Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-05-25
WINDOWS swINDLE.
Ho,o Billings and the Secretary Of the
Treasury are RObDing the Northern Pa
New York World, May 2l.]
WILLARD AND WINDOW.

New York World, May 2l.]
WILLARD ANb WINDOW.
The public will have pardonable curiosity
to see the precise terms of the compromise
which Mr.. Willard has made with Mr.. Window,
President Billings and the present Northern
Pacific management. 1t was Mr.. Willard who
began the lawsuit which brought to light
the hidden doings of Mr.. Wineom. The law
suit grew out of an attempt made by President
Billings. Mr.. Window and majority OF their
co-directOrs to emit to themselves lSOO00
shares OF the common stock of that corpora
tiOn without the payment to the company OF
dollar. The shares so suddenly issued to Mr..
Window he made haste to sell for about
Sl00, 900, but an Injunction obtained by Mr..
Willard prevented the delivery of the shares
by Mr.. Window after he had sold them. Mr..
Willard made oath, it is said, that the di-
rect@rs had no power to thus emit the
10000 shares to themselves. The directors OF
the Northern Pacific insisted that as they
represented those who bought the company
and its property at foreclosure sale, they
could do with their own as they pleased. The
laws of New York do, it is true, permit
mortgage of a railway to buy it on fore
closure sale and they do permit the creditors
of bankrupt railway corporation to agree on
| 'plan" of reorganization; but Mr.. Willard
| insisted that the Northern Pacific affair was a
| mere private contrivance of the old company
and the holders of 'old proprietary interests"
| by which, under the ferns of law and of fore
! closure, $1,000, 600 of bonds were by the con-
sent of the bondholders to be substituted for
$5l 100000 of preference shares, with the
right to buy the company's lands with the
shares and 80 extinguish the shares. 1t was
"A scheme to enable the bondholders to take
the lands east of Bismarck. But Mr.. Willard
strenuously denied that the directors
| were thereby to be allowed to pocket the
400, 900 common shares which will remain
and will he the whole capital stock of the
company when the preferred shares shall be
extinguished Mr.. Willard argued and en-
ployed Others to argue that President Billings
and Mr.. Window must sell the common shares
at the market price and apply the money to-
wards building the road. The $780,
ooo,o Gee ooo OF bonds exchanged 70, for
had paid for nearly everything spent on the
road till the new S20,O0O,OO0 of bonds were
sold. The cold proprietary" did not repre-
sent one shilling paid for common shares. Mr..
| Windon; held his shares as, ii substances gift
for his services in Congress or elsewhere, or in
return for trlfing payment made by him.
Instead of obtaining money by the
sale of S49,OOO,OOO--at the par
value---of common shares, these di-
property, and sold S2O, GOO 900 of bonds in 1881
Then they attempted to put in their own peck
| cts $50, 900 common shares, like the common
shares which sell now in the market at A.
which for the new issue would make the nice
little sum of $500, 600 in the hands of Presi
dent Billings, Mr.. Window, and their associ.
ate owners of the cold proprietary interests. u
Surely no compromise between Mr.. Willard
and Mr.. Window can make that issue of 1SO,
QUO shares legal, if it was illegal when attempt
ed by Mr.. Window, as Mr.. Willard solemnly
said it was. The $50, 900 shares belong, as Mr.
Willard SAID, to the company, and can only be
used for the purposes for which the people oil
the United States gave the lands, which alone
have impaired value to the shares. The com
pany is, under the law, a trustee for the far
merS of the Northwest especially, and of the
whole country in general. Five States OF
Territories Wisconsin, Minnesota, Dakota, Ida
no and Oregon--have an interest in those $50,
600 shares which Mr.. Window seeks in par
: to appropriate to his own use. Each of thes'
States and Territories had and has, as Mr.
. Window and the present bondholders in Lon
| don and elsewhere will probably discover whel
Congress assemblies, right to know al
about the "plan" of reorganization, and tt
have the judgment of foreclosure carried
through the proper courts of each State 0
Territory through which the road runs, an
not merely through the New York courts
The sooner Mr.. Willard and Mr.. Windon
frankly tell the people of the Northwest t.
what end the process of injunction by New
York court has been recently used, the bette
it will be for all concerned. The voters o
those Northwestern communities, whethe
they be called ''grangers," or Communists,
< or "nihilists," or what not, are not in a tenn
4 per to be trfied with by ''old proprietors.
+ If the entire capital stock of railway bull
, by governmt mt lands CAN be sequestered int
the pockets of those who pay not penny TO
it, those farmers have right to know til
600