Indianapolis Times, Volume 46, Number 3, Indianapolis, Marion County, 15 May 1934 — Page 4

PAGE 4

PRISON GATES CLANG SHUT ON LUKELEA, SON Three-Year Freedom Fight; Lost by Former Associates of Rogers Caldwell. By SEA Service RALEIGH. N. C-. May 15 —With a click of grim finality the steel gates of the penitentiary here have closed one of the most dramatic career* in the history of the south. Colonel Luke Lea—newspaper p'— Usher, former United States senator, maker of Tennessee governors. World war hero, “the man who almost kidnaped the Kai3er," banker, industrialist, politician, and scion of two of Tennessee’s oldest and wealthiest families —is only now beginning to serve the prison sentence imposed nearly three years ago. In that time he continued to light, desperately and by employing every legal recourse, to escape the penalty for conspiring to defraud the Central Bank and Trust Company of Asheville of more than a million and a quarter dollars. The president of the wrecked bank, Wallace B. Davis, was convicted along with Lea and Luke Lea, Jr., but long ago gave up the fight and began serving his prison term. The Leas, however, remained in Tennessee, forfeited their bonds, and ' put up a battle against extradition which involved numerous writs and hearings, and even two appeals to the United States supreme court. Hinge on Technicality Their pleas hinged mostly on the technicality that they were not in the state of North Carolina at the time of the alleged offense, and the argument was made interesting enough to keep them out of custody for fifty-six months. Although the Asheville bank was the base of Lea’s criminal activities, nearly all the south suffered j in some degree. Not since the Civil war had the south faced greater financial disaster than it did in the ! autumn of 1930 after the collapse of the vast investment company built up by Lea and Rogers Caldwell. Ruin for thousands, suicide for some, followed the failure of Caldwell 4e Cos., which held SSOO 000,000 of investments in its various enterprises. The tally of bank failures included eighteen in Tennessee, sixty-seven in Arkansas, twenty in Kentucky. Failure of the Central Bank and Trust Company carried several affiliated organizations with it. Entered Politics A craving for excitement and power was all that carried Luke Lea through his colorful adventures to the final debacle. He was born to a life of ease and wealth, but chose to play the game otherwise. After accumulating four college degrees he returned to politics. In 1906. supporting the gubernatorial aspirations of M. R. Patterson, the 200-pound Lea charged the platform of the Democratic state convention, snatched the gavel, declared himself elected chairman, and brought about Patterson’s nomination. Patterson was elected. But the following year, when Lea had founded the Nashville Tennes- | seean, he split with the Governor | and directed bitter editorial attacks j against him. The editor of Lea’s j newspaper. ex-Senator E. W. Carmack, was slain on a Nashville street by a Patterson supporter, who later was pardoned by Patterson. Lea then backed Ben W. Hooper, a Republican, for Governor, and won the campaign. Awarded Hero Medal In 191, at the age of 32. Lea was elected by the state legislature to the United States senate. Ho j served cne term, ran for re-elec-tion, and was badly beaten. When the World war came, a friendly Governor commissioned him colonel and he recruited a regiment of Tennesseeans. The unit became the One hundred fourteenth field artillery and saw action on four sectors in France. Colonel Lea was awarded the distinguished service medal. Shortly after the armistice he and several of his men startled the world by attempting to kidnap the kaiser from his retreat in Holland They actually entered the castle at Docrn and were preparing to seize and make off with the former German ruler when Dutch guards came rushing to his aid. Asa result Colonel Lea was relieved of his command for a month by General Pershing. Neither ever has told ex- j actly what happened, nor has Lea j ever explained what he had planned to do with Kaiser Wilhelm. Caldwell Associate Following the war Lea resumed his work as publisher of his news- j paper and again took an active interest in politics. He was instru- | mental in the election of Governor Austin Peay, and when the latter 1 died in office the automatic successor was Henry Horton, speaker of the state senate and a close political friend of Lea. * About this time Lea became associated with Regers Caldwell, a young Nashville investment broker who had scored an amazing success j in operations throughout the south. Under their joint direction the firm of Caldwell & Cos. expanded tremendously and came into control of banks, office buildings, industrial concerns, insurance companies, newspapers and other enterprises. But it was a loosely pyramided structure, and began to sway with I the first breath of the depression In the autumn of 1929. Lea labored to save it from collapse and began ttie involved series of manipulations which resulted in the crash of the j Asheville bank. Luke Lea Jr. was only 23 years old when he and his , father were convicted in August, j 1931. The elder Lea received a sentence of from six to ten years in prison, his son frem two to six years. The latter was given the alternative of paying a $25,000 fine, 1 but the family which had teen in- ; volved in the loss of millions was unable to produce the amount.

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Feeney and Finances Under Amiable Athletic Commissioner State Nets SI,OOO Monthly Profit During Year.

THE amiable and prematurely gray-haired gentleman usually in evidence at Indianapolis wrestling shows is A1 G. Feeney, state athletic commissioner, and there is avery 1 good reason for the beaming smile that Mr. Feeney usually wears. Every time the struggling be- i

nemoths or tne mat grunt ana groan their way through a wrestling performance, the cash register rings for the state of Indiana and Mr. Feeney is very proud of his commission's growing bank account, particularly since the commission he displaced ended former years “in the red," or with a few- dollars profit. Economics in operation of the commission, introduced by Feeney, have netted Indiana more than SI,OOO a month during the first year of the Feeney regime. u tt a STATEMENT of the commission finances, from last May when Feeney took it over, through April, discloses a net profit of $12,622.63. This showing contrasts sharply with that of the commission abol-

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ished by the McNutt administration, although receipts this year did not show a material increase over those of former years, Mr. Feeney said. While wTestling has taken anew lease on life, the boxers are comparatively inactive because of lack of public interest. If boxing booms and the mat sport continues tq grip public fancy, the state may find itself netting an annual profit of $55,000, Mr. eeney estimated. The $12,000 profit earned this year by Mr. Feeney was the result of abolishing the offices of secretary and legal counsel, separate headquarters, heavy traveling ex- , penses of commissioners and absence of heavy special expeases like purchase of furniture.

THE INDIANAPOLIS TIMES

4 MEYER-KiSER OFFICIALS WILL BE ARRAIGNED Former Bank Officials Will Face Judge Baker in Criminal Court. The four former officials of the defunct Meyer-Kiser bank against whom embezzlement and grand larceny indictments were returned last week, will be arraigned in criminal court tomorrow morning, Judge

Frank P. Baker announced yesterday. Sol S. Meyer, former bank president, and his son, Ferdinand, a vicepresident, surrendered at the sheriff’s office yesterday upon returning from Florida. They were released under bonds of $15,000 each, signed by friends. Julian J. Kiser and Melville S. Cohn, the other defendants, surrendered shortly after the bills were returned last Thursday and also were released under bond. Not guilty pleas will be entered on behalf of the four men, defense attorneys indicated yesterday. Defendants will be represented by the law firms of Noel. Hickman, Boyd & Armstrong, and Dailey and O’Neal. The four officials were indicted following a grand jury investigation of the closed bank.

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.MAY 15, 1931