The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-02-21
Judge Ball Decides That the Contentious of Fish Ire
 Not Sound
STAMPEDE IN COURT RO0M
 WHEN DECISION IS GIVEN
Decision of Judge Ball Holds That the Union Pacific and the Illinois Cen traI Are Not Competing Lines
 and Other Things Unproven.

chicago, February 20.-Judge Ball of
 the superior court today dissolved the
 injunction secured last october bv
 stuyvesant Fish, by virtue of which the Hartman interests were restrained
 rom voting 2S1,231 shares of the capi-
 tai stock of the Illinois Central rail- road at the annual meeting of the com pany. The theory on which counsel for
 MT Fish based their arguments in sun 1 port of the injunction-tha 1t was
 contrary to the laws and public policy of the state of Illinois to allow foreign
 corporationsr v own and vote the stock
 or domestS corporations-was denied by the court. Under the ruling of the
 court the previously enjoined stock 1 which is held by the Union Pacific
 Railroad company and by the Railroad
 Securities company of New Jersey can
 be voted at the annual meeting of the
 Illinois Central, which is to be held
 in this city on March ?.
 There is no appeal from the decis- l ion handed down today by Judge Ball,
 but it is considered probable that MT. Fish will take further legal steps to
 regain possession of the Illinois Gen.
 tral- Judge E. B. Farrar of New Or
 leans, who has acted as leading coun- sel for MT. Fish throughout the con
 troversy. said today after the render
 ing of the decision that the case will
 now be tried on It's merits. but de-
 clined to say how quickly new pro- ceedings will be instituted.
 1 None of the principals in the case
 was In court. both MT. Fish and MT.
 fIarriman being in New York. All of
 the attorneys on both sides and many
 other lawyers and business men were
 present and filled the court room to
 overnowing.
 Harahan Pleased.
 | President Harahan of the Illinois ] Central came in while the decision was being read and heard the latter portion
 of it. When the conclusion had been
 reached he said:
 My head is too full of the decision
 to allow me to say anything. but to
 say that I am highly pleased, and more
 than highly pleased. is putting it
 mildly"
 Judge Ball. who is of a somewhat
 frail physique. turned over to his son
 the task of reading the decision, which ;, contained almost 10000 words As soon
 as it was concluded, there was veri-
 table stampede in the court room, 1 brokers, lawyers and messengers mak-
 ing a rush for the doors in order to an-
 nounce the result. They ran into vari-
 ous rooms seeking for telephones and
 many tore headlong for the elevators
 while others fled wildly down the stair
 ways. So much excitement and con-
 fusion has not been witnessed in the county court house for many years. 1 The court declared that MT. Fish has not been able to prove any of his con- l tentions that the domination of the | Illinois Central by MT. Hartman would l be to it's detriment, and had also failed to show that the interests of stock
 holders would be injured thereby. The Union Pacific and the Illinois Central he said, were not competing but are | connecting lines, and one could not he l a commercial rival of the other, In ! such a sense as to fall with in the scops | of legal decisions against the alliances | between competing roads. The two | roads. the court declared were not so
 
 they could combine to monopolize traf- | fic in any section of the country. The court further declared that if 1 the name of MT. Hartman was not a name to conjure with, many of tho l allegations made in the case would be considered seriously. He was com pelled to act, he said, on facts alleged and proved and not fears, "or supposed prophe ecies."
 The record of tn case, he said, failed to substantiate many of the declara- | tions made against Mir. Hartman. Judge Balls Decision. The decision of Judge Ball. was quite extended, amounting to about 10000 words. After reciting the history of the case and going at considerable length 1 into the various claims and assertions made by both sides, the court went on to say:
 Tt is urged that the compliments un-
 der the rules of equity practice should have requested the officers and directors of the Illinois Central to bring this suit that such a request and a refusal by l 1he corporation are necessary pre-re- 1 quisites to their right to begin this ac- ton. This suit might have been brought 1 by the Illinois Central It's subject mat l ter is one in which all the stockholders of that corporation are equally Inter l ested Before a stockholder is entitled i in his own name to institute and con- duct a litigation which usually belongs | to the corporation he should show to the satisfaction of the court that he called 1 upon the directors to bring the suit and ] their neglect or refusal to comply with 1 his request; or he must show that an l application to them would have been | useless. The bill as amended alleges that 1 complainants made no application to the
 company to bring this suit first because l they believe they have the individual l right as stockholders to bring this ac- tion: and second, that it would have been l idle to have made such application be- | cause eight of the thirteen directors of the | Illinois Central believe that the Union 1 Pacific and the Railroad Securities com pany have the right to hold and vote the | stock severaly owned by them; because is----a of these directors have participated
 unlawful acts complained of, and I five others would have been advised by