Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1908-01-04
.UNTERMEYER
On WILLIAMS
PRESIDENT OF ROAD TO ACT AS
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
ALL OLD EMPLOYEES TO HOLD
THEIR JOBS WITHOUT CHANGE
IN TITLES.

hiiouNlDuld, Jan. 4.--tSdlnuel IN
termeyer of New York. of counsel in
the Seaboard Air Line receivership
| proceedings was in Philadelphia yes
terday and made reply to the state
ment Issued by John Shelton Will
liams, criticising the Ryan-Blair
management of the road. Mr.. I'm
termeyer said:
81 am surprised at Mr.. Williams
statement in view Of the circum-
stances under which he was invited
to participate in the appointment
But in view OF the past experiences
one should not be surprised at any
thing Mr.. Williams may say. The
facts are very difrere1t from what
might be inferred from his state
ment.
after the directors had endeav-
ored to further finance the property
on condition that Mr.. williams and
his associates would assist to very
limited extent and they had refused,
the directors reluctantly concluded
that receivership could no longer
be avoided.
The papers were accordingly pre-
pared and the application arranged
for without further consulting Mr..
Williams who was not a director
and was not entitled to notice. In
order TO fully protect the underlying
bonds the New York interests ar
ranged to buy the coupons. matur-
ing January /. In this Mr.. Williams
also declined to join and so it was
done without him.
'At this stage II occurred to me
that 1t would be a wise and graceful
thing, though in no sense necessary.
to invite the Williams interest to
participate in the receivership which
every one agreed to be inevitable
and thus put an end to the news
paper agitation that Mr.. Williams
has been TO ryears conducting to the
injury of the property and at the eX-
| pense Of the security holders. Dur
ing all these years Messrs. Ryan and
Blair and their associates had been
pouring their own money into the
property to the extent OF over S12,-
100000 on what has proved to be
mainly precarious and unstable Sc
curities. 1t was with this money
that the business was increased 80
per cent. and the gross earnings over
100000 in three years. without
that aid the property would have
been bankrupted and disintegrated
and the security holders would have
lost their investment.
During all this time Mr.. Williams
confined his activities to abusing,
criticising and misrepresenting the
people who were trying to save and
develop this great property, the wis
dom of whose course will in the end
be indicated. He contributed moth
ing in the way of help. 1t i'll be-
comes him when these gentlemen
have put aside their grievances and
risen above personal considerations
and taken him into camp for the
welfare of the property, to misrep-
resent their attitude and thus re-
open the controversy.
THE fact is that Mr.. Byrne and
| are largely responsible for the ar.
rangement by which the court was
asked that the Williams interest be
represented in the receivership. 1t
was first suggested on Tuesday on
our way tot Richmond in the expec-
tation of eecting permanent peace
which we are still hoping will be
the result.
Mr.. Williams seems to have mis-
construed that act and effect. His
statement would appear ungracious
to say the least under the circum-
stances and a little discouraging To
those who expect him TO rise to the
occasion instead Of creating a wrong
impression of the situation, into
which he was invited. into a person
al ictOry or vindication. All hatchets
have been buried and it is hoped,
for the sake of all concerned they
will stay buried"