Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-05-11
LITIGATION THAT SHOULD BE
ENDED


As the traveller leaves st. Louis on the
| the Iron Mountain route, he will see, tied up
| at the river bank, number of once fine steam
boats and barges, the property of the Keokuk
| Northern Line steamboat company. The
boats are slowly rotting, have general d.
.apidated appearance, and are rapidly becom-
ing valueless. 1t is melancholy to see these
effects of what seems to be vindictiveness
on the part of faction of the stockholders,
who, gaining temporary control of the
affairs of the corporations, made an assign
ment of it's effects and no efforts on the part of
the majority of the owners can recover them.
1t is sad instance Of the wrecking of great
line, the scattering of its assets and the pre-
vention of the payment of its creditors. We
understand an offer was made, on behalf of a
majority of the stockholders, to take back the
property and give a bond to pay all debts.
Owing to the bitter, relentless spirit of the
other faction, the court could find no way to
grant the request, and so creditors must lose
their claims. N It is vivid Illustration of the
extent to which revenge will carry men and
make them lose, SO long as their enemies will
lose little more than themselves. 1t is sad
commentary, too, on the law which is power
less to prevent the accomplishment of these
unworthy desires.
The above pointed and sensible remarks we
copy from the st. Louis RaiIooy Register OF
May 18th, We are quite confident that as far as it
goes it will be earnestly endorsed by the peo-
pie of the Mississippi valley. The Keokuk
Northern Line Packet company was one of the
great transportation corporations relied upon
in all the upper river for the transportation OF
freights and the cheapening of rates to the
great markets of the world. 1t is notorious
that the largest stockholders in that corpora.
ton have for years upheld it by lavish ex-
penditure of their private fortunes to overcome
the difficulties Of an unimproved river, in
competition with railroads that cheapened rates
along the great water-course to break down
steamboat lines and made it up by exorbitant
charges upon points where steamboat or other
competition could not reach them.
The trade and business of st. Louis and all
other river points has already suffered incalcu-
liable injury by reason of the outrage perpe-
trated in the name of law by the practical an
initiation of this great transportation COM
pany. We do not pretend to be well informed
as to the merits of this long and stubborn
controversy, but we are satisfied that the
merchants, shippers, and business men of
no other town in the valley would
have permitted this great interest to
be throttled and shackled and destroyed by the
dilatory and tedious formalities of law so
marked in this case. They should have
brought public sentiment to bear and have
compelled some decision that would have re-
leased the common carrier and left it free to
pursue its Legitimate business. It is strange
law that will not protect but will actually
rob creditors and stockholders. The Judge
before whom these cases were tried can readily
enough find Iaa0 and reasons for selling piece
meal all the property of this once great corpo-
ration at ruinously small prices, but he can't
accept proposition for the payment
of every debt the company owed, and an ample
bond to secureany debts not known or not ad-
justed.
Ii seems as though boards of trade and
shippers might bring some moral pressure to
bear that would result in this large property
being released and placed free in the river to
pursue its legitimat business. Its truly new
and very surprising code of corporation law
where all the creditors, and three fourths in
amount of all the stock is controlled and die
tated to, by minority of one-fourth of the
Stock Such however seems to be StLouis law
us administered by Judge Lndley.