The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-03-22
GRUBB INDICATES
PROBABLE RULING
Alabama Consolidated Case
Argued in Federal Court
NO FORMAL ORDER YET
Indicated That He Will Refuse Offer
Made by Reorganization Commit
tee Unless Stockholders Are
Given More Time

| Attorneys Smith on behalf of Chair
man Hoadley and his associates asked
for so days extension in which they
might secure evidence to show that
the report of the appraisers as to the
value of the property was not high
enough that the offer of the reor-
ganization committee was too small,
and that the property would bring
more, and that the proposed sale to
the reorganization committee was con-
! trary to the best interests of many of
the stockholders and unsecured cred
itors.
| Attorney Bradley repeated his
charges that the alleged extravaganza
and mismanagement of President Hoad-
| ley was largely responsible for the
| bankruptcy of the company and Attor-
neys Smith answered that the question
before the court had nothing to do
with Mr.. Hoadley's business ability and
attacks on him We're foreign to the
| case, and had no bearing on the mat
| ter. The larger part of the arguments
were very technical. although friendly
| little sallies between opposing counsel
were numerous.
1t is generally believed that the
reasonable time" to be fixed by the
court will be 80 or 60 days. In his
comments on the case during the ar
guments the court indicated that the
values in the property were not suf-
ficient to authorize the court to re-
quire the purchasers to permit the COM
mon stockholders to be admitted now
l Int -,
they are at least willing to make
lbetter offer than the reorganization
Icommittee. which is not indicated.
| In the plan of sale which is under
| discussion and which will be handled
In the order to be issued by the court
the reorganization committee offers
to assume all mortgages and sinking
fund, to pay every unsecured creditor
! in full and to pay the cost of admin
| istration and take, over the property,
and therefore the plan of sale was the
| best that could be secured and should
/ be accepted.
| The reorganization committee of the
| bankrupt company is composed of
Joshua Levering. r. Lancaster Will
liams, John Shelton Williams, Henning
|
A. Perkins of Washington. 1t is claimed
| that the committee has in its possess
| sion 100000 shares of the preferred
stock of the bankrupt out of 1900 900
shares, and also controls a very sub
stantial majority of the common stock
That United States Judge william
I. Grubb will refuse the offer of pur-
chase made by the reorganization COM
| mittee for the properties and plants of
the bankrupt Alabama Consolidated
Coal and Iron company unless a cer-
| tain reasonable time, to be determined
| by the court, be fixed to permit the
remaining preferred stockholders, who
not as yet have come into the reor-
ganizatfon plans, to do so IL they de-
sire on the same terms in which the
remainder of the preferred stockhold-
ers have entered. was the action In
dicated by the judge from the bench
| yesterday during the day as attor-
neys' arguments in the case were being
made.
No order was made by the court yes
terday and 1T Is understood that none
will be made until Attorney Lee c.
Bradley, for the trustees, communicates
with the reorganization committee in
| Baltimore, and receives instructions
mittee agrees to the position as indi-
tcated by the court, then 1t is assumed
| that the order will be issued AS it
will take probably the larger part of
a day to draw up the order, it is prob
able that If it is issued it will be done
late today or perhaps some time Nom
day.
The case consumed almost the en-
| tire day in federal court yesterday,
attorneys for opposing litigants max
| ing long and extended arguments be-
fore the court. A. d. and e. G. Smith,
representing former President Joseph
Fl. Hoadley of the Alabama Consoli-
| dated; Mr.. Bradley, representing Har-
| ry w. Coffin, the trustee. and the re-
orga nization committee. made the prin-
cipal arguments of the day. Percy,
Benners & Burr, representing the En-
pire Coal company and other unsecured
creditors also made arguments. These
arguments were to a large extent con-
| tinuations and elaborations of the ar
guments made In the same case by the
same attorneys before the court last
| Saturday.
| The question before the court is the
acceptance or the refusal of the offer
| of purchase made by the reorgani-
zation committee to Mr.. Coffin and ap-
proved by him. Mr.. Bradley took this
side of the case.