Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1856-04-09
From tse Plsi7adslpa&o Lnopav
Insssessing Correspondence-Pen
Railroad
LEraER no. III.

or. George Bo!din. John 7. Smith, Edmund
Deacon. aud others: Esteemed Friends
u ben I took niy seat as q Director o. tAa
Pennsylvania Railroad Company, | carried
with me the kindliest feeling towards the
President and each meIubeF of the Board.
and although ge differed il opinion in re!a
Son 10 measures, we still maintained d social
and friendly intercourse mp to the day Of the
last election | hal not the slightest suspi-
-ioa that Iny apparently ki'.d friends were
Iaeoitating evil in their hearts against me. /
should as soon have thought of finding snakes
concealed amongst the flowers in my own gar
den, rs of finding anything but an honorable
and manly bearing among my colleagues.
You have asked me for the causes Of this IN
expected result 1t ia difficult to ascertain
she motives of men. l Gp left altogether to
conjecture.
will point out souie of the most proui-
rent measures in relation TO which | differed
frouI my fellow members and crossed the path
81 the President This course mag have
ahafed him and led TO the idea Of secretly ap-
plying the - English Proxies" l observed
in the President, as l thought. strong dis
position "a take the whole burden of the bust
ness on his own shoulders. And the Board
seemed very. willing to indulge him. This l
did not like, l had seen Presidents Of other
institutions, OF more millions than ours. whose
nod was n law, break down under the accu-
nuated weight and scatter the millions where
scarcely any fragments could be found. !
was strongly opposed to the President contra
veDing the action of the Board. which have
known him to do, because, as | thought, it
sas treating the Board with contempt. l
was earnestly opposed, also. 10 his ordering
contracts to be made without the knowledge
Of the Board. which must draw thousands
from the treasury in their fulflment.
\ favorite doctrine amongst royalists is,
that the d" King can Do no wong" And
fsyorite dogma of railroad directors is, that
t!e President must be supported. But on one
occasion my colleagues actually became i'm
pregRated with q sense of independence. 1t
was a rare exhibition, and | must relate the
circumstances \ person residing on the
Allegheny mountains applied to the Board TO
purchase the old Mountain House, which had
been used TO accommodate passengers, before
the road over the mountains was completed.
it was then shut up and idle His object was
so remove 1t, and re-erect it on the top Of the
meuntain for a summer boarding house He
urged the Board to remove it for him at the
srpeHse Of the COMPANY, bnt the Board posi-
,irely refused After some further ncgotia-
tion the Board authorised the President to
eel him the house for S.. 900 he to remote
81 at MS owp erpease The President report
ed TO the Boari that he had sold it to him at
the price named, and on the stipulated condi-
zion. Some time after, perhaps two months,
IL came into my mind to inquire of the Treas
urer whether these five thousand dollars had
been paid. He said not, and also said that
he had Just paid two thousand dollars on ac-
count for ren,oripg said house / observed to
him that he knew the purchaser was to ren,Ore
q at his O1on erpenSe, and that he should not
have paid the bill He said it had been vouch-
cd by the Chief Engineer, but he would pay
no more of the same kind without an order
L,os the Board. Our laws expressly declare
that "All payments shall be made by orders
drawn upon the Treasurer. by direction of
she Board, sigued by the Secretary" At
the next meeting of the Board the subject was
introduced. | sisted what / had accidentally
discovered.
the Chief Engineer having learned that
those bills were in danger of being rejected,
sent communication to the Board. inform
inc US that the President had either before he
left for Europe, or after he had arrived there
ordered HIM 10 hare the house reaored and
Te-orectcd on the mo'Httdja J0r the purchaser
Certain persons had contracted to perform this
work for $1,000. The work was completed,
md he desired that the bills should be paid
Here was au instance of the President dtSre-
Gayding The action of tie Board. whilst it was
eth fresh in his mind and ordering a contract
so be made without the knowledge of the
Board. in the fulillment of which, thousands
Of dollars must be drGJCa from the Treasury,
and for purpose entirely irrelevant to the
business of the road Contracts might be
made in this way. by which hundreds of thou
sands might leak out. and the Board know
nothing Of it.
The Board was informed also, that the pur-
chaser was to execute a mortgage of the pre-
misses TO the Company. to secure the $1,000
and also the $4,000, making S12 600. In-
structions, / understand. we're sent from Eu
rope to the Solicitor. to secure this mortgage
But 1t has never been executed and probably
meter will be. The action of tI Board on
this question was that the bills be paid. and
the amount Be charged to the President iadi-
ridaaly. until further orders of tie Board
But alas for human fralties Just before
the President returned from Europe, my
worthy colleagues became extremely agitated
about this matter. fearing that the President
would Jcet hRrf at tire action of the Board,
and in spite,of my feeble powers a resolution
WAS passed oTderlng the 1000 dollars 10 be
charged to the Compaay aud the President
credited by said amount. / offered mv pro-
test against it, but although parliamentary.
my repentant friends would not permit such
reasons to mar the journal. Now you ask me
for the causes that prevented my election. 1t
may be possible that this matter may have
had some bearing upon ms defeat 1t would
seem TO me that it should have the contrary
effect. hope tina; one will suppose that
/ have the remotest idea that the President