen. Devens visited the fair at Frederick, Md., on the 11th, and met with a hearty reception, The Treasurer and Directors of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company, of Paterson, N.J., have been indicted for conspiracy for removing the assets of the company after failure. A counterfeit fifty-dollar bill on the Central National Bank, of New York, has appeared. Tweed denies the substance of his statetrecently submitted to the Attorney-General in which he named many members of the Senate whom he had bought. The rates on West-bound freight from New York have been advanced 33 1/6 per cent. The Lehigh Valley Railroad Company's miners refuse to resume work without an increase of wages. Ex-Treasurer Parker, of South Carolina, was arrested in Jersey City on the 12th on a requisition from Gov. Hampton, charging him with plundering the State. Parker says he will turn State's evidence. The Boston Base-Bail Club won the champ ionship.

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Change of Receiver

PATERSON. N.J., Oct. 26.-The chancellor has removed J. C Todd from the receiver. ship of the Merchants Loan and Trust company, because he was a director, and should have known the company's insolvency, and appointed Robert S. Hughes.

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REMOVAL OF A RECEIVER

RTA30 Vice Chancellor Van Vliet has removed Mr. J. C. Todd from the position of receiver of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company, of Paterson, because Mr. Toad was a director of the concern and was supposed to know of its insolvency, and all the directors were hable lor the deficit in the assets, it there is any. Mr. Todd's position would have been unfair in the event of a suit against the directors. No appointment has yet been made.

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A NEW RECEIVER FOR THE MERCHANTS' LOAN. Chancellor Runyon, of New-Jersey, has appointed E. Theodore Bell, a well known resident of Paterson, receiver of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company, to fill the vacancy caused by the removal of J. C. Todd. Mr. Bell has accepted the position, and will give bonds in $75,000.

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SAVING A CHARTER

A number of prominent citizens are trying to prevent the Japse ot the charter of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company, of Paterson. which confers some valuable franchises that cannot be obtained under the new State banking law. Over $40,000 of deposits are represented in the signers to the documents to relinquish their claims against the bank for this purpose. It is intended to remove the receiver and put the assets 1410 trustees' hands. The charter will expire so-any,

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MERCHANTS' LOAN AND TRUST

The case of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company was called at Paterson yesterday, when Mr. Woodruff, counsel for the State, arose and stated that Mr. Todd, late receiver, was absent from the city, and asked for a postponement, which, alter a lengthy discussion, was granted by the Court until Wednesday next.

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THE INDICTED BANK OFFICERS

Close of the Case of the Prosecution-Mr. Parker for the Defence. The trial of James F. Preston and E. K. Rose, ex-Treasurer andex-Director.respectively. of the defunet Merchants' Loan and Trust Company of Paterson. on an indictment forconspirney to defraud the bank. was continued in Paterson yesterday. The witnesses were J. A. Lewis, bookkeeping expert: William Ryle, the first President of the bank: Mr. E. T. Bell, the second receiver: and Robert McCulloch. All except the last were devoted to technical testimony as to the condition of the books and accounts. Mr. McCulloch testified that he did not make the original complaint before the Grand Jury, neither did he make any proposition to go to another part of the country and keep out of the way during the investigation, as reported. The prosecution was then closed. Mr. Cortlandt Parker. for the defence. then asked the Court to direct the jury to render a verdiet of Requittal, on the following grounds: The indictment was for a conspiracy to defraud the bank. It was generally supposed that the assets of a bank could legitimately be used to pay the bank's debts. The assets were taken by Preston to pav such debts. Granting that Preston made preferences, it was not illegal or fraudulent. There is no law in the State of New Jersey that prohibits a man. before going into insolvency, from paying any particular claims. If it is legal for a bank to pay all its debts from its assets. it is legal to pay part of such debts. It is not charged in the indietment that the defendants defrauded the depositors. but the bank. This was not proven by anything that had come out in the evidence. While Mr. Parker was speaking the court was adjourned for the day.

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THE DEFUNCT TRUST COMPANY.

In the Court of Oyer and Terminer, in Paterson, yesterday, another trial originating from the failure of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company was given a brief existence. It was the case of the State vs. David Henry, who gave to the bank officials after its closing a four hundred-dollar check drawn by Mr. Wilson, for which he afterward received a note for the amount. The counsel for the defence contended that the Court ought to order a verdict of acquittal; that it was a legitimate transaction, as the defendant having deposited the checks after the application had been made for a receiver he was a preferred creditor. Prosecutor Woodruff opposed the argument of the defendant's counsel, asking the Court to instruct the jury to acquit. The jury, on recommendation of Judge Dixon, returned a verdict of acquittal.

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JUDGE DAGGERS'S TRIAL

The Last of the Paterson Merchants' Loan and Trust Company Cases. The unusual spectacle of a Judge stepping down from the bench to be tried on a criminal indietment was witnessed in Paterson yesterday. The indictment against Associate Judge J. R. Daggers is the last one of the Merchants' Loan and Trust Company cases, The indictment accuses Judge Daggers of conspiring to obtain from the bank some of its securities after it had failed. Ex-Treasurer Preston, now in the State prison. gave him and others some of the securities of the bank. to save them from loss in their deposit balances. After the appointment of a receiver. Judge Daggers delivered the securities to the receiver again. The accepting of the securities was fully proved by the State yesterday, and Judge Daggers went on the witness stand in his own behalf. He said that he accepted the securities because he was told by the officers of the bank that Judge John Hopper. the counsel for the bank. had given his opinion that the officers of the bank had a right to prefer creditors in this way. The Judge accounted for having given his check at 8 clock on Monday morning for $1,185. dated on the Saturday previous, on the ground that he was informed that business of a bank on any day extended until 10 o'clock on the next business day, the accounts of the day previous being kept open until that time. The case was partly summed up yesterday. Judge Nixon refused to instruct the jury to acquit the defendant.