The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-05-28
MELLEN DENIES 
 KN0WL EDGE OF
 STEAMER DEAL

STEAMER UEAL New Haven, May 2s-Depositions for
 the defense in the suit of Miss Jennie R. Morse, sister of Charles w. Morse, on behalf of the minority stockholders,
 against the Metropolitan Steamship
 Company of New Jersey, in an effort to obtain a receiver for the company,
 were taken here today. The hear
 ing was resumption of that held in New York yesterday.
 The witnesses subpoenaed were for
 mer President Charles s. Mellen of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad; E. D. Robbins, former gen eraI counsel; Augustus May, treasurer; A. B. Clark, secretary and J. M. Toni hnsons general auditor of the com pany.
 Questions were put by MT. F'aulkes to MT. MelIen to which answers were given by the latter to the effect that
 directly or indirectly he had no knowl- edge that the New Haven road had
 owned stock of the Metropolitan
 Steamship Company nor did any sub sfdiaries Of the New Haven Company own any stock in that company. MT.
 Me1len added that to the best of his knowledge the New Haven road never
 had anything to. do with the affairs of
 luS SIodmSH1Q company.
 MT. Faulkes said that 1t appeared in evidence in the case that there were two Metropolitan Steamship Compan- les and that his questions were in tended to cover the one organized in 1908 and the other. Mo- 2 ,in March, 1910 Mir. Mel1en said his answers cov- cred both He had knowledge of only
 one company and, not carrying dates in his head, he judged it was No. 2 company. His only reason for having
 knowledge Of the formation of this company was the fact that, at the time, he thought he might have sone- thing to do with 1t atNa. later date. No Knowledge of Companies.
 shown certain schedules and exhibits relating to the formation of a company Mfr. Mellen said he knew nothing Of them. He reiterated that the New Haven road and it's subsidiaries had
 nothing to do with the Metropolitan Steamship Companies. MT. Faulkes referred to Incorporation of these com pAnses in New Jersey and said that
 he was leading up to the leasing Of certain steamers to the Pacific coast navigation company.
 Mir. Fau1kes asked MT. Mellen what interest the New Haven road had in Ethe New England Securities Com pa1y. -4 sssst
 "Nons that can recan.'' said Mr. DO you 7know- or me existence or that company?'
 Only from what I. have read in con- nection with this case.s'
 Do you know anything about the Chilmark Canpany?''
 sI do not.
 any of the funds Of the New Haven lroad or any of it's subsidiaries go into the securities of the Metropolitan Steamship Companies the New Eng land Securities Company, the Chi1mark Company or the Eastern Security Com pany of Maine ?''
 MT. Mel1en: NO, sir I do not see how it would be possible for any in vestment to have been made in the securities of those companies Fur thermore, I have no knowledge of any of those securities mentioned.'s That Steamship Deal.
 MT. Me11en said he was approached by several persons interested in the sale and purchase of steamers He had the impression that some men represented Charles W. Morse and the time was about the date that Mr Morse was sentenced. The offers and propositions came to naught and he dismissed the matter from his mind MT. Faulkes produced a letter writ ten by MT. Me1len on Jan. q, 1910, to Captain Gooda1l, declining an offer to rbuy the steamers Harvard and Yale for $1.500. 900. MT. Me1len was asked why Captain Goodau made the offer. He said that Captain Goodall had scheme for freight line on the west coast and that the proposi- ton was a large one He probably thought that some of the New Ha-
 ven's freight boats would suit him better than the Harvard and Yale and he probably thought that if the New Haven would buy the two big steam CTS from the receivers of the Metro politan Co. it would sell some freight boats.
 Didn't Favor Purchase His questions had to do with calls
 made upon MT. Mellen by Thomas McGovern. who was negotiating the
 sale of the two passenger steamers. and by Capt. Goodau, who was anx- ious to get steamers for the Pacific
 coast line. The former he met in New York and the latter in New Haven, being antrod1ced by vice-President Re5amin Campbell Mr. Lfttleton
 questioned at considerable length in an effort to refresh Mfr. Mellen'e mem ory as to just what was said during the calls Of both McGovern and Good all MT. Mellen denied that he was at any time favorable to the pur- chase of the Harvard and Yale. Mir. Me1Ien said that McGovern called on him several times and one occasion D. D. Robbins and Mir. Led yard were present when the proposi- ton Of selling the freight boats and the two passenger steamers was made. He said that his recollection was that MT. Robbins was requested to look into the mater and later ad- vised that legally 1t was not wise for the New Haven road to purchase these steamers. No advice was given in the matter of the purchase of other physical porperty, as this question did not come up.
 Mir. Iittleton: linen the letter
 written to Captain Goedan was the last thing you had to do with the matter ?'s
 .It was.'.
 Did you know that MT. Robbins, after advising rgearding McGovern,s s