The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1932-04-15
GIANT insult
!. UNIT IN HANDS
OF RECEIVERS
Utility Magnate Is One OF
Trio Appointed by Fed
eral Judge.
CANT MEET DEBTS
Action Against Great Middle
West Co. Is Biggest
in History.
CANT MEET DEBTS
By United Press

OAAAS1aQOs ARlA4 lus-GdHluel
sui, whose midas touch built the
$4,000, 100000 Middle West Utilities
Company, and two other Chicago
leading business leaders were ap-
pointed today as receivers for the
company, the principal unit in In
Sull's vast utilities network.
United States District Judge WAL
ter G. Lindley named insult, Charles
A. McCulloch, chairman of the
board of the John r. Thompson
restaurant chain, and Edward N.
Hurley, president of the Hurley
Manufacturing Company and for
mer United States shipping board
head
Naming of insult was possible.
since the petition for receivership
was friendly action brought by the
Lincoln Printing Company in which
insult is a large stakeholder. The
petition was based on a claim of but
$4,000.
Judge Lindley was sitting for
Judge James H. Wilkerson before
whom the petition was filed Thurs
day.
A bitter fight against the receiy-
ership, the largest ever ordered in
American business history, was
waged by dimunitive LAWYER. w.
A. Leopold, who said he represented
the owner of 100 shares of stock"
Tremendous Ramifications
Insisting that the receivership
would be the beginning of the
end" and that stockholders would
lose all they had because big
bankers will squeeze out the little
stockholders by this trick" Leopold
urged that the petition be denied.
Judge Lindley, who had heard
Attorney William Lattimer. repre-
sentlng the Middle West Company.
and attorney Thurlow G. Essing-
ton, Tor the Lincoln Printing Com
pany, explain that the company was
not IN position to meet its financial
obligations and was compelled to
ret1nance, refused to heed Leopold's
objections
Chaos and turmoil will result il
do not order the receivership.r
Judge Lindley said.
The tremendous ramifcations of
the company. which touch industry
at virtually every important indus
trial center on the continent. make
the receivership perhaps the most
important in the history of finance.
the floating debt of which aggre-
gates $500, 900. 900.
Action Long Anticipated
The action long has been antici-
pated as a means of conserving the
representations assets of the
holding concern which controls
properties estimated at. well over
two and half billion dollars in
| value.
Middle West Utilities itself is a
$500, 100000 firm. insult, whose opti-
mism the prospective receivership
would not dampen, fastened to as
sure investors, that condition of the
operating companies was excellent.
| despite poor economic outlook and
that only the investment concern
was affected.
Revenues of the three largest on
Grating companies, Commonwealth
Edison Company. Peoples Gas, Light
and Coke Company and Public Serv-
ice Company of Northern Illinois
have been maintained on a. high
level.
Refinancing Causes Trouble
Difficulties of the Middle West
Utilities arise, as the receivershiu
petition, pointed out, from refnanc-
ing. Similar action is expected for
1nsuu Utility Investments, Inc, and
Corporation Securities Company of
Chicago, Investments Trusts of the
insult interests and both large
holders of Middle West and other
insult securities.
The receivership petition asserted
the Middle West Utilities had bank
loans of S27.000,000, of which s24
100000 are demand loans no longer
protected by sufficient collateral. In
addition, S10,000,000 of a $40, 900 600
serial gold note issue comes due on
June l. Middle West securities
holders number about 100000 hold
ing 100000 shares of common
stock, priced at IS cents at Thurs
days close, and 100000 shares of
preferred stock.
Operate in 30 States
The vast interlocking structure of
the insult interests which the bril-
liant Chicago industrialist forged
out of hundreds of small units is
difficult even for the specialist in
finance to conceive. The concern
was founded in 1912 and grew in
giant strides with the growth of the
nation.
Operations were carried on in more
than thirty states and in well over
5000 separate communities. It's
customers number approximately
100000. There are eighty-fiye in
dividual public utilities in the group
including electric generating and
distributing companies. electric rail-
way systems, bus lines, pipe lines, ice
companies, textile units and steam
generating plants. In all, there are
119 subsidiary corporations.
Joliet Warden Transferred
WASHINGTON, April 15.-Major