Page:The History of the Standard Oil Company Vol 2.djvu/191

 Judge Spear, the chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, saying: "Decisive steps will be taken at once not only to release the Standard Oil Company from any relations to the trust, but to terminate the entire trust." But there were "practical difficulties" in the task. The company pleaded for a "temporary recognition," and he asked an interview where he could explain the situation. This was granted, and on the 16th of March Mr. Kline explained to the judges in chambers, to Mr. Watson, and to his successor in office, the situation of the company. The trustees had all but seven shares of its stock. Trust certificates had been issued for these ten years before. The Standard Oil Company did not know who held these certificates, and could only know through the trustees, therefore the trust certificates must be transferred back, the owners hunted up, and each one induced to make an exchange. A system must be devised for doing this. Anybody could see this would take time. The court was friendly in the matter, and Chief Justice Spear gave to Mr. Kline an informal note granting an extension. "The court is not disposed to change its order at this time," the chief justice wrote, "but, so long as those in control appear to be engaged, as now, in an honest effort to dissever the relations of the company with the trust, and liquidate and wind up the affairs of the trust, the court will not be disposed to interfere." Thus time was gained.

While Mr. Kline was securing time, the trustees were pushing a liquidation scheme. On March 11 the following notice was mailed to all holders of Standard Oil Trust certificates, and was published in a newspaper in each state where a Standard Oil Company had been organised:

A special meeting of the holders of Standard Oil Trust certificates will be held at the office of the trust, Number 26 Broadway, in the City of New York, on Monday, March 21, 1892, at eleven o'clock, for the purpose of voting upon a resolution