The morning times., 1896-11-08

| 1t would not surprise many Washing
tonians II the first fight In Congress at
| The approaching session wound TURN on
| the question of a trolley within the city
limits.
! There has been a good deal of work
| going on in The city among the bondhoiders
| OF the Belt Line Road and of the Eckine-
4 ton and Soldiers Home Halfway, and also
among the stockholders OF both OF THESE
| ROADS. Some of she transactionb nave Deen
made public ana some of them have not,
the latter class being perhaps the most
| interesting.
| ThestockholderS are at odds among them
selves, making a minority and majority
faction. There has been a faction with
The bondhoiders on one side and the Stock
holders on the other. Certain Developments
| OF yesterday Indicate beyondra DOUBT that
there Is d new alignment by which the
| bondholaers, whose trustees are the Aineri-
| can Security and Trust Company of this
| city, and the minority stockholders, make
I common cause against the majority stock
holders.
'1ne majority stockh olders are the famous
| Elkins- -Dolan- W idener trolley syndicate.
The interests OF this syndicate are identical
| with the interests of the Baltim ore and
| Catonsville Railroad and Construction Com
| pany, and it is the latter that owns the
majority OF the stock OF the Belt Line
ana ,iIe lexington and Soldiers Home Ran
| road.
| kECEIVER's CERTIFICATE SCHEME.
Only recently the-p public saw that the
| syndicate tried to Obtain the consent or the
courts In this city to authorize w. n.
| Schoepf, the receiver OF these roads, TO
| issue vast SUN of receivers ceruflcates,
or sums that were vast in proportion to the
present needs of the road. This was re-
| sisted by the hondholders on the ground that
| the issuance Of such an amount OF GER
| tficdtes would affectthe value OF the bonds,
because II was the scheme to have the
certificates based a TO their value on the
property on which the bonds rested.
This was naturally resisted by the bond
| holders oil both roads and successfully,
| but H. was found that certain small sums
lswere necessary To the maintenance of the
| road until the motive power could be
changed as provided by the act OF Congress
passed last summer The agreement on
| This plan OF procedure was unanimous. and
hence the fight which was expected before
| the court did not malerialiZc. 1t was,
however, only postponed.
There Is no -tueI mat the "alfeu" syndi-
| dicate, as il is called, has given up its
notion OF rurifingI the affairs Of the COM
paries 10 suit itself. One OF the syndicate
| was III Washington only few days ago
| and lie tried to make it very plain that
| II was the people OF Washington" who
| were blocking pFegress towards Il change
OF the motiyeIsower ON these roads. The
people of Washington, however, in this
case, we've merely The bondhclders who
| did not care To have the syndicate raise
| money OIL their bonds while there was
plenty OF stock, held by the, syndicate. on
which, 1T is shid. certain assessments had
| not been paid aiid which left a ing enough
| marginr the syndicate really wanted money
| 10 put air motors or underground rroileys
on both OF the roads.
TROLLEY -CREEPS IN.
II the syndicate can prove to Congress
that it is1ne1FtPte of " Washington who are
blocking the siffdirs of the road, Cf course
II is eXtected-tBat Congress ma Y pass some
legisid lion which may lie suggested by The
syndicate and what tnat leg efsiatton may lie
is not hard to guess.
The cneapest moJiye power is the trolley,
| buI that VIII be mpoSsible while the act OF
1888 remains Yunrepealed, as the days of
secret permits appear to have passed and
some people seem 10 think that the days of
secret pcrmltters have also passed, or at
least have been definitely nun Ecred.
The idea is ertainly abroad that the ma
jorily OF the stock, otherwise the trolley
syndicate, is up TO stmething, and certainly
by lis inaction ground has been given
for the suspicion that the la ST act of Con
Gress does not suit it and that it is now
playing against the day ,when Congress
shall meetrora anew deal
There Is notflng left the syndicate Row
hut new legislation, and this means either
that the bondholders must put up, thr ,ugh
u new lien by way of certificates money
to lnauSurate the new motive power, or
that the majority stockholders will ask
Congress to pass a new act, the terms of
which they shall suggest.
MINORITY MEN MEET.
As above stated there was a meeting
of the minority stockholders yesterday
afternoon at Masonic Temple. 1t is the
fact that this meeting was held at the
instance ofthe bondhulders, tn e object being
that the minority stockholders devise some
means for their own protection, infer
entially against the alien syndicate The
meeting was presided over by Mr. c. B.
Young, Mr. X. f. Baker, being secretary.
The Stockholders were put in possession
Of Information as to the exact situation
sud the effect upon them of the s;,ycess
Of the adverse interests in the fight.
After a free discussion of the affairs of the
two companies. two committees were ap-
pointed, on which are Mcssrs Weaver,
Woodberry and Pelouse. These committees
will make report later as to what is
best to be done, and there is no other
prospect than that they will make common
cause with the stockholders,
The bondholders SO far as their state
ments go, and there Is nothing to discount