The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1906-03-09


a meeting of the stockholders couN
be held and asserts that the mee.irs
September 1, 1904, was advertised In
only New Bern newspaper.
The answer OF the defendant Is that
There vas only n newspaper publish
led in New Bern then. The meeting
WAS properly advertised In that paper
land notice was given In nearly all the
lother newspapers of the state. Even
the plaintiff knew Of the meeting and
INTENDED 10 attend but reached the sta
tion after the train had left
Another contention Is that the lease
was made in the night between | and
L o'clock OF September lst and he
is1e0. 600 deposit was not put up until
three days later. On the other hand
liz is said that during these three days
the lessee only had nominal charge
and President James A. Bryan turned
Iover nothing to the Rowland Improve
lment company until Governor Aycock
wired that the Slo0.0o had been de-
posted,
The third reason assigned by the
lplaintiff is that the lease required a
deposit OF security 10 be placed in the
Hands of a trustee 10 BE- selected by
1.-THE directors OF the lessor. whereas the
directors never selected anybody and
1.-The deposit in the Waxovia Loan and
Trust company was o a compliance
lin reply II Is said that this loan and
trust company was selected by Cover
Iuor Aycock and the officers Of the A.
Ilantic and North Carolina railroad. 4
trust agreement in triplicate was pre-
lpared by the attorney general for the
Estate and General Theodore Davidson
land Mr.. James II. Pou for the How
Hand Improvement company and e.
Icuted by the latter. copies being kept
lby each. This was lone Immediately
latter the delivery of the IA 10 The
trustee. ii Is stated. and the loan and
trust company has continued since
that time TO hold s100.000 In North Car
Iolina 4 per cent bonds as security
!for compliance with the lease.
The last claim is that In violation
Iof the lease some local rates have
Iheen r~earranged and made higher. On
THE other side il has been stated that
some rates nave been lowered and air
the rates conform TO the requirements
tf the state corporation commission
NO forfeiture is provided in the lease
lon account of raising rates but the
Iparty damaged is entitled 10 recover
10y suit.
The above seem to be, briefly stated.
THE contentious on both sides.
OPPONENTS OF LEASE.
The plaintiff bringing the suit 10 set
aside the lease owned one share when
1.-The lease was made and after the lease
bought one other. Craven county has
Isince joined the plaintiff, but the Crav-
len stock was voted for the lease when
lit was made. Mr.. c. E. Foy, OF New
lRern, is also opposing the lease. 10
Twas present at the stockholders meet
ling and voted against the lease then.
He also attended the directors meet
ling three weeks later, when no oblec-
Ition was made to the lease, and MS
Toy offered a resolution to appoiHr a
lcommittee to pay the dividends from
money derived from the lease. DiVi~
blends have been paid regularly ever
Isince.
MYSTERIOUS HOLDER OF BONDS.
One Of the most interesting and SEN
ISational phases of the situation Is that
Ia large block of the states stock in
this road is hypothecated similar to
the states stock in the North Carolina
railroad in the famous South Dakota
suit. Just before the Civil war North
Carolina issued bonds to complete the
railroad and guaranteed these With
jstock (about s135 ,0G0 still outstanding
with 40 years interest.) IL the railroad
lis sold the of those bonds ma
Intervene and say that the money shall
mot he paid until their lien is salts
lied.
Who owns those bonds no one
knows. The last heard of them was
when a suit was brought in the fed
leral court by William E. Christian 20
force the collection Of those bonds. The
lease went TO the United States SUI
Ipreme court which held that Mr.. Chris
titan could no sue the state. Since
then the same court has held that
while a citizen cannot sue the state nc
lmay sell to another state and the lat
tier sue the debtor state.
i"UNLOCkED DOOR OF OPPORTUN-
ITY.
The private stockholders are, as can
lbe seen, decidedly interested In the
loutcome of the Hill suit. The stock
has increased in value since the asita-
ltion for a lease first began. Property
has advanced all along the line OF the
road.
Governor Aycock by the lease IN
locked the door of opportunity 10 east
fern Carolina" was ne comment OF one
stakeholder as he spoke of the rapid
development Of railroads through his
lrich section since the contamination of
1.-THE least-Raleigh Dispatch 10 Indus
trial News.
Nearly Broke Him From the Habit.