Statement of the Case. Early in 1890 the Rock Island Company determined to connect its lines from Chicago to Council Bluffs with its southerly line to Colorado Springs by constructing a bridge across the Missouri River at Council Bluffs and a railroad from that terminus, by way of Omaha and South Omaha and Lincoln to Beatrice, Nebraska, thereby shortening its line from Chicago to Denver and Colorado Springs; and the St. Paul Company joined in the undertaking in order to extend its line from Council Bluffs on to Omaha and South Omaha. Acting in concert the two companies caused a corporation to be created under the laws of the State of Iowa by the name and style of the Nebraska Central Railway Company, with power to build a bridge across the river at Omaha and one or more lines from that city west. Congress granted to this corporation the necessary franchise for the bridge. 23 Stat. 43. Preliminary surveys and estimates were made which showed that the entire cost of the bridge and tracks to South Omaha would be about two and one half million dollars. In February, 1890, the presidents of the St. Paul and Rock Island Companies visited New York for the purpose of arranging for the construction of the proposed work, when the Pacific Company requested them to suspend operations, and proposed to make a trackage arrangement with them by which they could use the bridge and tracks of the Pacific Company between Council Bluffs and South Omaha for their terminal facilities in Omaha and South Omaha, and the continuous line desired by the Rock Island Company could be completed. By direction of the president and at least two directors of the Pacific Company, its chief of construction and two of its directors obtained a meeting with the presidents of the St. Paul and Rock Island Companies and agreed with them upon the terms of the contracts in question. From the memoranda then made by the chief of construction of the Pacific Company the contracts were subsequently drawn. They were examined and approved by the general solicitor of the company at Omaha. The executive committee of the board of directors of the Pacific Company, at a meeting on April 22, 1890, at which six of the seven members of that committee Statement of the Case. were present, (five in person and one by proxy,) considered and unanimously voted to approve of the contracts and authorized the president to execute them. The custom of the secretary had been not to specify in the notice of the meetings of the executive committee the subjects to be considered, and the notice of this meeting did not state that the subjectinatter of these contracts would be considered. The member of the executive committee who was absent and not represented was a government director. At the annual meeting of the stockholders of the company held April 30, 1890, at which more than two thirds of the stock was represented, these contracts and the action of the executive committee thereon were considered and resolutions passed by an unanimous vote of that stock, approving and ratifying the contracts and the action of the committee authorizing their execution. The call of the annual meeting did not state that the subject-matter of these contracts would be considered, but that certain other subjects would be, and that the meeting was for the selection of directors for the coming year and the transaction of any other business which might legally come before the meeting. The record of the meeting of the executive committee, April 22, 1890, reads thus: "The president submitted Vice-President Holcomb's letter No. 1139, dated April 18, 1890, enclosing an agreement between this company and the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Company, and an agreement between this company, the Omaha and Republican Valley Railway Company, the Salina and Southwestern Railway Company, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway Company, and the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway Company, dated May 1, 1890. "Whereupon, after consideration, it was, "On motion of Mr. Spaulding, "Voted unanimously, that the agreement submitted to the committee between this company and the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Company, granting trackage rights to the latter company over this company's lines between Council Bluffs, Omaha and South Omaha, for a period of Statement of the Case. 999 years from May 1, 1890, at a monthly rental of $3750, is approved, subject to the ratification of the stockholders, and the president is hereby authorized to execute the same on behalf of this company; "Voted, unanimously, that the agreement submitted to the committee, dated May 1, 1890, between this company, the Omaha and Republican Valley Railway Company, the Salina and Southwestern Railway Company, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway Company, and the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway Company, providing for the use of this company's lines from Council Bluffs to Omaha, including the bridge over the Missouri River and the lines of this company's Omaha and Republican Valley branch from Lincoln to Beatrice, Nebraska, and for the use by this company of the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway Company's lines between McPherson, Kansas, and South Hutchinson, Kansas, for a period of 999 years from May 1, 1890, and for the use of the line between the cities of South Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska, for a period of 999 years from October 1, 1890, at the rentals severally provided for therein, is approved, subject to the ratification of the stockholders, and the president is hereby authorized to execute the same on behalf of the company." The following are the resolutions severally adopted by a separate vote, of the entire stock represented, in favor of each : "Resolved, That the agreement between the company and the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Company, dated May 1, 1890, granting trackage rights to the latter company over this company's lines, between Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Omaha and South Omaha, Nebraska, a copy of which is herewith submitted, be and is hereby approved, and the action of the executive committee in authorizing its execution is hereby ratified, approved and confirmed. "Resolved, That the agreement between the Union Pacific Railway Company, the Omaha and Republican Valley Railway Company, the Salina and Southwestern Railway Company, the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway Statement of the Case. Company, and the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway Company, dated May 1, 1890, a copy of which is herewith submitted, granting to the latter companies trackage rights over this company's lines from Council Bluffs to Omaha, including the Omaha bridge, and the lines of this company's Omaha and Republican Valley branch from Lincoln to Beatrice, Nebraska, and providing further for the use by this -company of the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway Company's line between McPherson and South Hutchinson, Kansas, and the line from South Omaha to Lincoln, Nebraska, on the terms therein provided for, be and is hereby approved, and the action of the executive committee in authorizing the execution thereof is hereby ratified, approved and confirmed." At this time the whole number of shares was 608,685, and 437,376 shares were voted. It is not disputed that the board of directors and the body of the stockholders of the other corporations, parties to the -contracts, took proper action to authorize and ratify the execution thereof by their respective corporations, and that the formal execution of the contracts by the parties to them was sufficient. The preamble to the Rock Island contract described the several railways owned by the parties, and recited that the Rock Island Company had become a domestic corporation of the State of Nebraska, and proposed to extend its railway from its terminus at Council Bluffs to a connection with its leased line, the Chicago, Kansas and Nebraska Railway, at the city of Beatrice; that the parties to the contract believed that the interests of all would be promoted by using for a part of said extension the main tracks of the Union Pacific Railway Company, in the cities of Council Bluffs and Omaha, the bridge over the Missouri River and that portion of the Omaha and Republican Valley Company, owned by the Union Pacific Company, between Lincoln and the point of junction at the city of Beatrice; by a lease from the Rock Island Company to the Union Pacific Company of a portion of the railroad controlled by it, between McPherson and Statement of the Case. Hutchinson, Kansas, a distance of about thirty miles; and a lease of the right of the Union Pacific Company to operate its trains over the road which the Rock Island Company was about to build between the cities of South Omaha and Lincoln. The contract provided: "The Pacific Company hereby lets the Rock Island Company into the full, equal and joint possession and use of its main and passing tracks, now located and established, or which may be hereafter located and established, between the terminus of such tracks in the city of Council Bluffs, in the State of Iowa, and a line drawn at a right angle across said tracks within one and one half (11) miles southerly from the present passenger station of South Omaha, in the State of Nebraska, including the bridge on which said tracks extend across the Missouri River, between said cities of Council Bluffs and Omaha; connections with Union Depot tracks in Omaha, the side or spur track leading from its main tracks to the lower grade of the Pacific Company's sidings and spur tracks in Omaha, and such extensions thereof as may be hereafter made; side tracks in Omaha on which to receive from and deliver to the Rock Island Company freight that may be handled through the warehouses, or switched by the Pacific Company; the connections with the Union Stock Yards tracks in South Omaha, and conveniently located grounds in South Omaha, on which the Rock Island Company may construct, maintain and exclusively use a track or tracks, aggregating three thousand (3000) feet in length, for the storage of cars and other purposes, for the term of nine hundred and ninety-nine (999) years, commencing on the first day of May, in the current year; for which possession and use the Rock Island Company covenants, promises and agrees to pay to the order of the said Pacific Company, monthly, during the continuance of said term, the sum of three thousand seven hundred and fifty (3750) dollars," and a certain portion of the expense incurred in maintaining and operating the property between Council Bluffs and South Omaha, and of the assessments and taxes levied thereon in proportion as its wheelage should be to the entire wheelage |