The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1905-10-07

of unpatented lands which were under
process of proving up on in accord
ance with the U. S. Land laws. On
these unpatented lands large and per-
manent Improvements We're made.
Can any one doubt the successful
development of this Ranch Co. which
paid. think, three annual dividends
q only got into the company a week
or so before it Went into hands of re-
ceiver) amounting to TO s per cent
annually.
Owing to the severe winter and
spring of 1904 the billiards. and storms
destroyed over half our herds and
caused loss of somewhere like $780,
100000 which caused a panic among
our stockholders and brought on our
troubles. When these losses occurred
The cry of fraud was raised which only
increased the embarrassment of our
company who With it's Ssh share
holders scattered all over the world
refused TO make further payments on
their installmcnt stock which deprived
the company of its working capital and
was about this time saddled with a
fraud order" from the p. o. Depart
ment. which was based on the affidavit
of the enemies of the company who
stated that the company was fraudu-
lent because of its temporary improve
ments. consisting of small earth banks
and plowed burrows for bitches where
they We're made to secure a large lot
of land from the Government without
cost, while the land was stony and
barren and would not raise crops, etc.
The fraud order caused great loss
and distress among our shareholders,
some of whom lost their all in the COM
pany which was forced into the hands
of the present receiver about Nov. 18th,
1904.
| About the middle of December the
shareholders of Minnesota and Iowa
held meetings to take some action to
save their property from total loss
| l was chosen by the Minnesota Snare
to the ranches and make an investiga-
ton and report to our meeting, while
| Col. C. a. Huston was sent by the
Des Moines shareholders on the same
mission.
We made tour of the ranches to-
gether and found one of the most COM
country and made Il careful investiga-
| ton of the property from the stand
point of a farmer and ranchman and
found the above named improvements
and was amazed that such outrageous
afidavits We're made against the char
\ acter of this property, land and i'm
our shareholders of what appeared to
| be deep laid conspiracy on the part
of powerful and influential persons who
wanted to destroy our company as we
were taking up all the water and land
by desert land entry which would ruin
their ranching prospects very soon and
who was able to have influence enough
with the p. 0. inspector to either de-
ceive him as to the character of these
improvements or secured his cooper
alton in perpetrating this injustice on
this company and its shareholders.
| AS a result Of this investigation of
Col. Huston and Mr.. Hanley we set
forth the actual condition and called a
general meeting of all the Old Montana
Ranch Co. shareholders to meet in st.
Paul. Mimi, on Jan. co. 1905, to devise
ways and means to save our property
from total loss
AS result of this meeting it was de-
cided to reorganiZe the Old Montana
Ranch Co. in the hands of the receiver
under the name of the Consolidated
Farm and Ranch Co. with a capitaliza-
ton of s35O,000.00 all Of which would
be in the treasury and nome of it is
sued except for cash or for services,
and to purchase the property and its
assets from the receiver and continue
| the ranch in the interests of the share
holders by taking it away from the
old management who were designated
as the "wreckers' while the new COM
pany was designated as the "reorgan-
| izers."
We have been hard at work closing
up our reorganization and as the prcsi-
all over the country to visit our dis
couraged and demoralized sharehold-
ers and urge them to join the reorgan-
ization in order to save them from
almost total loss.
! organized our shareholders in near
ly every state where we had any large
numbers and in this way secured SUBJ
scribers for some $4,000 of our new
company stock on the installment plan
of per cent per month.
When our enemies found there was
good reason that our reorganization
would succeed and we were to secure
the property by purchase from the re-
ceiver they took prompt and drastic
action to seize on a small technically
caused in a hitch in our negotiations
| which they construed to fit their case
and on which was summarily ar
rested with the deliberate intent Of de-