The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1902-05-14
Mississippi Valley Trust Company
Enjoins voting Trustees" of
Virgins Ferry Company.
SUIT FOR $4,000 DAMAGES.
Doctor Louis E. Newman Claims
This Sum From Mercantile
Trust and Rock Island
Companies.

After q cessation OF hostillties for sew
eral days. the battle of Virgins Ferry was
renewed yesterday with the filing of three
suits, one of which presented a new phase
in the litigation for the contested stock.
The most important OF the suits. in the
opinion Of attorneys. was an injunction
brought by the Mississippi! Valley Trust
Company against the voting trustees of the
Virgins Ferry Company.
The plaintiff says that. in July. 1856. the
holders of $50 shares OF Virgins stock
entered into an agreement to transfer the
stock to Messrs. Scullin, Church and S. n.
Holiday. as trustees. forming a pool and
thus giving a majority. These trustees
were vested with authority TO vote the
stock or manipulate 1t as deemed advisable.
The trustees gave the owners certificates in
the form of receipts.
1t is claimed by the Mississippi Valley
Trust Company that they have acquired
2.6IS12 shares, as represented by the receipts
or certificates, and they pray that the stock
itself be transferred to them, holding that
it Is not legal to separate the owners OF
the stock from a right to vote. They fur
Their pray that the POOL be dissolved and
that the members thereof be restrained
from voting the 2.61S shares. The trustees
now are John Scullin, Alonzo C. Church
and Festus J. Wade. the latter having been
elected since the original pool was formed.
In voting the STOCK the majority rules.
and Messrs. Wade and Scullin form the ma
jority. The stock which the Mississippi VAL
ley Trust Company allege it has acquired,
but which is included in the pool Of $50
shares voted by the trustees, has been held
as follows:
Mrs. Isabelle Vale. 81; Mrs. Emily Bow
man. 65is: Mrs. Anna Bent, trustee. 100: A.
W. Christy. 72; George Christy. II; James A.
Christy. II; A.. c. Church, 80; Mrs. Mary
Clark, 2; Mrs. Rosa Drosten, %; Mrs. Rosa
lie Drosten. 10: Mrs. Marion L. Davis, %:
G. A. Hayward. 10; l. L. Hull. executor w.
7. Hickman, 80: Mrs. Crate Vale January.
%: Mrs. Jane E. Knox, 40; Mrs. E. Semen.
49,: William J. L.emp. 4o3; Miss Mary Lion
berger. %; Mrs. Euphrasia A. Mackay. IS:
the Monastery Of St. Dominic 60; Charles
Mulliken, 90, Mrs. lula y. Ati1len. 8; Mrs.
Mary B. Perry. 81: Joseph Potter. 1O'; Mrs.
Harriet L. Sheridan, IS; Mrs. Fannie Shar-
on, 75.; Mrs. Mary F. Scanlan. 49,; Philip
c.. Seaman. so; Sam r. Smiley, 81: Charles
Ehaw. %; Henry E. Trendley, 12t; jules F..
Vale. trustee. %; Jules F. Vale, Ii; Mrs.
Lucy B. White. 81; Benjah White, trustee.
10: r. Park Won Wedelstadt, Is.
The petition in this case further charges
that the action Of the Board Of Directors
of the Virgins Ferry Company, in forcing
Mr.. Seaman out of the secretaryship. was
not fair, and that George L. Sands and
Ernest Peugnet are controlled by Messrs.
Wade and Scullin.
Judge Wood In the Circuit Court granted
a restraining order, retsrnable on May Q,
preventing the directors Of the Ferry Conn
pany from making any changes in the
shares or disposing Of the property Of the
company.
Damage Suit Against Mercantile.
A new phase in the Virgins litigation
was presented by a damage suit, brought
by Doctor Louis E. Newman against the
Mercantile Trust Company, the Chicago.
Rock Island and Pacific Railway Company,
Festus ]. Wade and John Scullin. for
$780, 900.
The plaintiff AYERS that on April IS he
agreed to sell to the Mercantile Trust Com
pany 100 shares OF Virgins Ferry stock
which he held as trustee Of the Socrates
Newman estate. the price being $500 a share.
1t was agreed that the stock was to be de-
livered May 5. provided the Mercantile
Trust Company had secured a majority Of
the stock Of the Virgins Ferry Company"
On April q the plaintiff states. the Mer-
camille Trust Company sent him a check
for So.0 600. which he accepted upon the con-
dition that the Mercantile had complied
with its contract and had secured a ma
jority of the stock" He alleges that he had
Offered to return the check. but Festus ].
Wade refused to accept it, saying the stock
had passed into the hands of the Rock
Island Company.
Doctor Newman alleges that the stock IS
worth 81. 500 a share, instead of $500.
Small Injunction Suit.
The third suit of the day was brought by
the Mercantile Trust Company and Will c.
Creveling. Jr., against the Mississippi VAL
lev Trust Company and the Virgins Ferry
Company to restrain them from disposing
of twelve and one-half shares OF Virgins
stock which the plaitif, Will C. Creyeling,
Jr., claims belonged to him under the terms
of lis grandfathers estate. and which he
sold to the Mercantile Trust Company. 1t
is charged tina James @. Crevelirg, trustee,
has attempted to convey the shares to the
Mississippi Valley Trust Company. The re-
straining order was made r%eturnable May
1e.
Festus ]. Wade was in Kansas City yes
terday. and the Rock Island officials were
likewise out Of the city. Judge Jacob Klein
stated last night that SO far as the Mercan-
tile was concerned the situation remained
unchanged. The whole question of which
side will gain CONTROL Of the Virgins Ferry
Company must be decided by the courts.
At the Mississippi Valley Trust Company
a similar statement was made. Both sides
are working hard to have all the legal
trenches dug in time for the June term OF
the Circuit Court