Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-02-01
COMPANY'S AkhSWER
Metropolitan Ralkead piree ,ors Make
Reply to Mrs, Letter.
DENIAL OF ALLEGATIONS IN SUIT
Plaintiffs Demand s for Appoint
ment Of Receiver Resisted.
TIE PAPER FILED TODAY

TIE PAPER FILED TO-DAY
The answer of the defendants was place,
on record this afternoon in connection will
the proceedings recently instituted by Mrs
Mary I. Letter against the Metropolita,
Railroad Company ami Messrs Ceorg,
TruesSlell. Oscar T. Crosby. Chas. A. Lieb
Geo. w. Bacon Geo. w. Young. F. G. Ste
vens, H. D. Mirick, j. T. Hayward and ]. B
l-ackey. directors Ii will be remembered
that Mrs. Letter. by her suit, seeks to hav,
receiver appointed to take charge Of tn.
property of the Metropolitan and manag.
and operate the railroad under the direc
ton of the court, and to have the defend
ants restrained from exercising the duties
of their several offices as directors and off
GERS.
1t is set forth in her bill that Mrs. Letter
is the owner of 1,27O shares Il stock of the
defendant company. and also of certificates
of Indebtedness to the amount of $27. OM
par value. The complainant declares that
the officers and directors of the MetropoI.
ltaIn company are also to a considerable en-
tent officers and director: of the Washing
ton Traction and Electric Company, and
have not looked after the interests of the
metropolitan company as they should have
done: that disbursements favoring ether
railroad companies in which the COMPLAIN
ant has no interest have been made, and
thereby have caused her holdings in the
metropolitan company to decline in value;
that the securities, moneys, earnings.
tracks. roadbeds, buildings and electrical
ana other equipment Of the Metropolitan
have been employed in completing and
equippinS other city and suburban roads;
that the business of all the roads is con-
Quoted In the offices Of the Metropolitan; its
power stations are common property, and
the product is supplied to other roads with
out cost to Them that the cars are used in
the same way; that material and supplies
are purchased for the whole organization
ana stored In and issued from the store
rooms OF the Metropolitan, and that no sep
arate accounts are kept; that the officers
serve as officers Of the whole organization:
that tickets are purchased from suburban
line to the benefit Of the companies from
whom purchased, and to the loss of the
Metropolitan; that from time to time there
has been put in operation various systems
OF Tree transfers between the defendant
company and certain OF the city and sub
urban railroad companies, whereby the re-
celpts Of the Metropolitan have been di-
minished and the receipts of the other COM
panles nave been apparently increased. to
the loss or the complainant, and that it has
been impossible for the Metropolitan COM
pany to keep any accounts Of strictly its
own business
The COmpany's Answer.
Probably the most interesting feature Of
the answer Is set forth at the outset There
1t Is stated that in the latter part of May,
1919, there was submitted to Mrs. Letter,
through her representative, an offer to pur-
chase her stock in the METROPOLITAN rail-
ROAD Tor $50 per share, the price at which
the majority of the stock has been publicly
purchased, and the highest price ever pafd
for Metropolitan shares. Subsequent to Oc-
tober 10, 1899, the offer of $3.50 was re-
newed, but Mrs. Letters representative
asked for $40 per share. That offer was
rot then accepted, so Mrs. Letter con-
tinued to increase her demand until it
reached $3.50 per share Nothing was done
until finally Mrs. Letters. counsel called
upon President Truesdeil and gave him q
copy of Mrs Letters bill of complaint stat
ing at the same time that the bill had not
been and would not Immediately be filed,
out tnat represent alive of Mrs. Letter
was then in Washington and could be seen
Tor period of several days following. Fur
Their negotiations then took place as to the
purchase of Mrs. Letters stock, but, in
view Of the fact that demand was made for
a price in excess of 500 per share, the ne
gotiations were broken off. Then the bill
was filed.
With all these circumstances in mind, the
defendants allege that the complainant de-
clined to accept the offer of said Stevens of
$40, not because she desired to hold and
retain said stock as a permanent invest
ment, as alleged in the complaint, or for
the reasons, or any of them, therein al
legged but in order to promote her own
private interests as a minority stakeholder
in said company and for the purpose of
involving the said railroad company in
veXatious and unfounded litigation, and
thereby to compel the purchase of her said
shares at an eXorbitant price therefor by
the majority stockholders"
The Physical Conditions.
AS to the physical conditions of the Met
ropolitan and Columbia railroads, the de-
PENDANTS deny that the roads or either OF
them was in perfect condition, or that the
equipment thereof was complete when
brought under their management On the
contrary they aver that the conversion of
the Columbia company's line to electricity
had not been completed and its suburban
extension was still unfinished They also
aver that the equipment of the Columbia
company was in process of change to con-
form to modern improvements; that the
equipment of the Metropolitan company
was insufficient and required to be improV-
ed and supplemented by discarding the
open cars for winter use and abandoning
the trailer system throughout the year, in
vOlVing a large expense.
The defendants admit in general way
that the stocks of the suburban companies
u
great market value. but they deny that it
was the plan or purpose of those who pur-
chased majority of the stocks in question
to use the securities or moneys or earnings
or tracks and rOadbed, the buildings and
electrical or other equipment of the Met
ropolitan in completing and equipping the
aforesaid City and Suburban roads, and
they deny that any such plan or purpose
has been pursued.
There are a number Of denials as to al
legations in the bill respecting the rela-
tons Of the Washington Traction and the
metropolitan company, and after these
have been disposed Of the defendants state
it is true that all Of the railroad companies
numbered in the bill of complaint and the
two electric light companies, to some ex-
tent, have their general offices in the quar-
tiers formerly occupied by the offices of
the Metropolitan company, and that the
Washington Traction Company also has
it's offices in the same building; that this
joint occupation is not TO the detriment of
the Metropolitan company, and figures are
given showing the rental paid by the vari-
Gus railroad companies to the Metropolitan
company. 1t is also shown that there has
been consolidation in the management and
control of the railroads and electric light
ing companies so that the METROPOLITAN
company is now called upon to pay the
nrn