Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-04-15
FIGHT FOR BIG STAKE.
Equitable Policy Holders Begin Con-
test for Surplus of S80,0o0,000.


test for Surplus of $80,0o0,0oO.
New York, April 15.-The fight OF
policy holders Of the Equitable Life
Assurance Society to establish in court |
their rights to the $S0,0O0,O00 surplus
of the society was begun yesterday On
petition of A. e. Woodruff, representing
Herbert G. Tull of Philadelphia, and all
other policy holders similarly situated,
Justice Scott, in the supreme court,
issued an order to Superintendent Of
Insurance Hendricks, to show cause
April Is, why an order should not be
made restraining him from approving
the proposed amended charter of the
Equitable.
MI Woodruff insists on behalf of his
client that the rights Of the policy hold
ers in the surplus be determined, and
asks for a judgment Of the COURT on
what the reasonable market value OF
the stock is, so that the directors may
be restrained from paying any excess
to stockholders. 1t is further declar-
ed that the charter of the Equitable
is being violated in that no distribution
of the surplus has ever been made.
In statement accompanying the
application made to Justice Scott Mr..
Woodruff says under oath:
THAT the society has wholly failed
to carry out the principles upon which
it was organized and the provisions OF
it's charter, both in respect to equit-
ably distributing it's surplus and pee
hitting representation on the part of
the policy holders on the board Of di-
rectors. That recently the society
awoke to the fact that it had wholly
failed to effectually and properly car
ry out the principles of it's organi-
zation in respect to an equitable dis
tritution of the surplus and represent
tation of the policy holders on the
| board Of directors, and apparently an
effort was made by some OF the Off
GERS to have such representation under
form of mutualizing the company in
name, and not in fact"
| IMr. Woodruff further says, on affir-
nation and belief based upon state
ments made by the representatives of
the company, that the proposed amen
detl charter was adopted at meet
| ing, of the board Of directors at which
there were thirty-eight directors pres
| emf. all of whom are said to have vot-
| ed for it.
THAT the stock represented by the
vote was $40 shares" says the affida-
Wit, "of which it has been stated that
SD shares belonged to James H.
Hyde, and therefore it follows that
the remaining thirty-seven directors
SO voting for said amended charter
could not have been the owners of
more than sixty shares of the COM
pslny, and since five shares of the
stock, by the charter, are necessary to
be. owned by director to qualify him,
it necessarily follows that twenty five
at least Of the voting directors We're
not legally qualified to act as directors
OF the society"
| The complaint AYERS that, because of
| the liability of the officers 10 manip-
| ulate and use the large surplus for
| their own personal interest an idea
arose in the minds of some of the
stockholders that they had some right
or ownership in the surplus, which
was without foundation. By reason of
this unfounded idea the company has
permitted its surplus to be diverted
from it's true intent and purpose and
has permitted it to be used by some
of its officers or by others in way
entirely foreign to it's proper use"
Mr.. Woodruff said that the policy
holders had endeavored to obtain
| hearing from the state superintendent
Of insurance, but that he had refused
to grant their request.