Birmingham State Herald

Watkins Land and Mortgage Company.

Topeka, Kan., Sept. 4.-United States District Judge Foster this afternoon, upon the application of the Girard Life Insurance, Annuity and Trust company of Philadelphia, placed the J. B. Watkins Land and Mortgage company of Lawrence in the hands of M. Summerfield and J. B. Watkins of Lawrence and John F. Switzer of Topeka as receivers.

The liabilities are $4,500,000, consisting chiefly of debenture mortgages on Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Texas farms. The particular claim upon which suit was instituted was for $48,000 debenture bonds, upon which the interest has been defaulted since 1895. Samuel Bishop of Lawrence, attorney for the company, says the assets will very nearly cover the liabilities.

The company has been struggling for its existence for eight or ten years. In 1888 it was put into a receiver's hands, but four years later it was turned over to its owners again with Mr. Watkins as president. But financial conditions were not favorable and now it will probably be wound up. Its debentures are mostly held in the east and in Europe.

J. B. Watkins has been in Lawrence for many years and accumulated a large fortune, which, it is claimed, has not been impaired by the failure of this company. He has been the promoter of many enterprises in the west and southwest, among others a land and railroad project in Louisiana. He bought several million acres of public land in that state and, by traversing a portion of it with a railroad, he turned immigration in that direction. He called his railroad the Kansas City, Watkins and Gulf.