Douglas daily dispatch. [volume] (Douglas, Ariz.) 1903-1961, 1927-11-16
FORDS DEFEND
100000 SUIT.
OF LELAND, Son

PONTIAS, Mich, Nov Is .lA9--Near-
ly two thousand stockholders scattered
throughout the country of the old
Lincoln Motor company, are plaintiffs
in a suit in chancery against Henry
and Edsel Ford involving approx
Inately $6,000,000, filed in circuit court
here today.
The suit, brought by Henry M Lee
land and his son, Wilfred c. Leland,
former president and vice president,
respectively of the Lincoln Motor COM
pany, under power of attorney obtain
ed from the stockholders, seeks reim-
bursement for losses alleged to have
been suffered at the time Henry Ford
purchased the Lincoln properties in
1922 at a receivers sale for $8000,000
The bill of complaint charges that
Mr.. Ford failed to keep verbal agree
ment to buy the outstanding stock of
the active stockholders This out
standing stock, according to the COM
plant, aggregated about $6,O0O,0O0 in
value.
Charging that but for the agree
ment made verbally with Mr. Ford,
they would have been able to effect a
organization of the company or to
have re-established its business on a
basis that would have assured the
payment fthe eompany's creditors,
and stockholders, the Lelands ask that
the stock of the new Lincoln Motot
company, now operated by the Ford
interests, be decreed held in trust for
the plaintiff stockholders.
The bill charges that after the new
company had been established and met
with extraordinary success" with the
Lelands in charge Of operations, the
Fords took the same from the direc-
ton and control of the Lelands" and
have since directed it and controlled
it themselves
They came into possession of a go.
ing concern, the fair value of which
was upward of $25,000,000," the COM
plant alleges.
The Lelands accuse Henry Ford of
having permitted it to be announced
in various newspapers and magazines
that he had voluntarily and as a mat
ter of generosity paid the creditors in
full. 2 The plaintiffs state that filing
of the suit was deferred because they
believed it was the intention of the
Fords to pay the stockholders as
agreed, and upon so doing, again to-
pretend shat said payment was an
act Of beneficence and generosity and
not pursuant to their agreement
The bill winds up with petition
asking that the Fords be required to
make full, true, direct and perfect
answers to all the charges it contains.
That an accounting be made of the
sums invested by the plaintiffs in the
old company.
That the stock of the new company
issued in consideration of the trans
fer.sof the assets of the old company
and now held by the Fords be decreed
to be held in trust for the plaintiffs. |
An accounting by the Fords of all
dividends received by them from the
new company, the dividends TO be
impressed with trust and decreed to
be held in trust for the benefit of the
plaintiffs.
That the defendants be required to
transfer the stock of the company to /!
the plaintiffs as the respective inter-
eSts of the plaiASiffS may appear in !
to their several investments, /
subject to the repayment by the plain
lifts of any sum in excess Of the sum
that may have been repaid to them !
o. that the stock may be sold un-
der the direction of the court and the I
proceeds be paid to the defendants in j
of advances made to them I
and the balance distributed among the !
plaintiffs proportionately to their in
terests.
That the Fords may be decreed to I
be personally liable to the plaintiffs IN;
the amounts found to have been in
vested by them respectively, with in /
terest at per cent.
Plaintiffs in the suit are represent
ed by Kenneth NJ Stevens and VIII /
liam Henry Gallagher, of Detroit.
Gallagher was chief council for Aaron
Sapiro, in the latter's million dollar
libel suit against Henry Ford, recently /
settled out of court {.
CHICAGO PASTOR KILLED