The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-07-09
!, =. CoMaIsslosEE's OFFICE,

HiaG hitllTOIu COMPANY
Peter Y. Daniel, Jr., having been first duly sworn,
depcseth and saith Us follows:
First Question by John Lyon, Esd: Please read
| the bill and answer OF X. Ragland and state fully
Robinson, Esq, either personally or president of
any internal improvement, company, in or In re-
spec 10 tne STOCK cihea In the Dill as the property
of the plaintiffs. Especially speak the follow
Ing points: '
!. When, where, and from whom did you f,rst
hear or know Of the plaintiffs interest In the Pc
tcrsburg Railroad Company?
2. what conversations or negotiations took place
y9a ana be H ase In the
necton with the Hons. Robert Guild and w. w
| Crumpl represented last winter before the Gene
Senate?
| 3. at whose instance and I'm whose interest and
upon what understanding or agreement express or
implied, did L. r. Page ESQ, appear by petition in
the name Of the plaintiffs before the Senate OF Vir-
ginia and the committee thereof lust wiIser, and
| try hts speech before SAID committee?
| 1. What fee or compensation did YOU or Mr.. John
III. Robinson, or any other person for him, either
personally or officially, engage and undertake,
either expressly or by Implication, to pay 10 MIR.
Page for or on account OF his services s attorney,
| or counsel or adviser. In the controversy then
legislature?
| s. Have you the original a copy or copies of
the irrrrocable powers OF attorney and OF bargain
and sale described In the contracts referred 10 In
| the dispositions of Mr.. Page and Mr. John II. Rob-
| inson, now pending before Mcssrs. opotswood and
| Hudnall respectively? If so, viii you produce
them. with numbers, dates, aud quantities. Of stock
certificates, tcfore the commissioner for inspcc-
tion aid TO be flied or copied as part of Your depo
| 4. By whom was prepared and published In the
State Journni All article or ad verlisement, printed
| 1878. and headed VERY IMPORTANT RAIL
| ROAD CASE and now shown to you?
And In whose Interest, and IL whose expense, and
| by whose procurement, was said article printed
| and published: And ut whose instance, ana in
whose interest, and at whose procurement was
said article reproduced In The Richmond Wing OF
The next day-thc 9th DAY of july, 1873?
T. AT Whose Instance, AMI In whose interest, and
by whose procure ment has The pending suit been in
! Slitntcd, and Is now prosecuted?
s. what is The precise measure, extent, limit, and
nature OF the plaintiffs interest in this suit, i'll
financial comInerciai, or pecunlary point Of view
| In short, please stale what IS within your knCwl
edge the Interest. legal Or equitable, of The plain
tits III the snbject.mater OF this suit? And state
any audall facts within your Knowledge, which
legal testimony. touching the plaintiffs Interest
| aforesaid?
| 4nslcer: know nothing Of any interests of John
IL. Robinson, ESQ. either personally presi.
dent OF any Internal Improvement company, In, or
in respect TO, the stock claimed in the bill Us the
properly Of the plaintiffs In this suit, further than
| may he properly Inferred from what shall here
process! 10 answer 10 the interrogatores specially
put TO In this question: which will answer seri-
atm As follows:
| !. In the month Of January last (1S73). think
| about L week or ten days-pcrhaps fortnight
alter the bill introduced IN the Senate OF Virginia,
upon The petition Of Reuben Ragaud, to amend
the charter vi the Petersburg Railroad Company
| aud to Incorporate 1.-The Weldon and Washington
/ "
| by ana discussed before the Senate Con mitce on
Roads and Internal Navigation, meet in the street
near my law office with Major Leigh K. Page who
after inquirng OF HE what progress had been made
in The proceedings as to this bill before that commit
zee, informed that he also desired and INTENDED
TO appear before tile same committee, for the pur.
| pose of opposing and protesting against the pas
sage Of that BILL in behalf OF MessrS Broadnax and
ilkins. who were stoc khoiders in the Petersburg
against Raglund and others, which he Intended soon
to institute, and which he had Intended to institute
and would have then nstituted if lie had
| not been prevented from doing 50 10y hopes which
he had entertained OF pacific settlement with the
pleased learn that such was his iEtentiJn, 1t
would aid those whom represented as counsel be-
| fore that committee in opposing The passage of
aud that also hoped that his clients would persist
III bringing and prosecuting their proposed suit.
IL wuuu result, felt ed. III the disclosure OF
facts which would strongly confirm the imprupriety
OF passing any such bll-which tacGs could only he
which, in such suit brought in the preceding
Inrr 10y other stakeholder. of the Petersburg Com
pany against the same Getendahts, had oeen pre-
vented by purchase of all their stock by those de-
PENDANTS.
