The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1893-05-19
OF FRAUDU-
LENT PRACTICES.
The Road Declared 10 be InsoIyent.
NO MONEY FOR CONTRACTORS OR EN-
PLOYES.

Mr.. William ii. Bosley receiver of the Balti-
more Forwarding and Railroad Company,
operating the Baltimore and Lehigh Railroad,
with power to take possession of the property,
books, papers, vouchers, &c, belonging to
the railroad company, and to manage and con-
troll the property and affairs of said company.
Mr. Bosley is a member of the firm of John S.
Cuttings & Co., bankers, of Baltimore.
The bill of complaint is at the instance of
Joseph NJ. STREET., who is the owner of 1873
shares of stock in the Maryland Central Rail-
road, the title being as follows: Joseph NJ.
Street, vs. the Maryland Central Railway
Company, the Baltimore and Lehigh Railroad
Company, the Baltimore Forwarding and
Railroad Company, the Mercantile Trust and
Deposit Company, of Baltimore, trustee, John
Henry Miller, Moses II. Houseman and Will
liam Gilmor.
The bill recites the history of the railroad
from the beginning, and says that John Hen
nv Miller sis now director and Vice PreSi-
dent and General Manager of the Baltimore
and Lehigh Railroad Company, but has at
times been neither director nor officer of
said railroads, and at times director, as might
best suit his purposes, and enable him to plan
and do under color of law, the fraudulent acts
hereinafter complained of, although in fact,
at all times the said Miller has been the lead
ing spirit and manager of said roads, and has
his Office at the headquarters of said railroad
companies"
Also that the company is insolvent, and
with view to tide over the then immnence of
said insolvency, and to give appearance of
financial strength to their various schemes i'll
reference to said company, and to enable
them to hold ON to the management thereof
Ito oh rtnlra af,f
company called the Baltimore Forwarding and
Railroad Company" THAT the said Miller
became the President of the said last named
company, and its manipulators, promoters
and officers are the said Miller and his asso-
ciates, and under the cloak or guise of this
new corporation the said Miller and associates
continue to operate said railroad, and profess
to be so doing under an agreement to broad
gauge the same, made with William Kenefick
and his associates, and the said kenefick has
actually begun said work, but your orator
charges that said Baltimore Forwarding and
Railroad Company is insolvent and unable to
meet its engagements with said kenefick and
the said Kenetick is about to abandon his said
work Hereunder"
The debts of the road, bonded and other
wise, are set down at $2,050000, of which
$3.50, 800 is a first mortgage. The remainder
is covered by a second mortgage for $1,000
600.
The bill likewise alleges that Miller bought
certain common and preferred stock and sold
and transferred he same at fictitious and
greatly inflated price to the Maryland Central
Railway Company, receiving therefor general
mortgage bonds greatly in excess of the real
value of said stocks. 1t is alleged that the
said transaction was fraud upon said Mary
land Central Railway Company and its stock
holders also upon the Baltimore and Lehigh
Railroad Company and its stockholders, all
of whom are entitled to have the various trans
actions examined and the bonds so issued de-
clared void and cancelled.
The bill also declares that said bonds order
ed to be destroyed were never in fact destroy
ed, and that Miller and his associates are about
to issue S500.0O0 more of said bonds and asks
that they be restrained therefrom.
The bill alleges that the road has been gross
ly mismanaged that the road bed and trestles
have been allowed to get out of repair, until
travel thereon is attended with great risk, and
by reason thereof the passenger traffic is re-
duced and much less Profitable than it would
be if the road were Kept in proper order.
The motive power and rolling stock, it is
declared, have been permitted to run down to
| such an extent as to greatly increase the risk
of travel thereon, and are entirely inadequate
to the needs of existing business on said rail
roads
1t is also alleged that the failure of the COM
pany to pay its employees their wages, which
are in arrear for two months, by impairing
lnelr eIIlclencv, increases Tie uaDptT VI lTaNel
on the railroad that valuable freight-paying
industries along the line of said railroads have
been compelled to shut down by reason of the
| failure of the company to supply cars, and
that other railroads frequently refuse to re-
ceive freight for points along the line Of the
Baltimore and Lehigh, because of its inability
to tranship at connecting points with prompt
ness and despatch.
THAT said Miller and his said associates
have been using the earnings Of said railroad
companies for other purposes than operating
expenses and the payment of fixed charges"
That the company is unable, by reason Of
insolvency, to procure the timber necessary to
repair the trestles or the speedy doing of the
work required. That strikes and lay-offs of
employees have been of frequent occurrence
during the past month and the danger of travel
thereby greatly increased. That the Delta
and Peach Bottom portion of said road has
been closed to travel, because of its unsafe
condition.
The bill then asks for a receiver to take
charge of and preserve the said railroad prop
erty and operate the same under the direction
of court.
The bill of complaint is signed by d. G. Nc
Intosh, L. r. Clendinen and 8. A. Williams,
solicitors for complainant. Oath to the truth
of the allegations in the paper is made by G..
Cover STREET. under power OF attorney from
his father, j. NJ. STREET..
William Kenefick, the contractor for broad
gauglng the ROAD, also petltlonS, ny lib coun-
sci, Mr.. j. II. Preston, to be made q party to
the suit, alleging that the company has failed
to make any payment on account of work
done. He alleges that his estimates for work
to be done and material furnished would be
not less than 5000 and having gone to great
trouble and expense in placing his equipment
on the line of the railroad he would be put to
irreparable loss and damage if compelled TO
abandon it.
The order appointing receiver was sign
ed by Judge Walters about 10 o'clock on
Wednesday. On the same day about noon
the Baltimore forwarding and Railroad Com
pany made an assignment for the benefit of
its creditors to Winfield j. Taylor, trustee
1t is claimed that by the action the defendants
the bill filed in Bel Air will have nothing to
deliver to the receiver appointed by Judge
Walters, the property having passed out Of
their hands. On Monday, it is understood,
Mr.. Robert r. Boarman, counsel for the
railroad company, made verbal application to
Judge Walters to rescind his order appoint