The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1916-03-31

Editor Pennington Times
A few days ago one of the little
pamphlets, addressed ito the Stock
holders of the St. Joseph Lead Com
pany," and containing brief state
ment of the demands made on the
Doe Run Lead Co. and the st. Joseph
Lead Co., by Robert Holmes, relative
to 1859 shares Of the capital stock
Of the st. Joseph Lead Co., which in
1902, and for some time prior there
TO, was owned by the Doe Run Lead
Co. and held by the Treasurer and
other officers and directors of the Doe
Run Lead Co. "in trust" for the use
and benefit of said company, came to
my notice, and was startled and sur
prised by the unearthing of such a
daring and uncanney transaction as
is described in said pamphlet and at
tributed to the officers and directors
Of said companies.
The facts appear to be about as
follows: That toward the end Oh 0c-
tober, 1902, it became known that the
st. Joseph Lead Co. would shortly de-
clare a stock dividend of so per cent;
shat as the 1859 shares could, by
some cute manipulation, be bought by
certain individuals for $373,58O and
that, therefore, as these 1S,679 shares
would be increased to 28,018 shares
worth about $560,360, so it would be
possible to reap a profit of S186,7SO
for the manipulators at the expense,
injury and damage of the Doe Run
Lead Co., or the remaining stockhold-
ers thereof; that at the time of this
chicanery, October, 1902 ]. Wyman
Jones, C. B. Parsons, F. E. Camp,
Gust. Setz and D. A. Jones were di-
rectors Of the Doe Run Lead Co. and
also of the st. Joseph Lead Co., there
fore, had every opportunity of know
ing what was going to be done as to
the management of said companies;
that the sale Of the 1859 shares,
afore mentioned, was made in accor-
dance with a preconcerted plan,
through F. E. Camp, Treasurer, of the
Doe Run Lead Co., and transferred
to F. E. Camp, Gust Setz, D. A.
Jones, J. Wyman Jones and others of
the interested few in about equal
blocks; and that, as anticipated, early
in December, 1902, so per cent stock
dividend was declared thus increas-
ing the original 1859 shares to 28,-
018 shares and bringing the new own
ers a net profit of $3.50 shares worth
about $1S6,7S0, an increase that real
~ should have gone to the Doe Run
Lead Co., or its stockholders, had the
directors and officers done their duty
and protected the interests of their
company rather than cheat the inno-
cent stockholders to enrich their own
pockets.
These unearthings are among the
many that nowadays are coming to
light and much is due the peering and
discerning eye of one Robert Holmes
in uncovering and attempting to right
these wrongs, of years ago, that have
escaped unnoticed by the innocent, un-
suspicious stockholder. Although
about Is years have passed since this
piece of rottenness was perpetrated,
yet it is to be hoped that it is not too
late to compel restitution and rein-
bursement to the injured and damag-
ed parties.
Mr.. Holmes as stockholder of the
Doe Run and st. Joseph Lead Com
panies has demanded an equitable
restitution and reimbursement to the !
parties thus injured, Of which number
he is one. He made the legal demands
on the Board Of Directors of the COM
panies on November 23, 1915, de-
manding that they take the necessary
legal steps to require the derelicts, or