The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1875-08-07
The Central Vermont Litigation.

AS we have before stated, application
has been made to the supreme court, for
leave to file an information in the nature OF
a quo narranto. against John Gregory
Smith, WortLington C. Smith, John @.
Hoyt, John N. Kimball, Benjamin p.
test their right to act as directors of the
Central Vermont railroad company. The
hearing is expected to take place at Mont
pelier, on Tuesday next, and is founded
upon the affidavit of John b. Page, which,
after recting the organization of the road,
proceeds substantially as follows
At about noon of May II, A. d. 1876,
kilograms were sent from South Royalton,
purporting to be signed, George Nichols,
clerk" to some or all of the then board of
directors of said company, to the effect
that meeting of the directors would be
held lat the depot IN Bellows Falls, Yer
mont, on Tuesday, May lS, 1875, at half
past one o'clock p. FL; that it is provided
by the bylaws of said company that "Di-
rectors shall be notified in writing of the
time and place of all meetings of the board
except adjourned meetings, reasonable
time beforehand; that said telegraphic no
tices were not in writing, within the mean
ing of said provision, and, Us the same
we're received, were wholly unauthentica-
ted, and could not be known to be genuine;
that said notices were not gwen a reasona-
BILE time beforehand, within the meaning
of said provision, inasmuch as said direc-
tors resided at widely separated points in
different states, and many of them were
subject to previous arrangements and en-
gagements for the twenty-four hours next
following the receipt of said kilograms, and
whether or not such kilograms were in fact
actually received by all of said directors.
or by how many, or at what time by each,
this deponent is not informed, except as to
himself, who was then one of thu directors
of said company, and the first vice-presi-
dent thereof, this deponent says that the
first knowledge he had of such proposed
meeting was by such telegram recei we'd BY
him at said Rutland after the departure
from Rutland Of any railroad train by
which he could have reached the place
named for such meeting at the time named
therefor and that upon receiving such
telegram he telegraphed to said ]. G..
Smith at Bellows Falls, that said call for
said meeting was received after all trains
had left that the notice of said meeting
was not reasonable and it was impossible
for him to get there.
The meeting at Bellows Falla the ad.
journment to the cars tn, vote in his
opinion illegal and invalid authorizing the
president TO pledge or sell any stock or
other assets belonging to the company, and
execute any transfer that may, in the
opinion of at least two of the finance COM
mittee, be deemed necessary, are recited,
and the affidavit then proceeds
And this deponent further says, that on
the next day, to wit, May 10Th, at st. AL
bans, the SAID John q. Smith. president,
did not call TO order the said board of d.
rectois, as it was his duty to do, although
a quorum was there and then present at
the time and place appointed for their
meeting rs aforesaid, but Just prior to 10
O'Clock of that day he pretended to trans
fer to said James II. Langdon, in behalf of
said corporation, 1850 shares of its stock.
to be held as collateral security, with right
to purchase, and with power to vote on
and represent said stock at any and all
meetings and also to one lansing Mills 600
like shares in like form of transfer, claim
ing TO be authorized so to do by force of
said pretended resolutions and entered on
the transfer books of said company secretly
such pretended transfers but in attempt-
ing so to do, the said John G. Smith did
not follow the pretended authority given
in this respect, among others, that SAID
langdon was himself member of said
finance committee, and that said pretended
sales or transfers severaly received the APP
prevail of only one member of said commit
tee lesides said president, viz. said Rice,
there being two others of said finance COM
mittee present, from whom the whole
transaction was kept secret until after 1t
was completed and this deponent Is in
formed and believes that IL said LangdOn
and Mills ever paid anything or gave any
obligation on said pretended transfer, Il
was not until after said meeting and after
they had been allowed To vote and had
voted on such pretended stock and this
deponent believes that said resolution and
pretended transfer of said stock were not
bona Jide and for the purpose represented,
but were part of a scheme contrived by
said John G. Smith, and the said Worth
ington C. Smith, Hoyt, Kimball, Rice and
Langdon, confedei ating with him, TO en-