The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-11-24
Tobacco Growers Win Suit
Against Big Pool Formed to
Handle the Crop
DECISION IS BASED ON
DIFFERENT CROP POOLS
-
surIey Tobacco Company Handled the
Crop Pool of 1906 and 1907 and
the Trouble Arose Over Hand
ling the 1909 Crop.

Winchester. KY November 2s.-cir-
cult Judge J. NJ. Benton TODAY an
nounced his decision TO appoint a re-
ceNer Tor sum of money approxf-
mating s348.0o0 now in the hands of
the Burley Tobacco and Insurance CONF
pany. The decision. which is of far
reaching Importance to tobacco grow
ers and possibly involves the future of
the company, recently Incorporated and
capitalized at $4,000 900, was handed
down In the suit OF j. e. GaitskilI and
other tobacco growers who were mem
pers OF the 19o6-o7 hurley tobacco pool
against the company. The growers al
legged that $s4soO0 of the proceeds of
the pooling and sale of the combined
crops of 1906 and 1907 had been illegal
~ retained by the Buriey society a
cooperative association from which the
Burley Tobacco and Insurance company
sprang. The growers contended that
under the terms of the uniform pool
ing contracts with individual growers
and likewise under the bylaws of the
old Burley society the entire net pro
ceeds from the sale of each crop should
pc paid over to the growers of that crop
at once and could not be used to finance
the pooling of any other CROP Testi-
mony was introduced to sustain the allie
cations of the growers that all reason
able agents commissions and expenses
OF the society for salaries etc had
already been met by percentage tax
and other perquisites amounting to over
100000 and that $s46.oco remaining
mad been illegally retained and turxed
over to the Burley Tobacco and lnf-
surance company the officers of which.
IL alleged a -
the money to the organizations own
use 800
Money viii ae Tied Up.
Judge Bentons decision to appoint a
receiver for the money deprives the
Burley Tobacco and Insurance company
! OF the money with which it was ex-
pected the company would start the
/ building of long chain of tobacco
warehouses. No authoritive statement
could be had tonight as to when the
company would find 1t necessary to re-
incorporate or change its bylaws or
TO find additional capital for the pool
ing of the 1909 crop. which is now
well under way.
The case will be appealed by the
company, which claims the money at
stake is its legal asset, the result
OF outage" for commissions. etc An
appointment of a receiver awaits the
agreement of the attorneys on both
siueS upon suitable person. A con-
ference Will be held shortly.
The decision emphasizes the distinction
between the pool organized to dispose of
the combined crops of 1906 and 1907 and
the pool formed to dispose of the 1863
crop. The court holds that the two pools
must be treated in law in fact as sep
arate and independent pools and that in
order to do justice to the individual grow
ers who pooled their crops In different
wears SpDaratQ and distinct
be kept for each pool The court con-
cludes further along this line that each
years crop OF tobacco can be chargeahle
with the expenses of the society for thai
yearly only, those incident to the
handling of that particular crop.
Summary of Decision.
Therefore. the court holds that ii cannot
be true that the bylaws of the society or
the contract with the grower legalizes
the retention of any part of the purchase
price for which the crops of l90e-07 were
sold either to secure the future mainten-
ance of the society or the successful pro-
motion of future pools The court decides
that when all expenses that have anv
reasonable connection with the handling
and sale of each pooled crop have been
met the net balance should be promptly
paid to the growers who pooled their to-
bacco for that year The decision calls
attention to the fact substantially admit
ted by the defendant society that $4,000
of the money derived from the f90s-o7
pool has already been advanced as a time
loan toward the polling of the 1909 crop
without the consent of the 19os-07 pool
growers: to the further fact that the ex-
penses of pooling the 19o6-07 crop amount
Ing approximately to 100000 have already
been paid and that there still remains IN
the soclety's hands, ss4e. 900 from the sale
of that crop. The court disallows the So
ciety's claim to this s346o00. holding that
all reasonable outage or agents COM
missions and expenses had been met by
the 100000 previously assessed. The tals-
ing cognizance of the testimony produced
to show that the Burley Tobacco and In
surance company Is about to build large
chain Of warehouses with the s346.00o IN
litigation, and thereby irrevocably com
NIT the same to its own use. the court
holds that the immediate appointment OF
receiver for the funds from the 19OS-o7
pool Is necessary to prevent the aliena-
tion of the money from the growers who
pooled in the 1sos-o7 crop.
Circuit Judge Benton tonight appointed
Lee s. Baldwin and Rufus Lisle OF Win
chester receivers for the Burey Tobacco
society pools of the 1906-07 crops. Bald
win is a jeweler and was formerly coun-
ty clerk Lisle is In the lumber business