The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-10-17
HUDSON MONOPOLY
CHARGED TO MORSE
Manhattan Navigation Go. Sues
for ST, 100000 Under
Sherman Law.
"FIGHTING SHIPS" ALLEGED

The distance that Charles w. Morse
his financial prestige since he left Atlanta
penitentiary two years ago shorn OF
every vestige of financial power is in
dicated in a Sherman law damage suit
filed against him In the United States Dis
trict Court yesterday, II charges him with
being the head OF the conspiracy to
mopopohze freight and passenger traffic
on the Hudson River.
Mr.. Morse is charged with almost having
contaminated this ambition by means OF a
consolation Of the Hudson Navigation
Company. Of which he is president; the
Citizens Steamship Company. controlled
by the Hudson Navigation Company; the
New Jersey Steamboat Company and the
Murray Line. The only defendants men
toned in the complaint. however. are
Morse and the Hudson Navigation Com
pany.
The plaintiff in the suit is the Manhat-
tan Navigation Company. which operates
boats between this city and Albany. II
asks for treble damages of $1,000, 900.
alleging that Morse has done all in his
power to injure the company in order to
force 1t to sell out TO him.
John w. "a. Grim filed the complaint
been extensively identified with New IIa-
ven litigation and is now counsel for
Charles =. Melen.
The Manhattan Navigation Company
admits In its complaint against Morse
that since 1909 II has had agreements for
continuous routes with the New York Gen.
trail and Hudson River Railroad Com
pany. the Delaware and Hudson Com
pany, the Baltimore and Ohio Company.
the Southern Pacific Company which has
always been a Morse competitor. and the
Mallory and clyde lines. both OF which
were Morse properties at one time.
The Manhattan Navigation Company
charges Morse with running fighting
ships" between here and Albany to ruin
its business These fighting boats, the
complaint asserts. were scheduled and
. advertised to leave Albany and New York
simultaneously with the boats OF the de-
PENDANT company and were purposely run
at a loss so they could reduce their pas
senger and freight rates TO a figure that
the plaintiff company was unable TO meet.
Morse, the complaint says, told the
directors and some OF the employees of
the Manhattan Navigation Company that
he intended 10 keep on running the boats
until the plaintiff company had discon-
tinued it's business.
The ultimate aim OF the Morse con-
spiracy. the complaint alleges is to exact
unreasonable ana tNtOTtlundtt rates lot
passenger and freight traffic.
The financial coup by which Morse,
after leaving jail, won back the presi-
dency OF the Hudson Navigation Company
, was consummated last year When he was
deposed from the presidency OF the com
paay in 1910 he was succeeded by John
' W McKinnon Of the Assets Realization
| Company. McKinnon. his partner. g. r
Shaw. together with Lndenburg. Thai
mann Co. George II. Sheldon. and their
| associates. acquired 10000 shares OF the
stock OF the concern.
| In 1919. with these shares selling at 81
each, Morse offered McKinnon s25 a share
/ for the stock and the offer was accepted
! The Morse family owned $1,000 shares
OF the stock, which with other collatera
were deposited with Hayden Stone q
! Co. who also took the 10000 shares sole
| by McKinnon and agreed TO hold all tn,
securities until Morse paid the stipulated
! price.
Before Morse had paid a penny of It
| however. the board OF directors elected
him president and then retired.
officials Of the Hudson Navigation
Company said last night that there wa,
absolutely no foundation for the suit
II was said by an official OF the compsn,
that the freest competition possible exist
on the Hudson River and that there I!
business enough for all
a libel suit filed by the Hudson Navl
cation Company against the Manhattan
Line on account of damage done to theiI
new steamer Berkshire, which was ram
med while lying at anchor by the steamer
Iroquois OF the Manhattan Line, was sug
gested as the possible animus of thu
| suit.