Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1880-12-09

lature. There il no claim in this case that |
there was any such reorganization, but simply |
that some people bought stock i'll it, and
elected new board OF officers. | think |
indeed, the Court will say to You that cor
porate existence is continuous, just as much |
as human existence. A mans body goes
through a great deal more change than |
corporation goes through yet Ill speaking OF |
a mans life you take him altogether and not |
as several successive men. But stated u
moment ago that aside from lega contem-
pation of such change, the plaintiff counsel
here have bound these periods of Its existence
together 80 that you cannot make any mis-
take. What are the connecting links? In |
the first place you have from the summer OF
1875 to the winter of iS7J-S0--a period vi |
nine or ten mouths beyond the last of these
publications. James II. Myers as secretary |
aud managing officer OF this corporation. We |
have brought, III part, evidence to show what |
Myers character was. You can gather what |
you please from this testimony concerning |
1t, but, be he what he may be, ne binds this |
organization together, as man and manager |
oil its affairs. And there was HolliSter. | |
don't know exactly what he was, but he |
appears in the beginning and subsequent to |
the reorganization.
But there IL another link the Outage |
county mortgage. In the old statement Ii |
record Of that mortgage, satisfied long before |
that statement was made; i'll the new state |
DuPage county mortgage And when you |
take To your room every mortgage rclease |
ever signed by Myers and wife you will see |
that that mortgage Is fictitious, and that 1t il
loan on property which Myers and Bright |
set out to the public i'll this official niannhr u
be worth $1,000, whereas 1t IL really worth |
only II 65U ut the most, and ranging down to |
Sl,25l. There is the Dauphin county hand |
In the beginning as now 1t is still set forth
among the assets of tho company, sworn to |
here III this statement as IL mortgage ol |
5JO,UUu upon land valued ut SlUDU0u, and |
that under the affidavit uf the president and
secretary. ihe Clinton cUunty iaud witS Ia |
the beginning and goes on. The plaintiff
declaration takes you back to May, 1871, ana
brings you up to February, 1879 gives You
continuous series ot attacks, as they are
called, On this company; very jldiclOu
attacks think. So the plaintiff . declaration
ltseif binds tnis company together, and agal"
aud again the affidavit ol Bright and Myers
upon that paper, winch Is Il statement ut this
company, at the end ot the year 1911 there
Is Myers III the DeslnlllliS and Bright and
Myers at the end Bright the last end Juluuu
together III this paper, and joining the two
periods oi tins company together.
Now, don know, ycntieneu what | shan
say i'll regard tn the action OF these gentlemen
VINO have associated themselves III tlIls com
pany, one OF whom appears here 10 hav,
sworn to these facts which are proved to bt
absolutely false, and which, III the evidence
before You, us you eau see III the light vt tnal
evidence, we're made Without any lnvestlsa-
ton OF the tact5 whatever pecalbe 1t
shown to you that Bright never examined
That land uutll May last when this very cast
was being prepared and was expected to Ue
tined.
| will answer YOU that say nothing. 1t l.
not my buslness to say anything. l am mol
trying Mr.. Bright here, nor are you not try
tuIr Al ~ ttAr lbr IIut-
That the isoue you are trying here lis betMee
the plaintiff which liz the corporation, anu
tile defendant, William L. Croasdale l.
| therefore, II you ask me what say about
this matter, decline to express anything upon
matters which are not necessarily nvulyed III
| the discussion OF this CASE. 1t Is not my
uusiiess to deIUunce or vituperate these
men they arr only individuals concerned III
this case, and the busiuess Of yituperatlun
leave to my friends on the other side, and
| probably you may have enough OF II from
them. am dealing with this corporation, aud
what connection you may justly draw from the
connection of Mir. Bright and DR.. Iantum
| with this company lis III evidence | have
nothing to say. | will treat 1t and work ut II
the Dert cnn with RESPECT to these men.
am sorry enough that any men who have
borne good, reputable names, should have
sought to have been connected with such ii
| thing us this; but, you are not trying them
,ir. Bright AMI DR.. Tantun may be con
cerned III hundred corporations, and there
fore, dccline to enter into IL discussion ui
the private character Of these men. | shan
deal with them us they come into the case; /
shall deal With Mr.. Bright as a wltness only.
