The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-09-09
BUTTE News.
STOCKHOLDERS At WAR
There's a Hot Time in the Old
Combination Mining Company.
OFFICE WAS REMOVED
Certain Stock Was Advertised for Sale
on Sept. IL and the Owners Thereof
Petition for an Injunction-A
Big Row Is On.

There Is a row among the stockhold.
ers of the Combination Mining and
Milling company, and it is a big one
1t seems that an assessment was re-
Gently levied and some of the local
stockholders refused to pay, on the
ground that they were unable to get an
accounting n could not tell how the
affairs Of the company stood. 1t seems
that the principal business office had
been moved from Butte to st. Louis.
The company advertised the stock of
these stockholders for sale at auction
on Sept. IL. and that brought the stock
holders into court.
The plaintiffs in the case are william
Thompson, Henry williams, ]. II. Har-
per. Helen c. Harper, Lizzie Merrell
and o. ]. Mcconnell. The defendants
are the Combination Mining and Mill
ing company, Jesse B. Mellor, Moses
Rumsey. L. NJ. Rumsey, c. d. Mcclure.
Eau "A. FusZ and A. b. Ewing. The
complaint is as follows:
That the Combination Mining and
Milling company was organized Dec. q,
1887. Its operations are in the Black
. DiiiluS uiSlIlCl, DGGT Lodge COun-
~, with principal office and place OF
business in Butte. The capital stock
is 300, 900 shares of the par value of 81
each; that plaintiffs own shares aggre-
eating 10000; which shares plaintiffs &C
quired at great cost in the faith that
said company would carry on its opera
1ions and business and keep its principal
ofhce at such place In Montana as ex-
pressly provided and declared in the
articles of Incorporation of said com
pany, so that plaintiffs as such stock
holders largely interested in said com
pany could have access TO the books
and accounts and the offices of said
company, to be informed thereby of the
affairs and condition thereof and to aid
IN promoting the success thereof, to
the end that their large investment
therein might not be lost by misman-
agement of the business and affairs and
misappropriation and squandering of
the funds and income of said
That the defendants claim to be
stockholders in inc members of the
board of trustees of said but
whether they or either of them are now
such stockholders or are rightfully
claiming to be trustees of said COM
pany, plaintiffs do not know and are
unable to ascertain by reason Of the
wrongful and unlawful removal and de-
tention out of this state of the books
dhu pdptTS OF Ine mpa
That in the year 1898 the defendants.
claiming to be trustees and officers of
said company and having possession
n control of the property of the com
pany, wrongfully abandoned the princi-
pal office heretofore established in
Butte and carried away therefrom and
out of the state the books, papers. etc.
and have ever since been in possession
and control of said books and have un-
lawfully kept them away from Butte. /
where they hould he, as provided bv
the articles of Incorporation. and that
said principal office has been deserted
and closed.
That in December, 1897, plaintiffs
having sought access to the books In
suite and the company's property in
Granite county, to ascertain the condi-
ton of the and its affairs. and
having failed to find any of the books:
AFTER great inconvenience and search.
SAID plaintiffs discovered that one Moses
a defendant, claimed to have
possession of said books and papers at
ne city of st. Louis; that thereupon
saId Plaintiffs presented to Rumsey a
requesL in writing for a statement of
he condition of said company en-
a particular account of all as
sets and liabilities in detail; tha Rum
sey has neglected to render such state
but delivered to said plaintiffs as
a false and deceptive state
.ent to make 1t appear to plaintiffs
nat said company was indebted in a
sum.
That in 1894 the company possessed
4 large surplus in money above all
debts. exceeding s25. 900: that since then
have been in possession of
books and have received all income
u SAID company, a~ggregating $500, 900;
nat the company has not purchased
property nor incurred great indebt-
.dness, and plaintiffs allege there is
a large sum in possession of de-
'endants over and above all debts. and
'aid fendan w~rongfully expended
arge sums. That all properties of the
are now closed.
That during the past four years no
of the board of trustees has
'een held in Montana.
That In June, 1898, Jesse r Mellor
claiming to be secretary, by notice de-
OF each of plaintiffs payment of
pretended assessment of 5 cents per
mare. staring that unless paid to him
L st. Louis before Aug. 5. 1898 the
hares would be delinquent and adver-
ised for sale; that plaintiffs have not
aid said assessment; that on Aug. II
..efendants published in the Citizens
all in Granite county. a notice of sale
Z plaintiffs shares on Sept. II. ,
"Plalntins further allege that during
ii OF the year 1883 certain daily and j..
ieekly papers of general circulation ,
0-wit: the Butte Miner, Inter Mount t,
in, Anaconda Standard and other f,
e~wspapers have been published daily !
weekly at Butte, the place desig-
ated in the articles of Incorporation. 3
no notice whatever OF said alleged
ssessment has been published in any
published at said place. No !
elinquent notice has been published in
Butte newspaper. Wherefore 8
demand that defendants be re-
trained by injunction of this court i
,om making sale of any Of said shares
{ stock owned by plaintiffs: that de $
endants be required to retu TO Mon
ma and to the principal office in Butte
books and papers of the company: :
lat an accounting be had under the
of this court Of all moneys y