New-York tribune., 1907-12-18
UNTERMYER OBJECTS.
HIS CONNITTEE B4LKS.
Won't Agree to Knickerbocker
Trust Resum ptiOn Plan.

Samuel Jrntern1yer said yesterday that the oe-
positors committee which he represented "o"ia
not accept the modified plan for the resumption oi
the Knckerbocker Trust Company which had oeen
agreed to by the committees OF deposltors Oh
which Hinsdill Parsons and G NJ walker arc
the chairmen ano the reorganizaIon cohlii..ee
of directors of which Frederick G. Bourne is chalr
man. Mr.. Untermyer would not give the reasons
why his committee had not joined in the plan with
the other committee while he said that IL was
not necessarily because they disapproved Oh II.
I'VE simply decided not to go into 1t-that Is all
he said
From other sources IL was learned that the pr1n-
cipal objection was that it did not specify "iia'
percentage of the deposturs should assent 10 IL pe
fore it became operative and that the committees
did not believe that it would be a good thlng 10
carry il through unle-5 it was made obligatory
that 95 per cent of the depositors assented 10 IT,
for the reason that if the plan was put IN opera
ton all the depostors who had not gone In wouId
have to be paid IN full. and the committee feared
that number of depositorS might stay out on tnat
account which would involve the withdrawal OF
large of money to pay them in full and would
be unfair to The other depositors who had 10 wait
for their money. The committee, it was said. also
objected to the men chosen as voting trustees on
the ground that they did not represent the depos-
itors. There objection II was declared, TO
the financial part Of the plan.
Julien T. Davies. counsel the reorganization
committee of directors said he did not understand
Mr.. Untcrmyer's attitude. He said that the plan
had been carefully worked out and had been
agreed to by three out of four of the committees
and that under the circumstances Mr.. unternayer
might have yielded TO the majority. Under the
proposed plan, he added, the depositors would get
100 cents the dollar, which would probably not
be the case if the company placed in the hands
OF permanent receivers, judging by the Senerai
history of such proceedings. The reason that the
plan did not specify what percentage of depositors
should give their assent was because II mad bceh
thought best to fix the number arbitrarily, but
to leave it to the judgment of the voting trustees
who could be depended upon to use proper dlscre-
ton in the matter. while If the percentage was
fixed arbitrarily at s5 and only 9a per cent Of the
depositors gave their consent the plan would ian
through.
He added that the selection of Henry C. Frick'
Myron T. Herrick and Lewis Cass Ledyard as Vot-
ing trustees because OF their high standlng III
the community. and not because they represented
any special interests. He said that they had not
seen selected by the directors committee, but had
been gladly accepted by the latter simply because
Of their high standing AS far as they represented
any one he added, they represented the depostors'
and the carrying out OF the plan could be safeiy
left In their hands. The refusal OF Mr. Untermyer
to come in would not necessarily mean that 1t
would be successfully carried out
\ director who has attended all the conferences
Of the various committees said that Mr.. Inter
myer had tried 10 have seven voting trustees ap-
pointed: two to be selected by the Parsons COM
rnittee two by the directors. two by the Inter
rnyer committee and by the Walker committee.
five Of the to constitute majority THIS.
the director pointed out. would have enabled the
and Walker committees TO block any
action to which they were opposed and would have
prevented the Will OF the majority from being car
rled out He added that the Untermyer committee
only about one-ffeth OF the depostors
while the Parsons committee. of which Herbert
L. Satterlee is counsel. represented one-hsth.
J Russell SoIey, OF the counsel for tho re-
organization committee OF directors said that the
Of the Knickerbocker Trust Company
was OF the utuos, importance "a the financial dis
trct as its failure to do would cause loss OK
confidence in financial institutions in general which
would be felt FOR n long tine. and for that reason
Il was highly important that the plan agreed 10 by
all the committees except the Untermyer commit
tee should be carried out. In case OF permanent
receivershIp for the company. he said that so per
cent would in his opinion, be high estimate OF
what the depostors would receive.
IL was learned last night that the Cntermyer
committee was preparing a new plan, which would
probably bo made public in u few days
The reorganization committee Of directors issued
4 circular letter TO tho depositors explaining in
detail the plan agreed TO by all the committees. ex-
cept the Untermyer committee. and asking their