The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-09-02
9f the defendant railway companies.

of the defendant railway companies.
 None of such grants, nor either of said swamp land grants was a gift to the company receiving the same. but each of them was made upon valuable and full consideration furnished by the company receiving the same.
 They admit making large shipments of wheat and other products from and to the places named in the bill They deny that competition between the de- fendant companies for traffic between said places was. prior to the organiza- tiOn of the Securities company. any sharper or more active or more produc- tive of lower rates for feight 0 pas senges than it has been at all times since such organization and still is, and deny that such rates have been at any time since the organization oE the Securities company or now are or will be any higher than if said company had not been formed.
 On the contrary they say that since the formation os said company such rates have already been largely reduc- ed and are now. and will continue to be, lower than those stated in the bill to have been secured by the sharp and active competition therein alleged.
 They deny that the settled and public policy of the state os Minnesota has been to prohibit in any way the con- solidation of competing or parallel lines of railway and say that untl the year 1874 which was long after the land grants mentioned and after the con- struction of a large proportion of the railways of both defendants railway companies, there was no law in Min nesota on the subject and deny that there is, or ever has been, any policy or law in said state, except such policy as is expressed in the statutes referred to in the bill and as to these statutes the defendants say they are in viola ton of the constitution of the United States, and they further say that these statutes, if otherwise of any validity, have no application to the acts com- plained of by the plaintiff in said bill and are controlled and made of no ef- feet by other legislation of Minnesota and of the United States.
 1ucy dlllllll lG%C VI OL 'AA~ Securities company and that it was or
 ganized for the purposes set forth in its articles and for no other purposes whatever. They admit that after the formation of the Securities company and on November 22, 1901, that company dd request of the Great, Northern com-
 pany to purchase such of their shares l as should be offered within sixty days from the date at SlS0 per share and pay therefor in shares of it's own capital stock at par. Except as aforesaid they say that the Securities company has not offered or sought to purchase any stock of either or said railway compan- I ies in exchange for it's own shares. They say that the Securities company has also purchased for cash large amount of shares of the defendant rail- way companies and of other companies. They deny that James J. Hill was at any time the principal or controlling
 stockholder of the Great Northern com
 pany, and say that while said James J. Hill was for short time nominally
 director of the Northern Pacific com pany he never cast any vote as such.
 The defendants deny all and all man.
 ner of unlawful combination and con- federacy.