The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-12-06
FOUGHT The RECEIVER.
Creditors Of a Chemical Com
pany Objected to His
High Fee.

United States Senator Thomas c.. Flat
of New York, and the son OF the Cali
fornia millionaire, John w. Mackay, Jr.s
who was killed by being thrown from his
horse in Paris some time ago, were in
terested this morning in a peculiarly
complicated insolvency case before Chan
cellor McGill sitting in Chancery Chan
bers.
The case was the North American
/ Chemical Company, an Indiana corpora
ton doing business in manufacturing
aluminium and other matters from clay, al
South Amboy. with its main offices ii
New York City. Mr.. Mackay and Others
started the and on a tract Of
land measuring 900 acres belonging TO J,
Lawrence Kearny, erected the factory,
Mr.. Kearny leased the land to Thomas G
Plat, who was interested IN the Ameri-
can Forcite Company, and Mr.. Platt sub
let a portion of that tract to the North
American Chemical Company.
Very expensive plant for the manufac-
ture of the various substances were
built, and the chemical expert of the
American Forcite Company superirtend-
ed the process. The sodas and aluminium
turned out were not up to grade and not
marketable, and the stockholders decided
to put in more money to carry out the ex-
periments. which turned out vaiuelcss
and without result.
The buildings erected on the strip OF
land leased from Mr.. Platt were in viola
ton of the statute, and when mechanics
lens and attachments began to flow in
against the property a novel question OF
priorities came up. This was the stu
alton when some of the New Jersey cred
itors filed a bill in Chancery to declare The
company i~nsolvent.
Chancellor McGill appointed as receiver
Counselor Charles H. Rumyon. and tAis
morning the receiver made his report and
a long wrangle took place among the
many lawyers present over the remaining
assets in the hands OF the receiver.
Mr. Runyon said that the claims
amounted to $40, 900, but many of these
had not been proved.
He had received in cash $6,461; the labor
claims were s647.4 6 and mechanic liens,
2,s06.eO. After paying out expenses for
watching the property for two years and
other expenses, and including the money
realized by the sale of the plant and build
ings. he had on hand $1,000.
How much d. you ask for your COM
pensation?'s asked the Chancellor.
Fifteen hundred dollars" replied the
receiver, and then the lawyers repre-
senting creditors started to object. What
would there be left for them if 81 500 for
the receiver should be deducted from the
80, 300. The kick became more vigorous
when Mr.. William c.. Voorhees, asked for
$3.50 as fee for being counsel to the re-
ceiver.
Chancellor McGill. when he heard Mr..
Voorhees, plea, said that when he ap-
pointed lawyers as receivers he expected
that they would bring all their legal apil-
ity to bear on the case. and he discount
tenanced lawyers employing counsel I'M
less in very special cases, because I
diminished the assets.
Counselor voorhees, said that the re-
ceivorship was a very difficult one be-
cause of the novel questions involved.
The Chancellor allowed the receiver $l,.00;
Mr.. Voorhees,, $3.50, and all that remains
of the 1900 viii be divided among the
creditors, who will, it is said, get about
ten cents on the dollar.