The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-08-22
Mr. Ryan Paid SD for Com- mon and $25 for the
 Preferred Stock
BOUGHT SEABOARD STOCK
 ON OWN RESPONSIBILITY
Ryan-Blair Syndicate Now Holds About 2oo,voo Shares, or One Third of the Entire Stock
 of the Company.

Richmond, Va, August 21.-John Skel- ton Williams arrived in this city from New York today and confirmed the re- ported sale of the Williams -Middendorf an Association Press correspondent he said:
 the Continental Trust company of Balti- more endeavored a few weeks ago to ne- gotiate the sale of the seaboard stocks owned by J. L. Williams and Sons of Richmond and J. William Middendorf & ests which for the past six months or so has represented the majority of the voting trust, but these negotiations fell through on account of the unwillingness of the purchasers to meet our ideas as to price, and we had practically abandoned the idea of making a sale to Messrs. Ryan and Blair.
 Fer6lSIeu m EHoftS.
 But MT. warheld, with his characteris- tic determination decided that the deal should go through. While in Baltimore yesterday morning received a telephone message from MT. Narheld. who was in New York and at his request left for New York on the afternoon train and met MT. Ryan at MT. Warheld's apartments at the Manhattan hotel last night. l told MT. Ryan that it would be useless for us to discuss the sale of our holdings of stock at any figures less than those we had named to him at the outset, and that if he wanted the property it would be nec- essary for him to pay these prices to se- cure it.
 nThe figures I named for our stock were s15 for the common and s25 for the nreferred. MT. Ryan assured me that neither the Athletic Coast line nor the Southern Railway would be interested with him In the purchase, and that the property, If purchased would be main- tained and operated as an independent system, and he said that he fully ap- preciated the importance, both from the standpoint of the road itself and of the people of the South. of operating the Sea- board Air line independently and clear of control of entangling alliances with other systems. We sold him $14,OOO0oO of the stock, about equally divided be- tween preferred and common at $l5 per share, net for the common and S25. net, for the preferred. the stock to be deliv- cred and paid for at once.
 On His Own Responsibility.
 MT. Ryan told me that he was buy ing the stock on his own responsibility, and that 1t would not be decided until next week whether or not his associates, Messrs. Blair and Coolidge, would be interested with him in this purchase.
 q advised MT. Ryan that as the sale would embrace all of the stock owned by myself and my firm, I would desire to retire from the board of directors as soon as the stock should be delivered and paid for. and I thought 1t likely that my associate, MT. Middendorf. would desire to do the same thing
 AS the Rysn-Blair syndicate is under stood to have owned about 60,OO0 shares of the stock prior to this purchase, their total Eold'I gs probably amount to about 2oo00) shares or about one-third of the entire stock of the company.
 Among Comparatively Small Holders.
 Of the balance of this companys stock. most of it Is held in Maryland apd the South, and is largely scattered anonR comparatively small holders If tho company can now be assured of a g1od and able operating mana cement in addition to the strong financial backing which 1t enters, stockholders may conf- dentiy ifok forward to handsome returns On thcir investments at no distant day.
 "The sale has been made" said MT. Williams, not because of any lack of confidence in the future of the seaboard property, but purely for the reason that my firm as thought desirable to realize on this rtcck in order to expedite the liquidation of it's affairs and the payment in full, principal and interest, of all obn- gallons which l consl fer this transac- ton will assure"