The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-03-23

LAY III SOuAt hS0th lc Z1ItIOI xIlS
Time Being Brought by a Stock
holder to Secure Annulment of Lease
TO Rowland Improvement Company.
Judge B. +. Long Sits Without Jury
and Reserves Decision for Thirty
Days-Each Side Represented by
Able Counsel-Preyious Litigation.
New Bern, March 1.-THE suit
brought by Mr.. Hill t effect the an
lnulment Of the lease of the Atlantic
land North Carolina railroad to the
lHowlanG Improvement company was
heard here today before Judge 3. 2.
Long Of Statesville. The plaintiff was
represented by Owen n. Guiop, Will
liam A. Clarke and Larry l. Moore.
The Atlantic and North Carolina rail
road was represented by Colonel p. NJ.
IP~ea-sall, its general counsel. Appear
ling for the lessee, the Rowland I'M
lprovement company, were Ex-Gover-
lnor c. B. Aycock, former State Senator
r.. A Daniels, Senator F. NJ. Simmons
and A. D.. Ward. The hearing was
concluded, but no decision was a.
lnounced. Judge Long stated hat he
would defer the announcement OF his
decision for % days.
The famous "Old Mullet' road again
has had it's day in court. Judge Pur-
nell, Of the United States court, put
1.-THE road in the hands of a receiver
twice during 1904. The state authori-
tiles arrested his first receiver for con-
Ispiracy, and it was the sensation of the
hour. A few months later another
Isuit was brought, and he appointed
lOther receivers. Chief Justice Fuller
GRANTED a ~supercedeas, and these re-
l~ceigers were discharged.
Then Governor Aycock, at the re-
lquest Of practically all the stockhold-
jers, and with almost the universal
approval of the state, announced a pur-
pose to lease the road. He called for
propositions, and several of them were
made. By all odds the best one made
WAS by Mr.. R. S. Rowland, of Ashe-
willie. The most public notice was Civ
len and a special meeting of the stock
holders was held for the express pur-
IpOse of making a lease at Morhead
ICity on September /, 1904. A spe-
'cial train was run, and the largest at
tendance ver known Of stockholders
was present. No one opposed the lease
Except Mr.. Claude Foy and the county
|Of Pamlico. The lease was overwhelm-
|ingly approved by the stockholders,
and the officers and directors were OK
|dered to execute the same. They met,
upon a lease, but, before signing
lit, the lease itself ready for execution,
was presented to the stockholders, they
approved it again, and it was executed
by the officers of the two companies,
In the presence of the stockholders.
and in their meeting.
The lessees took charge of the road
and deposited bonds of the state to
the amount of $100, 900 in value in the
Wachovia Loan and Trust company to
secure their performance of all the
agreements contained in the lease. The
bonds are there yet. They have bought
the Norfolk and Southern railroad, and
If the lease stands will connect the
.wo by building from either Washing
ton, N. c., t o New Bern or Kinston.
They have bought the lines of steamers
running from Elizabeth City to New
Bern and Washington. They are
building a bridge nearly three miles
long across the sound at Beaufort,
and contemplate building to Cape
Lookout. They have already spent
more than $25O,O0O, in addition to tho
earnings of the road, and in addition
to their purchase of the properties
aforesaid, they have entered into 9TH
or obligations of a like character. All
the stockholders, except the county
of Craven, which voted for the lease
when it was made, and Mr.. Claude
Foy, who has always opposed it, and
Mr.. Hill, are now earnestly isnling
10 sustain the lease, Mrs. FlGcolce
P Ticker, of Rs.eigh. is thr Lag
private stakeholder, owning ahOu.
s135, 900 of the stock. Collector e. C..
Duncan is the next largest. Mr..
Charles NJ. Busbee owns quito . block.
There is a mortgage on this road
for a quite a sum. The stockholders
feel that if the lease is declared in
valid the road will have to repay to the
~lessees what money the lessees nave
paid out. The road cannot pay this
sum, and the state would never issue
bonds to save it Therefore, if the
lease fails the road will again be plac-
ed in the hands of a receiver, and this
time, without hope, it will be fore
and sold, the stockholders get
ting but little.
MI. Hill the man who brought the
suit had at the time Of the lease onl.
|one share OF stock TO- ahich he gave
$50. While the whole state was agitat-
ing OF the lease subject and the papers
full of it, and the fact that a meeting
was to be held on the list Of september
Ito consider a lease was published in
all of the papers, Mr.. Hill says no no.
|tice was sem to him, and that he did
not know anything about it until Il
few minutes before the train left, that
The hurried to the depot to take the
train, so as to go down and vote his
pne share. out of the eighteen thousand
shares. against the lease. But ii vas
THE LIST of September, a sulky hot day
land he was a very fat man, and he
got to the depot just as the rain
pulled out, and therefore he missed at
tn ;rr t,o roaatinn unu-aunr Sfo1-t~