The morning journal-courier., 1908-01-04
SEAB ARD AFFAIRS
Untermeyer Takes Serious Ex. ception to Statement of
 John s. Williams.
SURPRISED AT THE LATTER
Facts, Very Different from What Might be Inferred from
 What He Says.

Philadelphia. Jan. 3.-Samuel Unte- myer of New York, of counsel in the Seaboard Air Line receivegship pro- ceedings was in Philadelphia to-day and made reply to the statement s- sued yesterday by John Skelton Will Hams criticising the Ryan Blair man. agement of the road. MT. Untemyer said:
 T am surprised at MT. Williams statement in view of the circumstances under which he was invited to partci- pate in the appointment. But in view of the past experiences one should not be surprised at anything MT. Williams may say. The facts are very differ ent from what might be inferred from his statement.
 After the directors had endeavored to further finance the property on con- dition that MT Williams and his as- sociates would assist to a very limited extent and they had refused, the direc- tors reluctantly concluded that re- ceivership could no longer be avoided.
 ''The papers were accordingly pre- PdltN anu NilC dPPiiS0biVh oiASSa hVi without further consulting MT. Will Hams, who was not a director and was not entitled to notice. In order to fully protect the underlying bonds, the New York interests arranged to buy the coupons maturing Jan. I. In this MT Williams also declined to join and so ! it was done without him.
 | All (. tn that it would be a wise and grace ful thing. though in no sense neces- sary, to inivte the Williams interest to participate in the receivership which everyone agreed to be inevitable and thus put an end to the newspaper agi- tation that MT. Williams has been for years conducting to the injury of the property and at the expense of the security holders
 During all these years Messrs. Ryan and Blair and their associates had been pouring in their money in the property to the extent of over Sl2,- 1 900, 900 on what proved to be mainly precarious and unsaleable securities. It was with this money that the busi- ness was increased 30 per cent. and the gross earnings over s4,000,000 In these years. Without that aid the property would have been bankrupted and disintegrated, and the security holders would have lost their invest ment
 During all this time MT. Williams confined his activities to abusing, crit icising and misrepresenting the people who were trying to save and develop this great property, the wisdom of whose course will in the end be vindi- cated. He contributed nothing in the yay of help. It i'll becomes him when these gentlemen have put aside their grievances and risen above personal considerations and taken him into comp for the welfare of the property, to misrepresent their attitude and thus rec~n the controversy.
 "The fact is that Mir Byrne and 1 are largely responsible for the arrange ment by which the court was asked that the Williams interest be represent. ed in the receivership. It was frs, suggested on Tuesday on our way tc Richmond in the expectation of effect. ing permanent psace which we are still hoping will be the result
 MT. Williams seems to have miscon- strued that act and its effect Hl0 | statement would appear ungracious to say the least, under the curcumstances and little discouraeing to those who 1 expect him to rise to the occasion in- stead of creating a wrong impression ! of the situation. into which he wa c In vited, into a personal victory or vindi- cation. All hatchets have been buried and it Is hoped for the sake of all con- 1 cerned they will stay buried"