The age-herald., 1902-01-03
Affairs of ENeit- -MOOfe COrpOr :
 alton in Hands of Bankers
MAY BE ABLE TO PAY OUT
Company Operates Numerous Tele- phone Lines and Street Railways In Ohio and Michigan-causes
 Run on Cumberland Bank

Cleveland, O., January 2.-The financial affairs of the Evrett-M Moore Syndicate, owning or controlling a number of urban and suburban electric railways and ex- tensive system of local and long dis tance telephone lines in Ohio and Michi- gan, passed into the control of a com mittee composed of seven prominent bankers of this city today. This action was taken, it is stated, as the result of temporary financial embarrassment on the part of the syndicate, which has for some time past been affected by the stringency of the money market.
 The committee chosen has been at work Investigating the affairs of the syndicate and express the firm belief that the con- cern is entirely solvent and that its em- barrassment will be only temporary.
 The Evrett-Moore syndicate is accredi- ted with controlling more than 1200 miles of electric lines in Ohio and Michigan with many new extensions still in course of construction.
 Properties owned Outright.
 Among the properties owned outright or controlled by the syndicate are the Cuyahoga Loan Company of this city with upward of 10000 subscribers; the United States Telephone Company dong distance); the Federal Telephone Com pany, the Stark County (Ohio) Telephone Company; the Columbian Company (Ohio) Telephone Company; the Peoples Tele- phone Company of Detroit; the Wood County (Ohio) Telephone Company, and a number of others in which the Federal Telephone Company is the controlling factor.
 Among the more important electric street railroad properties in which the syndicate is largely interested are the Cleveland Electric Railroad Company, the Detroit United Railway Company, the Toledo Railway and Light Company, the Northern Ohio Traction Company, the Cleveland, Painesville and Eastern Rail- road Company, the Detroit and Toledo Shore Line Railroad Company and the Lake Shore Electric Railroad Company. All of the lines are declared by the com mittee to be with scarcely an exception in good condition, perfectly solvent and in no wise embarrassed
 The aggregate capitalization of all the various properties owned or controlled by the syndicate is said to be about $190,000- 900.
 Expert accountants have been employed by the committee in charge to examine and report upon facts connected with every detail.
 The following statement was given out by the committee of bankers:
 Statement of the Bankers.
 Tt became apparent sometime ago to some of the members of the Evrett- Moore syndicate, so-called, that on ac- count of the tight money in the different centers where they were financing some of their enterprises that they would be unable without temporary assistance to meet their obligations which were con trolled by them. The syndicate was also recently disappointed in being unable to complete the negotiations for the raising of large sum of money upon certain bonds and stocks. Some of the members of the syndicate called together some of their personal advisers to advise with them as to what was best to be done.
 These men found from their investi- gations that in the telephone situation, while among it's different elements 1t had many companies that had fully completed their equipment, and were on a paying basis, that there were others that needed
 
 so far as the personal affairs of the members of the syndicate were con- cerned that their syndicates were, in their opinion, largely in excess of their liabilities.
 "They found that there were in Cleve- land upwards of thirty banks that were their creditors, holding the choicest of securities and the most equities. Messrs. Evrett and Moore stated that they were perfectly willing to turn all of their mat ters and properties over to a committee that should be appointed to handle them in connection with themselves to pre- serve the most equities, with the belief that when their properties were devel- oped and creditors paid, there would be a substantial amount to return to them."
 Colonel Herrlck's Statement.
 Col Myron T. Herrick tonight gave the Associated Press the following signed statement relative to the affairs of the Evrett-Moore syndicate:
 Personally, I have had no connection with and no knowledge of the operations of the Evrett-Moore syndicate. Although I am named as one of the members of the committee for the reorganization of their affairs, l have now no actual knowledge of their condition, except as informed by another committee of Cleveland bankers
 
 making an investigation. While I have taken no part in this investigation the bankers who conducted 1t are among our safe and conservative men and whose report should inspire confidence. The entire affairs of the syndicate are now undergoing a thorough investigation with the assistance of chartered accounts and all persons concerned should in my judg- ment. feel assured that the interests of all classes of creditors will be conserved by competent business management at the hands of the committee chosen.
 'MYRON T. HERRICK."
 Caused Run on Bank.
 As result of the announcement of the financial embarrassment of the Evrett- Moore syndicate, run was started on the Dime Savings and Banking Company of which Messrs. Evrett and Moore are directors late this afternoon. All de- mands were promptly met and President Watterson said the bank had ample funds on hand to pay all depositors who desired their money.
 The institution is one of the city de-