The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1857-03-17
IFor the Journal.
The Straight Line Railroad.
Continued from yesterdays Journal [
, mn EsU0,U- Citizens:

IL ~
tations, and base destinations would lead you
10 believe that there was corrupt combina.
ton, collision, and fraud on the part OF Mr.
smith and myself, in the procuraton Of the
contract for building the Straight Line Rail-
road. | feel it to be duty, regardless of the
proprety of the declaration in this connection. |
to say in the most emphatic language, that
through all my intimate intercourse with Mr.. |
Smith, during the last four years, | have had |
most abundant opportunity to test him, and l
have never found one, in whose uprightness
and integrity, and in whose high sense of hon |
honor, have learnt to place more implicit
confidence. Ny intercourse and business have
been intimate both with his accuser and the
accused, and | assure you that Mr.. Smith, is
as incapable OF meanness, duplicity and fraud.
as his aSsa!ant is of manlinesS, honor, truth
fulness, or public spirit except where his in
terests lead him to make show OF Ia.
A simple statement of my connection with
the contract will be sufficient to exhibit to
you the malignity and falsehood of the impu-
tations cast upon Mr. Smith and myself, by
man. who has made himself, by the Office he
has assumed at the instgations Of others,
public slanderer of his neighbor and former
friend. never sought the contract, nor ever
had any thought Of entering upon such bus
mess, till it was proiIered TO me by others,
and urged upon me by many of the leading
friends of the road, as the surest, if not the
only means, Of securing the completion OF
the roac. was induced to take it, from the
conviction that upon me, almost exclusively,
would rest the labor of raising the means
/ from the assets Of the company to build the
road; and that in an enterprise where | had
so great an interest. should necessarily spend
Il great portion of my time in experimenting
1t, and managing its interests. And these
things | thought | could perform better as
chief contractor than as an officer of the COM
Ipany. And, moreover, am free to say, that
| | thought, IS | had by my own exertions got
up the read; and it was by my own uncoI1-
lpensated labor, expected to get WAYS and
means to carry it on. that il any profit was 10
he made by the contract, had as good title
to share i'm them Is any one. | took the con-
tract on the terms upon which the directory,
after due consultation, offered it to me.
took il at hazard, without any knowledge
lOr experience IN the business, and was so ig-
norant at the time, that | did not know
Whether | had good contract or a bad one.
certainly thought the price a safe one, even
under the most unfavorabe circumstances, or
would not have had it at all. No one could
be found to take it on lower terms. After
got it, ! had no wish to monopolise it, for
divided it into sixteenths and invited all who
wished to take share in it, to join Inc.
disposed Of FIVE sixteenths, and would have
gladly sold twelve sixtecnths to any persons
who could have brought capital, credi; or skill
TO the company Of contractors. | have offer
ed shares in it, wherever | thought | could
induce any substantial men to join me, for the
purpose of bringing strength and means to the
contractors. am very sorry to say that
with all my skill at summing up figures, and
making good show for q bargain l have been
unable to convince any one, that there was
any profit in the bargain, where Mr.. Ingle, by
the grossest Measurements and lalacies has at
tempted to make you believe | was to make
| Millions and that by dishonest betrayal o.
of the trust which your confidence in me as
a man of business, and az a neighbor, had con
fded to my keeping, and by downright
, ,swindle of the company. The man who
, makes such statements stabs at me with an
, assassn's attempt and would betray you to
your ruin to serve his personal aims.
/, Ignorance of the terms Of the contract, is
now plead by this traducer Of his neghbors
} and concealment Of its conditions is charged
upon me, as reason why these cOnspirator.
= against the Straight Line Railroad have SLEPT
for three long years over this tremendous and
startling fraud. This is prctensc-as wide
D of the truth as his other assertions. On NY
: Tetdrn from Indianapolis, after signing thu
= contract, found statements OF the cOntrac
in tie newspapers of this city. accom- D ed b
congratulations to the public on consumma
t ton Of the negotiation, which it was suppos
. ed was to insure the completion of the road
All who met me IN the streets, expressed thei
qualification that the contract was signed
> Many accounted their stock doubled In val
nc by the evsnt. TO all, the price per mile
and the terms Of payment were known; MOI
:: has there been any public document, whose
: terms were better known TO those who wish
: ed TO know them, than the conditions of thi:
A., contract Or, if there was any one igno.
- rant Of it, and wished to warn the public o
: the fraud 1t concealed. By paying two dollar,
b to the clerk. he could have got a copy, and
,f published it in the newspapers.
. But it is bodness in deception that viii
be difficult for you to credit, for Mr.. lngle tC
c pretend ignorance and concealmcnt in regard
> to this contract, when | tell you that he has
G discussed its terms with me frequently. ex
. hibtinS as intimate acquaintance with it a
| hid; and two years ago, with the aiIecta
} ton OF sincere friendship. he to me
n and earnestly urged me, 10y considerations fol
O my own credit. to abandon the contract, fol
i it would surely break me, and involUs me il
ruin. This same gentleman, now roundly
asserts, after having advised its abandonment
:, that he had no suspicion that it could b.
abandoned when we pleased; and the con
tract that two years ago, was utterly to ruiz
s me by its disadvantagcous terms, is now t,
$ ruin the Company by the enormous profits
a am to make from it. This iellow-citizens
e may appear to you incredible inconsistency
) 1t is so to those who do not penetrate the de
o sign; but that design is consiStent-alwayi
II one and the same thing--to stop the Straight
Line Railroad-whch is his sovereign 'rem
edy" for all that afilicts him in body an(
n soul