The Washington times., 1903-04-20
Wall Street and the Courts,
Legal Actions Taken to Affect the Price
of Securities.

Of Securities.
The proceedings in New York be
fore a magistrate in the Tombs court,
affecting the price Of securities, val
ued at $I00.000,000 or more, and held
by thousands Of stockholders through
out the country, illustrate in forci-
bic manner the financial vicissitudes to
which, under present conditions, every
corporation can be subjected by the
action Of a minority stakeholder rep
resentiug a hostile clique in Wall
Street.
is a result of the alleged "diselos-
ureS" made, It must be remembered,
NOT in a trial to determine whether or
not the management of the Metropol-
itan Street Railway Company Of New
York has been wise and IN the interest
Of the shareholders. but simply mel
dentally in the course of q suit for
libel brought because defendant called
plaintiff "a notorious character
a result, we say, of such disclosures
the value of shares IN that corporation
fell on Friday last S3,0O0,000.
No one. certainly, viii contend that
this Is d Laughing matter" OF that
something Is not radically wrong
somewhere, when it IS possible. upon
charges as himsy as those formulated
by former District Attorney PhiIbiu,
to precipitate what might have been
turned at any moment into a panic.
Mr. PhiIbin's charges. in effect, are
that certain persons in the inner
ring" of the Metropolitan Street Rail
way Company got away with some
thing ike 930,000,0O0 in the course
Of the last few years. As the com
pany IS capitalized at only So, 600
600, this Is a feat Of which the biggest
Napoleon of Finance the street ever
produced might well be proud. I'VE
shall prove that S30,000,000 were
stolen" exclaimed one Of the plain
! tiff's counsel. This Is 50 farcical that
hate TO take up time with It = replied
counsel for the defendant. OF course.
/ its farcical-to counsel with fat re-
tanners i'll their pockets. bat IT isn't so
very .farcicap to the small stock
holders throughout the country.
The whole manner. indeed, in which
| the astounding charges were permit
ted to become public savors of the
worst. we might almost say. most reeE-
less and criminal. type Of stock spec
ulation. The fact that they were
made in a court Of inferior standing
suggests that those concerned in the
matter found 1t advisable not to at
tempt the game IN one Of the higher
courts. Before magistrate III the
Tombs the thing, IT was probably
thought, could more easily be done.
The whole character OF the proceed
ing. IN short. Is reflected IN the testi-
mony which showed that the plaintiff
Is at the present time the holder of
only 100 shares, and three, months ago
was short Of 1000 shares sold for
a fall
The management Of the NetropoIi-
tan Street Railway may have been
bad, or 1t may have been good. Fig
ures IN reports may have been juggIed
with, or not. Sworn statements. fled
under the law, with the State Rail
road Commission and the Stock Ex-
change, may have been perjured- But
if they have been all this, and more
besides, that Is a question for expert
accountants TO determine. not for law
yers and laymen TO use as a means
for exploiting the public
Surely, there ought 10 be means
found for protecting innocent share
holders against attacks Of this kind
upon their property. Or can the law
no longer be presumed TO temper the
wind 10 the shorn lamb" and Is it,
hereafter, to be considered as enlisted
in the service of the dcspoiier7?