New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-03-31
THE DE LESSEPS SUIT.
HEARING TO Be HELD IN THIS CITY
or,osr WHO TOOK PART IN THE SALE OF THE

THOSE WHO TOOK PART IN THE SALE of
PANAMA ROAD TO BE EXAMINED
A herring will take place this morning t' '"V =, ,ho
=, ,ba Emitted states Trust Company ID ""h''O' -,
80 ~ the suit brough, by the French GoVer"'noin
ogs,nst Count Ferdinand dc Lessepo' chars,ns l
, toocb # trust I'm the transfer 10 the Chi>ei'",
1,. o,o,nic Panama Canal Company OF inc eo'''
NJ the Panama Railroad. The udhsaouon va 49,,
the complaint + based was oohsu'h'n"'ou g. ,bo
civ ON July ., losl, and consisted o. 'no sa0 h
canal company Of 6e,534 shares OF s'oon ~ o.,
panama road for D5. sos, 740.l3 francs OF q-oo
eh.rs II /, charged by the French Courts 'n"' T,'
- - vceseive price and that DE LeSsep5 ana Ills
>,,, Work. agents made profit for themseNcs o'i'
=, rho onernton estimated AT not less than oo'ooo''0
francs. - r, y, tho
Letters rogatory, issued by Judge H. prne' 0, u'v
French ODuu OF Appeals. have Doh No's
,'t,o rr,ox and the viconto Paul d'Abzac' Consul
General Of France IN the city. VIII CONDUCT
examination under their authority. INTO all the de''
90 rho transaction In question. The members Oh 'nc
American committee VINO negotiated the deal Tor Tue
Canal Company were Drexel, Morgan va % W
sellrman ~ CO.. and Winslow. Lancr " Co' anu ~"
ueuer, Of the syndicutc who controlled Jo'of' e"'
~ the stock transferred were I1ehor '" i7Hh' ''7'l"
ogden. Charles g. Fmncklyn, Whlchouse Co., DcorEc
carr. c. d. & J. II. Lcycrich, John A. herhochan anu
Jonn J. wysong, rs executors Of John H. Marshai'
samue C. Thompson Russell sage, Henry ,. LeVcHch'
Annie = Ieverich Francis Leland, Charles H. Lcmhu'
Bayard Brown. John Thompson, Isaac W. "ni'c'
Thomas Maddox and Myers RUTHERFORD sanuei C'
THOMPSON was at the time president OF thc American
committee Of the Canal Company. Against all 'nesc
men the charge Of swndling and breach Of trust 10
made The grounds for the suspicious entertained By
e French Judiciary are explained In the letters ro.it
tory, follows:
Alter the failure Of the Universal lnter.oc,anlc
Panama Canal Company nilnefou' cDlnp ,r mad
especially OH account OF The excessive ptce Phd l9r
tic ,larcs Of the Panama Railroad ConpiIN' ~ Is
a,ton shng that these shGrs, issued NJ Zoo par value
whoh are SAID 10 have fallen bciO" thlo par Nhuo III
l,-I date o the contract, have cost f-1O ara oven
,,d mo-, nav Nrceict 81 100000 francs. Mr. F. de
Lcsscp-. author OF the operation ana uone Wlo mo
hi, agcnt at New York. are accused OF having in"c
out OF aid operation pr1nt ciu"c" t no. dcS~cs
630oOO0O fnnc: Inc JudIcmy u rlahJ j uvgnvs
matter na desires 10 the reason for the payment
Of large premium In excess OF TIC par value. wIon
Of III. shares in l.t9 and tho market vnluo from NAY
to July, Isol aud the price OF Sl"e Is paid by tha
Universal lntrr Oceanic Panama Canal company
especially material 10 know what was really PAID 10
the selling stockholders out Of the caPtai pf1cc hAed III
the contract
The French Consul is therefore instructed to learn
the mnr,et value Of the stock the stock Exchange
from 1876 to May, ISL; 10 require from tho United
states Trust Company the full list of the persons WHO
deposited the 6-,5i shares 81 stock; 10 demand from
Mr. Thompson all the correspondence exchanged IN
reference 10 the subject; 10 require from the three
banking houses named the conditions Of their inter
vcutlon In tie transactions. and from j. & ". >elIg
man q Co. IA statement Of what they have paid out
Of tie capsi price Of the shAres sOld and If they
can swear That each " the selling stockholders has
received the total price without any Deduction ana
II not what wa, the deduction.
Among tbo>o who hive been summoned Ia appear
ut the hearing to-day Drcxcl Morgan & Co.,
{. d. a }. II. Levcr.ch, Wht"house Co.. the United
"a Ielo
ard John A. KerIochaa.
Few Of tlo.s Interested the deal willing to
sag anything for pubncatlo4 Yesterday. Mr.. Morgan
and Mr. Wu,low were both ont If town and no ono
at their offices felt authorized to talk AZ J. ~ W.
schgman q co.'s said that committee Of
bankers bought the STOCK the price ut which IL
was agail -,d. That all they had -
say Mr. Whichousc said that at the time u the trans
fer Panama Railroad stock wa paying IL per cent
dividend. When the ODER was made Gy the Canal
Company u take the stO,k at 2GO It had been
ocptcd.
T.. \. Drake. Of the Executive Committee II the
Panama road. Explained tho situation follows: The
Panama Railroad Company had tho exclusive night
u transit across the i,thmIs. This WAS vested In IL
under TIE original charter TO avoid any liability
tho cana. Company forced to obtain controlling
interest ~ the stock. This II did, but the Board Of ID
rcotors had always been American. AID the rlVad
hu, been according 10 the American
plan. IL - paying Investment ~ our dividend
declared to-day shows. A. t. tho price paid for the
stock cannot SAY. | bought 1t about i0sl at 10
when The Last quotation rccOri.d ldj. Il wds
held hy Investors aud 0LlJ appeared on the market III
small lot, al Old tmc,. The dividends 1t that umc
ran from Ia t. - per cent year.
search through tn" quotations ~ me obFk EN
change tYr l--O aud l--l shpNs thai the contention
II the French courts that nEama stock wos selling Ia
the opon market at ess than psE Is not we'll founded
Ia Janun,. lrcO. the quotations ranged betwo.n
100 aud III. During the next eleven months prices
gradually rose until In D'ecnher uey had reached
80. The hsc continued Huul June. ISL wheh tls
recorded quotations were from go b. $50 falling la
July, When the uau-nstlon completed Ia ~
and FOL Since then the stock has uOt been listed