St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-09-22
HE HINTS AT BIG SUITS
For Restitution of Much
Larger Alleged Steals
Than Reported.
PROXIES CALLED FOR
A Strong Fight Being Made
for Control Of the
Road.

BraytOn Ives today issued a circular TO
the stockholders of the Northern Pacific
Railway company, asking for proxies
for the annual election, reviewing
briefly the work of the present directors
and setting forth the present outlook
for the road. Speaking of the masters
report on the petition for the removal
of Receiver Oakes. he takes issue with
the findings OF fact and says:
''lt is confidently expected by your
board that suits for restitution will be
ordered by the court, and that much
larger sums than those reported by the
master as having been made in the
transactions named will ultimately be
recovered from some of those who haye
hitherto
Betrayed Your Interests.
1.-The work to which all interested in
the securities of the company are now
looking is that of reorganization.
"Heretofore there has been little en-
couragement to make serious efforts in
this direction, owing 10 the enormous
and phenomenal decrease in earnings.
This was not due entirely to the pre-
vailing business depression. Serious
washouts made travel impossible for a
great part of June. and the strike prac-
tically closed the road for the first half
of July. In August, however. matters
changed and the earnings for the
month showed an increase of $l7S.4
over those of 1888. Thus far this month
the improvement has been in the
son to hope that it may
continue. Nevertheless, the serious
decrease of earnings during the year
has affected materially, and for the
worse. the position of stockholders.
Although it is probable that every class
of bonds may be called OH to make con-
ceSSiOnS, greater or less, according TO
their priority. Stockholders can assume
that they will have TO bear propOrtionate
burdens in order to preserve tfeir
holdings. There is no doubt, however,
that reorganization can and will be
proposed which will give them an
equitable consideration for any sacri
fees or contributions they may he asked
to make. But they must understand
that none of the committees thus far
formed are working in their interests,
while one of them-that which is known
as the Adams cOmmittee-iS avOWedly
and
Aggressively Hostile.
"There Is one phase of the present
struggle which is so grotesque in its in
justice and inconsistency that it should
be called especially to the attention of
stockholders. The Adams committee,
under date of July l, 1884, made the
following extraordinary public an
nouncement:
"'We agree with the German bond
holders. who published March 80. 1894,
in Berlin and Frankfort. the statement
that the present situation of the North
ern Pacific railroad had been brought
about through mislnanagement, and the
shareholders and the bondholders have
to take the protection of their interests
in hand themselves
sit is manifest that the stock, and not
the bonds, have cast the vote electing
the various boards of this company
since its organization, as is usual in all
companies, but is it not notorious, and
to none better known than to the Ger
man bondholders of all classes, that Mr..
Wizards main reliance for support and
influence was upon foreign connections.
through which he was able to place vast
amounts of securities and manipulate
enormous sums. Mr.. Willard, as their
representative, occupied a commanding
position. which enabled him to control
the elections prior to 1854. when the
company's collapse and his failure
caused his retirement. In 1887 he re-
turned to New York again as the
representative of the Deutschebank.
gradually secured the control of your
property, and began second career Of
RuinOus Management
for which his former connections now
repudiate him. We do not impugn the
motives of the foreign bondholders and
their principles, but they have twice
| already made serious blunders in their
| support of the old Northern Pacific
| management, and, instead of their hos
tility, your board considers itself worthy
| of their active support. The indefens-
| ible accusation tnat it is your fault, and
| you must therefore share the burden of
their changed position towards Mr..
| Willard, and trust to their selections in
this country from the ranks of
the old management to re-
habilitate your property seems not
only especially unjust to the stockhold-
ers, but against the best interest of an
early reorganization. which can be
brought about only through harmony
and united action, and which the di-
rectors have sought in vain thus far to
effect. That there may be no misunder-
standing as to the attitude of your
directors, for the future as well as in
the past, it should be known that they
are, as they have been at all times,
ready and anxious to cooperate with
all, whether bondholders or stockhold-
ers, whose object has been or may be to
promote the welfare of the entire prop
erty. BRAYToN Ives, President"