Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-11-25
Central Pacific Stockholders
Begin Suit to Recover from
Huntington Estate
INVESTORS CLAIM BIG FRAUD
C. P. Huntington, Leland Stanford and
Prominent Financiers Alleged to
Have Made Barrels of Money Out OF
Fraudulent Transactions During the
Building of the Central Pacific.

New York, Nov. 25.-Papers in SUIT
to recover s1oo,OGo,OoO from the estate
of the late Coils p. Huntington have
been served on the executors and their
counsel on behalf of minority stock
holders of the old Central Pacific rail-
road of California, represented by Wal
ter Morshead, of London, now a resi-
dent of this city.
The action is described as an out
growth of the investigation made by the
Pacific railroads commission, appointed
by congress in the SOS. Coils p. Hunt
ington and his associates and fellow di-
reetors. Leland Stanford. Charles
Croker and Mark Hopkins, known at
the time as the big four" controlled
The management of the road. They or
ganized, it is charged, certain con-
struetion and equipment companies
known as the Contract and Finance
Company, the Pacific Improvement
Company and several others to which
il is alleged they, as directors of the
Central Pacific. gave contracts for the
construction, equipment and improve
ment of the road. turning over to the
contracting companies in payment for
the work $30,000.000 in United States
government bonds, which fad been lent
by the United States government to
build the road, and practically all of the
stocks and bonds OF the Central Pacific
railroad
The complaint sets forth that these
securities amounted to $l63,0o0,000 and
that all the work done cost only some
100000, 600.
The minority stockholders say that
the difference of something over $780,
100000 went to Huntington and his as
sociates while they were directors of the
Central Pacific railroad.
According to Robert L. Cutting,
counsel for the compliments. the Hunt
ington estate is liable in solido for the
sum of which, as the minority stock
holders say, the Central Pacific railroad
was defrauded, and each of the re-
naming members of the "big four" di-
rectors or their estates is also liable in
solido for the whole amount as il they
were partners.
standing IN this position" said Mr..
Cutting yesterday. "and having brought
this suit in the name of the old Central
Pacific Railroad Company, the plaintiffs
herein have a claim against the Hunt
ington estate, and on the strength of
that claim, as provided by the code,
they have a right to demand that the
Huntington executors file an inventory
Of the estate. This is an absolute right.
I'VE have secured from Surrogate
Fitzgerald an order to show cause why
the inventory should not be filed, and
have served 1t on Charles Tweed, Isaac
E. Gates and Maxwell Evarts, their
counsel, as executors. The hearing has
been adjourned until Dec. 2. when 1t
will come on before Surrogate Thomas.
"Of course, we can't tell until an ac-
counting Is had in the action we have
brought in the supreme court just what
amount Mr.. Huntingdon estate is LA
BILE for, but there is no doubt of the
facts. Any one can find out for HIM
self by consulting the reports of the Pa
'cific railroad commission, appointed by
congress in 1887 or 1855. which spent a
long time investigating the methods of
Mr.. Huntington and his associates"