Al the same time urged Major Page, not at that
time to interrupt the course OF tie pending pro-
ceedugs before the senate c0minlltce. nor uulil
those whom represented there had had some op.
porlunity (Which they had not then hadJ OF pre-
srntiug some evidence before The com lttcc sus-
talnimg their opposition 10 the BILL aud reilllipg
the very numerous and serious accusations made
against them by the petitioner anu his counsel.
10 this request Major Page lSsentcd. with the un
Outstanding that should appriSe him what time
he could appear before the Committee without such
interruption. his l did some time IN the first
week in February and he accordingly appeared
aud presented the petition OF his Clients 10 the
committee or about the 9th of February.
ii. ) Inu that have arcaGy partly anticipated
my answer to the second lnlerrogatory. No further
Conversations OF Negotiations took place between
Major Page and myself i'll respect 10 the plaintiffs
stock ana the interest which lin connection with
the Hons kooert Uuld and. W.. W. CrumpJ repre-
scented lst wlutcr before the General Assembly 81
Firginia, ora committee OF ,he salme' until after
Major Page had appeared before that committee.
AND although on mat occasion, In Very excited
discussion between him and the counsel for Mr..
Ragtnd, both OF them conquered in The most en-
phalic Orcal aons that thereafter any sale of tie
stock III question by Major Page or hi clients TO
MI. Itagiand ur his associates was impOSsiDe; Vet
felt no condcnc. that, in their cooler moments,
Mr.. Ras.na might not lie Induced 10 offer some
high price for the stuck, and Major Pages clients
might not be tempted To accept slch Cfer, rather
than Incur the Yr8atIouS, delays, and expenses I'll
litigation, and the risk or having ultimately 10 sell
their stock at IL much lower price. l, therefore,
about this time, In my capacity us general counsel
| tor the Richmond, Fredericksburg anu Potomac
Railroad Company, and retaiued counsel for the
selUoaru anu Roanoke Railroad Company, sug-
g.sted to MIR John NJ. Robinson. as president Of
%G ase ur 81 cn * a Mh hf
they should oc bound 10 prosecute vigorously and
efficiently their proposed suit against MIR. Ragland
aud Ills associates. and not 10 sell any OF their stock
until its nna decision, upon condition that those
coin panies should project and indemnify thtm from
WHICH, lUlSUL result tutiu from their 50
doing either In the expenses OF litigation, or Ia the
utpreciai ion OF their stock below the price which
hiu beenpaid for similar stock by the same defeud
ants to other stockholders plaintiffs In the former
suit.
Ny reasons for making this suggestion were the
following:
AS have already mentioned, / had learned some
thing OF the history OF The suit instituted curing the
preceding SUMMER against Mr. kagand and his as
socatcS, defend ants In this cause, by other stock
holders in the Petersburg railroad Company for
discovery and relief similar to those sought In the
bill flied in this This information had re-
ceired from OF the leading counsel tnoL Judge
Crump) for the plaintiffs III that case. had also
learned the manner la which That suit was termi-
mated by Mr.. kaglauds purchasing all the stock of
those plaintiffs before that cause brought to
hearing ana before discovery OF any OF The facts
sought for in the bill therein filed had been made
disclosure Of these + deemed e lie of the ut
most importance to the defence Of the companies
presided over by Mr.. John NJ Robinson ana repre-
sen!eu by me COUNSEL only against the assault
upon them by Mr.. kagland In the Legislature. then
pending. but also against similar assaults against
them, which Mr. kagand and his counse freely
avowed tEeir purpose TO make in the future, II they
should fail In that in which they were then prose-
cutting, aud should fail 10 inuuce Sir. Robinson TO
comfy with tueIr wishes. And as Dir. Raylanu and
his counsel had before the Senate committee, when
questioned at different times by my self, perenp0-
rily refused TO make any disclosure concerning
the facts auoye alluded 10 before that COM
mi,tee, before any other tribunal except u
court Of equity, which coulu compel II, my SUCCESS
| ton 10 MIR. hOUiuson seemed the only m.nus by
which disclosure, SO necessary to the sef-de-
feuce of the companies OF which he was president,
and [, one OF the counsel, could be obtained.
Mr. Robinson took this suggestion uuuer advise
ment and Consultation wi Il the directors of his
companies, requesting Inc in the meantime to learn
| from Major Page whether his clients could lie III
uuced by III y offer how, tempting to sell their
stock to Ar. RugLund and abandon their suit
| 0quinst HIM. This dia, and, whist Major Page
re;lii meu il as liked determination, both OF his
clients and OF himself, ut that time TO prosecute that
suit and to entertain over lures ot compromise
or sale, el he acknowledged that he could give no
positive a. surance that his clients might moi at some
lima fhtrp
referred To, sell their stock TO Mr. kaglaud and
abandon their suit against him. In giving my rea