The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-06-10
MORTON HAS | THE POSITION Is Elected Chairman of
 Equitable. REORGANIZATION BEGINS. s Alexander, Hyde and others
 Resign. Vice President who has Been Center of stormy Scenes Gets Rid of His
 Maiority Interest in the so- ciety's stock.

| New York. June s.--Paul Morton. who retires from the secretaryship of the navy on July 1. was today elected chairman of the Equitable Life As- surance Society. His election marks I the first and most important step in the reorganization of the society and was followed by the tender of the res exander. Vice President Hyde. Second Vice President TarbelI. Third Vice President Wilson and Fourth Vice President Mcintyre.
 | It Is known that Brayton Ives and Charles Stewart Smith, who were from the outset of the controversy on the side of the conservative element. pro- tested against some of the proceedings of the meeting and arc believed to have voted against Mr. .dorton's selection. The new chairman, to further quote Senator Depew, did not consent to take office until he had received positive as- surances that he would have a free hand as to measures and men," Mir. Hyde "divested" himself of the majority control but as made clear tii his letter to the board, retains sub- stantial interest in the society All of the resignattons submitted to the meeting are subject to the pleas ure of Chairman Morton and none has yet been accepted.
 Just what action Mir. Morton will take as to these resignations was not disclosed but 1t was strongly intimat- cd that President Alexander and Vice Presidents Tarbeil. Winson and McIn- tyre retired with the belief that their executive relations with the Equitable had ended.
 Purchased by syndicate. The interests to which Mir. Hyde dis posed of his stock number some two score individuals led by Thomas F. Ryan. vice president of the Morton Trust Co, which has close relations with the Mutual Life Insurance Com pany. one of tho Equitable Sooiety.s s principal rtyaIa Mr Ryan ia said to De heavily insured in the Equitable as are. according to reports. many of the others who acted with him in the pur- chase of the Hyde holdings. The price paid for the Hyde estate stock which is to be trusteed, practically in per- petuity, was not disclosed. but estt- mates vary from $S.5oo.oO0 to $5,ooo.- 900.
 In addition to his 502 shares held by the Hyde estate. which includes the widow of H. B. Hyde. founder of the so- ciety, and his daughter, Vice-President Hyde is said to hold between 160 and ITO shares and 1t is these holdings which Mir. undermeyer refers to as the "substantial interests" which his client retains. MT. Untermeyer makes this statement relative to the Hyde interests in a statement quoted below. He has since the beginning of the Equitable controversy acted as Mir. .Hyde's coun- sel. The men requested to hold the majority stock by MT. Ryan are former President Grover Cleveland, George Westinghouse of Pittsburg and Morgan J. O'Brten, recently elevated to the chief justiceship of the appellate di- vision of the Supreme Court of this dls- trict.
 MT. Ryan is the acknowledged head of the Metropolitan Traction Company and only a fortnight ago induced MT. Morton to ally himself with his inter- est as the operating chief of the New York City Railway Company, by which title the Metropolitan surface lines and their affiliated companies in Manhattan and the Bronx are corporately known.
 Mr. Ryan Talks.
 Concerning the purchase of the Equitable stock and the disposition of 1t. Thomas F. Ryan said: Tn connec- tion with some other policyholders who. like myself, have never had any rela- ton with the Eultable except as policy holders, have purchased from MT. Hyde a majority of the stock of that society. We have made this purchase for the sake of putting an end to the present unfortunate condition of the company's affairs, not only in the inter est of the pollcyholders, but for the general business interests of the en- tire company. We purpose, upon re- ceiving the stock, to immediately divest ourselves of all voting power and ac- complish in substance and effect the plan of naturalization already approved by the superintendent of insurance. We propose to do this by conveying the stock to a Board of Trustees composed of men of such character as to com mand universal confidence and having no connection with Wall Street, with power to vote the stock for the cleo ton of directors-as to the twenty eight misunderstanding to the in- structions of the policy holders of the society as to the remaining twenty-four directors in accordance with the uncon- trolled Judgment of the trustees.
 This will at once accomplish the ob- ject of putting the control of the com pany in the hands of the policyhoIders and will eliminate entirely the one-man power to which so much objection has been made.
 Our willingness to take this course has been influential in inducing MT. Morton to accept the chairmanship of
 
 ganization of the Society, which 1t Is our wish to have made as thorough and complete as possible.
 T have already asked ex-Presldent Cleveland. Justice Morgan J. o'Brien, presiding Justice of the Appellate di- vision of the Supreme Court of this division. and Mir. George Westinghouse of Pittsburg, to act as trustees of the stock. The last two names are among the large policyholders of the Equit- able
 Meeting of Directors.
 The directors of the Equitable went into session this afternoon at o'clock, the meeting being attended by twenty seven of the remaining thirty-seven directors. For some hours prior to the Board meetings, Messrs. Depew, Bel mont and Moffat, who. with Lewis Fitz- gerald and J. B. Forgan of Chicago, constituted the nominating committee, were in session.
 Rumors of various sorts as to the selection of candidates were current but these were based on the merest conjecture. MT Morton had frequently been mentioned, but those who were supposed to speak with authority de- cIared that he was not to be seriously considered.
 EJls safacfIon in tho opfnion of thosA