ALLEGED FRAUDS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 3 February 1930, Page 5

ALLEGED FRAUDS

CANADIAN FINANCIAL SENSATION NATIONAL DRIVE AGAINST BROKERS FURTHER ASSIGNMENTS (United Press Association—By Electrio Telegraph—Copyright) VANCOUVER, 31st January. The assignment of two more firms is a feature; of the national drive against the alleged wholesale brokers' conspiracy to defraud the public. At Victoria Hugh Allan, its oldest firm, and at Winnipeg, Stobie, Furlong, and Matthews have assigned their estates. The hitter has closed all its offices, leaving Saskatoon and other centres without any trading. There is no trading at Ottawa, because all brokers have been suspended by the Stock Exchange. A sensation was caused at Calgary when the suspended millionaries, Messrs I. W. Solloway and D. F. Patterson, appeared at the Stock Exchange, trading in defiance of the Stock Exchange, which bad ordered all trading to cease. Both were- ejected and their previous"trading cancelled before transactions were resumed. The drive is likely to compel legislation banning all except cash trading in stocks. At Ottawa the provincial investigator has compelled one firm to buy back all stock sold in a dubious mine.

AMAZING DRAMA

ATTORNEY-GENERAL FORCED TO CAPITULATE (Received 3rd February, 11.0 a.m.) VANCOUVER, Ist February. Canada this week watched an amazing financial drama, in which threatened wreck loomed so widespread that the highest law officers of the Dominion were obliged "to come to the rescue of highly-placed people they had just attacked." In one forenoon five leading brokerage houses were raided and eleven principals arrested. Colonel William Price, Attorney-General for Ontario, directed the battle against alleged dishonest bucketing brokers who have scores of branches throughout the country. He closed these up and asked the Stock Exchange to expel mining operators who last year alone handled more than £40,000,000 of public moneys. For one • the Stock Exchange operated without these brokers. Overnight, however, the Ontario Government feared a financial crash that would rock the Dominion and early on Saturday it was announced that the accused brokers would be readmitted to the exchange. The At-tornev-Generaiwas forced to capitulate to a definite threat that" with the accused traders- prohibited from trading there would be panic and the unprotected stocks of thousands of small holders woukl be wiped out, and in the case of criminal court charges against the brokers finally not being proven these speculators, large and small, would have a good Vase for legal redress against the Government of Ontario. Curiously enough the Government ot Manitoba 'also found itself in a desperate position and protested violently against Ontario's action in seizing officials and the bank accounts of the accused brokers. Manitoba's prosperity is entirely dependent upon the stabilised wheat price. Two of the leading brokers wefc carrying millions of bushels of wheat on margin in the Winnipeg market, and their bank account seizures occurred, one day when wheat reached the lowest point of the season. Noon on Friday saw the situation where 10,000,000 bushels of wheat would have, been dumped on the market within an hour. The Premier of Manitoba has announced that the resources of the entire Government would step hi to stabilise the situation, for he-feared a panic that would have carried the price away under 3s on Saturday morning. Ontario police released enough of the brokers' money to bolster the wheat market and the crisis passed with Liverpool cables announcing two cents advance overnight. The week finished with Governmelit leaders coming to the realisation that some business is sometimes too big to be disciplinedwithout far-reaching and unexpected results.