The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-11-17
red $4,000 in cash for his holdings Of


company is another matter which The peo-
pie must have investigated. / am not In
sinuating anything. or making any charges;
1 simply say that IL should be well looked
into. do know this much, that not very
long ago 300 acres of oil leases In the same
country were sold for about the same sum
Mr.. Potts closed his speech with an ap-
peal to the citizens to stand heart and soul
with the organization.
Mr.. Potts asked citizens and certihcate
holders to sign blanks placed in their seats
and hand them to men stationed at the
door. After the meeting these blanks were
handed in in large numbers, almost every
man in the hall, many of whom were stock
holders, affixing his signature. The form
of the blank is printed elsewhere in the
Journal. These signatures will be placed
on the roll of the Gas Consumers League.
In addition all those who wish TO join may
sign the blanks printed in the newspapers
and send them to Col. Charles L. Merri-
field, No. 424. Lemcke building.
Horace Mckay. read the following reso--
T udee s ag H fe the and WaSap as tSe
legal advisers of the Gas Consumers
Whereas, certain attorneys employed to
pany have taken the position that the COM
pany belongs to its stockholders and that
the public has no interest in it; and.
Whereas one of the directors of said
company holds such opinion and contends
for the same; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the people present. who are
Charles OF said trust. that it is the right of
the majority of the board of directors of
said company to employ attorneys who will
defend the public interest and protect the
rights of the consumers, and we, there
| fore, recommend the employment of Judges
Byron K. Elliott, Daniel Wait Howe and
Lewis {. walker to represent said COM
| pany."
The resolution was adopted with the same
unanimity as the preceding one.
MAYOR HOLTZMAN HEARD.
Mayor Hoffman, who spoke next. re-
viewed the history of the Consumers Gas
| Trust Company at length. outlining the
situation at the time the Standard Oil
| Company was attempting to control the
| Council in the endeavor to fix a high gas
| rate. Everything went along smoothly"
declared Mayor Hoffman, until those in
control of the company frightened cti-
| zens into selling their holdings of stock for
very small prices. Some men have grown
| enormously rich in administering what
should have been a sacred trust Not sat
isied with that. they are trying to seize
| allowed themselves to be made the tools
| of these men. 1 pity them from the bot
| tom of my heart. 1 applaud the splendid
conduct OF Major Richards and the other
| new directors.
1.-The stockholders of this company have
| been well paid. No man can say that he
has been cheated. defrauded or in any way
| injured to the amount of one cent. Every
| man who went into the company has
| gained thousand fold from his invest
ment in addition to the return of his orig
| inal investment with interest. / take 1t
| that for the stockholders to break faith
| now would be to undermine their own in
tegrity. 1t is our duty as citizens to for
bid the perversion of this property from
its honorable uses. 1t is the duty of the
| directors to furnish gas at cost.
$50 far as the present attitude of the
| men who are trying to control this COM
pany in their own interests. 1 have this to
| say, that at the time the proposition to
tax gas mains was up, they raised a great
cry against it, pleading that the mains
should not be taxed because they were
the property Of the people. Their stand
is now little curious to the dispassionate
"As mayor of the city of indianapolis, ]
| shall do all in my power to make this
| resolution mean something. All the power
that is vested in me shall be used to pro-
| tect the citizens
Mayor Hotzman's address brought forth
renewed burst of enthusiasm His plain
| statement of his attitude and his willing
| ness to use the executive department OF
| the city in the fight for the company was
| very gratifying to the citizens.
FORMER MAYOR DENNY.
Caleb S. Denny, mayor of the city when
! the Consumers Gas Trust Company was
organized followed Mayor Hoffman. '"rhis
is time for the unselfish citizen to assert
himself" said Mr.. Denny. mo man has
| any right to claim more out of this COM
pany than his investment with the per
cent interest guaranteed him. The ques-
ton is, shall we allow these men to add
a vast sum to the already enormous for
tune acquired by them out of the manipula-
ton Of the Consumers Gas Trust Com
pany? They secured it in defiance of JUS
tice and right We as citizens must not al
low them to gain any more or the people S
| property.
""rhe atmosphere has been clarified by
another legal opinion. One opinion seeks by
| technicalites to set aside the contract made
| with the people, the other to brush aside
technicalities and to get at the justice and
| the good morals of the proposition. Common
sense, justice and good morals are just
about as good law or l am very much mis-
taken. We have chance by saving this
company to get cheap gas for thirty-five
years. We are going to do it."
| Denny's speech had died away, the Hon.
John w. Kern addressed the meeting. Mr..
Kern said: When town meeting assem-
bles. the earth trembles. There should be
more of these town meetings. There the
will of the people finds adequate expires.
sion. There is never any mistaking what
the people mean when they get up and talk
out in town meeting.
When the Consumers Gas Trust Company
was formed there was no thought of gain
by any one All this talk about stockhOld.
ers vanishes into thin air when we come
to think that there is but one stakeholder
the board of trustees. The proposition
was that people were to get their gas al
cost when the citizens investing got their
money back. 1t was a plain contract.
There is an acute conflict as to the lega
status of the company. There Is always q
difference of opinion among lawyers oil
there would not be any lawsuits. Let Us
concede the opinion of Messrs. Smith
Hackney and Daniels that the company
was corporation with stockholders, al
though / deny that there were any stock
holders save the board Of trustees. Their
you have a contract made by this corpora
ton with the city to furnish gas to tn,
people. No corporation can openly ant
brazenly violate a contract under the laws
| of Indiana. A corporation is no more ex
empt from law than is citizen.
| II repeat, there is an acute, sharp con
fict as regards the legal status but Their,
| is always arbitrator-the court. My adj
vice is, get this matter into court a.
quickly as possible. Ordinarily good citi
zens advise against going to law, but thi:
is a case which must go TO court sooner OF
later and time is valuable--winter is com
4 ing
"There is no occasion for Mysteries Tn,
thing to do is to get your evidence to
| gether Go into court armed. Get all tn,
facts you can to support your contention
LAWSON NJ. HARvEY'S LETTER.
Chairman Lieber, at the conclusion o
! Mr.. Kern's speech, read a letter from for
mer Judge Lawson NJ Harvey, who ha,
| been announced as a speaker. Mr.. Harve.
| expressed his regret at being unable to b
. | present, but stated that he would stan,