The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-05-24
HIGH OFFICIALS
 WILL BE EXAMINED
Commission Resumes Investiga-
 ton of Discrimination
SECRET STOCK HOLDINGS
High Railway Officials Admit Having Received Blocks of Stock In Coal Companies Located Along
 Their Lines.

Philadelphia, May 23.-Further revela- mining companies by officials of the Penn sylvania railroad were made today when the interstate commerce commission re- sumed its investigation Into the alleged discrimination by railroads in the dlstri- button of cars.
 Three high officials of the railroad Vice President Green, Third Vice Pres ident San Req and William A. Patton, assistant .he president at Philadel- phia-w important witnesses of the day. MT. l. ton was under examination the greater part of the morning and was an unwilling witness. The persistent ques- tioning of attorney Glasgow for the com mission, however, brought out the fact that MT Patton had acquired stock, the par value of which Is s907, ,OoO in various coal companies without cost to himself He explained, however, that he had signed notes oblgating himself for his share of the losses and declared his be- lief that it was proper for him to ac- cept the stock under those conditions.
 Vice President Req read a statement to the commission in which he explained all of his stock transactions, stating that he did not believe he was debarred from such ownership because of his connec- ton with the railroad company. MT. Req said that most of his stock was ac- quired through his associations with land purchasing syndicates which took up the coal properties for development.
 Vice President Green said that twenty or thirty years ago 1t was not considered improper for an official Of the railroad to own coal companies stock, but that conditions had changed, and such hold ings might not now be regarded in the same light as formerly He informed the committee that the board of directors of the Pennsylvania railroad. acting on the information that had been brought at the hearings, had today appointed q com nhttee of five directors to make an in- vestigation. MT Green said he did not own a dollars worth of coal company stock.
 Other witnesses testified to stock ownership and to discrimination in the distribution of cars.
 
 rell and Judson c. Clements conducted the hearing. Tonight MT. Clements left for Cleveland, where he Will join Com missioner Prouty to conduct the hear ings in the oil investigation beginning to- morrow.
 High officials of the Pennsylvania rail road are among the witnesses who will be examined during the investigation this week of the Interstate Commerce con- mission into the alleged discrimination by the railroads in the distribution of coal cars. The hearings were resumed today
 The revelations last week when a num- Der of Pennsylvania railroad officials ad- mitted accepting gifts of stock in various soft coal mining companies impelled the commission to subpoena more important officers in an effort to determine the eX- tent of the secret business relations al- legged to exist between the railroad and certain coal companies
 The witnesses to be examined during the hearing this week include Captain John P. Green, first vice president of the Pennsylvania railroad William A. Pat ton assistant to President Cassatt at Philadelphia; Robert Pitcairn, assistant to President Cassatt at Pittsburg; Congress- man George F. Huff, president of the Key stone Coal and Coax company; John Lloyd, president of the Columbia Coal Mining company; J. Howard Patton, a coal man and a brother of William A.