and clltlclse Ills testimony Just US that of ANY
other witness, aud then You and may leave
every individual connected With this company
to the Judgment OF pubic opinion aud ui tine
Almighty. We have nothing To do with II
We want to understand the testimony; what
this case is about We are dealing with a
corporation, and / do not propose to drag
any man into it. That Is not II subject iul
iudiciu! examination, 1t has been eXpurel To-
public light and air before II jury, and, alter
this trlul Is over. doubt very much whether
any reputable man viii continue to Du Assoc
clated with 1t.
/ suy then to You that these two periods are
bound together with hooks of steel-st-c'e
mean-and. iinding them 80, We will LOOK al
the first statement which they put out IN 1871,
and when have before already referred to
In regard to this, shall state the facts very
Carefully 10 YOU, going over them only tu
supply to yuu the llmks of testimony, the pre-
cioe bearing Of which you may not have
thOcght OF.
In tue first place, this statement, containing
the affidavit Of William Bright, IN president
aud james II. Myers, MS secretary, sets fortlI
that on the 3lst dNy of December all thu
above described assets were "the absolute
property of the said company, and that tht
foregoing statements are the fnll and correct
exhibit, We.
This statement then is authenticated by the
aiidavlt5 of Bright aud Myers the QUE the
president the other the secretary uf the com
pmny that all the assets within stated wrrt
the absolute property oi that company fret
from all liens whatever. Let us look
LII the first place one thing, you will OBJ
q
pendittlrcs Of the company IL you Will takt
and connect them as stated here yOu will ind
the net Income to be Sll.3i6 Al, and the ex'
penditurts, Sll. 1874 leaving a net gain ul
S47l. IL which only refer to for the purpose
of showing to yun what was the net gam thai
year, 1871 iii which was done the lmneust
business of which yuu have heard -1272
Such was the business of the conpauy daring
this most prosperous year.
/ II yuu viii turn To tue bonds and mortgage,
annexed to this NUu will find tirst. the Gray
mortgage, 1j,OO0, upon land IN New Castle
county sworn to be worth Sij,00D. sworn I,
be lirst lien. And vet rs you have stcll
from the records here, il is not first lien
there was another lien OH the property duteC
the same day, recorded in the same hour
and that is case. as the Chief Justice re
marked, not provided for by law, but Mr.
Ferris, who owns that mortgage and assigned
il to Bright who. as Ferris stated to you.Sut i
record first. II Is not my business tu draV
conclusions further than NECESSARY III thi
case the conclusion | draw necessarily II
this case is that there was upon that state
1 ment false statement about its being Il iirS
lien and Il fictitious statement about the valu,
, of it. do not care what that farm Is WORT
SCI 600 or 100000 | am not making tn
/ issue that both mortgages may not be good
| but the proof shows. III the first place. tina
I this company held forth to the public tina
, $4,000 mortgage AZ first lien and state
. further, on the oath of its officers and curlst
/ quently of the company that this lien was o
property worth Sl5,000, There is not to b
got i'll this county, to day, a first mortgage u
i $4,000 on property worth sl5.OOO. Iha
? would he splendid investment, of itsel
, recommending the company; and yt
Il there is the fact that this propert
+ was sworn to be worth $4,000, whe
. according to the witnesses brought here o
I the other side it il worth only Sl0,0O0 and b
\ the witnesses brought here on this side Is liz
4 worth more than 900. The other queStio
4 is why did the company hold it ont to III
l. public as a first hem Then my learne
n friend, with his usual agility, the nlomeI
g that mortgage was referred to as guarantee,
y turned to the Ferris mortgage and said, III
J. second one is guaranteed too. | took IL
Il trouble to read over the whole of the assigi
= ment in which my learned friend told va
N there was a guarantee and could not lind /
d But that would not help the matter If it WI
d guaranteed by 40 people; simply because it
l. not put forth az mortgage guaranteed to
good, but as first lien oil property wort
Sl5,000. That ls specimen of the tctitio,
io values put forth to these things. II is IL
~ Mr. Bright whom attack, but this cumpan