The herald., 1895-02-28
THE AGRICULTURAL PARK
The Property Cannot Revert to
the Many Stockholders
R. r. BROWNS STATEMENT
The Large Grounds Were Decided in
Perpetuity to the State
The Stockholders Paid One Hundred Dollars
a Share, Were Given a Lot and Have
Had Track Privileges

| r. r. Brown, the newly elected secre-
| tary of the Agricultural Association, Sixth
| District, was seen yesterday by a Herald
reporter regarding the squabble which is
at present going on between some of the
stockholders and the directors of the State
| Association.
This property was originally vested, y
| said Mr.. Brown, "in the Southern Dis
trict Agricultural Society of California, II
private corporation, but was sold, on
the 18th day of January, $780,
at public auction, under decree
foreclosing a mortgage thereon, and
one Isaac n. Moore became the pur-
chaser, and received the certificate of sale,
and afterwards the deed therefor.
The purchase was made by Moore on
account OF o. w. Childs, l.. j. Rose,
William Ferguson, George Stoneman and
William f. Edgar, who furnished the
purchasing money. The object of these
gentlemen i'll purchasing the land was to
devote it, with the exception of certain
portions to be disposed of as hereinafter
stated, in perpetuity to public use, for the
purpose OF establishing and maintaining
agricultural exhibits and fairs and to con-
vcy it to the Sixth District Agricultural
Association, in trust, for that purpose; !;
under an understanding to that effect.
1T is further understood and agreed
| among these gentlemen that certain lots
of land, laid off on the western side of
the park, should be used for the purpose
of raising the money necessary to re-
imburse them for their outlay; and with
this understanding a subscription paper
was gotten up, calling for subscriptions OF
Sl00 which was signed on the understand
ing specified by over one hundred gentle
men, who, in accordance with the under
standing, paid the money into the treas
ury of said Sixth District Agricultural
Association.
'On the 7th day of August, 1880, the
president and secretary of the Sixth Dis
trict Agricultural Association paid over
the money thus received, amounting to
S53i7.95, to |. \. Moore, and received from
him a receipt therefor, in which he agreed,
in writing, to deed the lands to the Sixth
District Agricultural Association.
The lots above referred to were ac-
cordingy distributed among the sub
scribers. and accepted by them as full
equivalent of the money paid; and it is
understood by them all that they should
not receive personal or beneficial in
terest in the remaining land; but it was
also understood that the subscribers should
be entitled to participate in the measures
necessary to carry out the said trust. Ac-
cordingly, on the 9th day of March, 1881,
at a meeting of the subscribers, a resolu
| tion was adopted by IA majority of the
| subscribers in number and value, that
| the said meeting should elect three trus
tees, to whom the title should be conveyed
| by Moore upon the trusts agreed upon;
and accordingly W. j. Broderick, William
Ferguson and +. L. Mayberry were duly
| elected but afterwards on the 7th OF
of April 1882, Moore was induced, by the
| false representations of one of the sub
! scribers, to execute deed to the sub
scribers instead of to the said trustees, in
| which it was declared that the property
| was conveyed in trust, To be used as an
agricultural park for twenty-five years.
! Afterwards, Moore, on learning Of the
| fraud practiced upon him, executed deed
of conveyance to the trustees, Broderick,
Ferguson and Mayberry, elected by the
| subscribers.
June 8, 1883, suit was brought by j. E.
| Iollenbeck and most of the other sub
! scribers, numbering in all about eighty
| three, against William Niles ct al, in
which the the above facts were set up and
| the court prayed to declare the deed made
to the subscribers void and the deed to the
| trustees valid and in this suit the Sixth
| District Agricultural Association inter
vened setting up the same facts and Join
| ing in the prayer of the complaint, and
| praying further that Trustees Broderick,
Furgeson and Mayberry should be required
| to convey to them.
Miles, in consideration of the convey
ance to him OF several lots agreed to with
draw opposition, and stipulated, through
his attorney, that a decree might be en-
tered as prayed for, which was done
accordingly, and in pursuance of this de-
cree a deed was executed April l. 1885, by
Broderick, Ferguson and Mayberry to
! that association. And since that date the
title has been vested in that association,
not only by the direct adjudication of the
court in the case referred to, but by con-
sent of all the subscribers.
| Now, said the secretary, there can
not be any question as to whom this
property belongs to. AS directors we in.
tend to keep control of the property and
| viii not surrender possession until or
dered to do so by the courts. These
stockholders never had any title to the
Agricultural Park property. They sim
ply paid 500 Il share for stock which gave
them free access to the track during fairs
and races given under the direction of the
! association. As | said before, they were
decided Il lot for the 800, and these lots
are all they ever did own.
Regarding the transfer of stock | can
say but little. The stock is issued to GER
tain parties and they can at their pleas
ure indorse it and then it is negotiable
and can be transferred and retransferred
the same as a dollar bill. Before the
stock can be voted, of course it has to be
entered on the stock book, but no entry is
necessary until that time"
r. II. Hewitt who was secretary of tn
association in 1884, was also seen. III
corrohorated what Mr.. Brown had said,
claiming that the stockholders never had
any interest in the grounds. The passage
of Speaker Lynch bill does not affect
the park lands at all. 1t has been decided
to the state, according to Mr.. Hewitt's
understanding OF the matter; the direct
ors OF the association have the manage
ment of it and there is no probability Of
the stockholders getting the property.
They have no right to it, and all their
stock is worth is the value of the privilege
of the grounds, which goes with the stock.