The Portage County Democrat. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1863-04-15
sIsisiEs. ISRM sYor- X.-Ne: H. HOLE No. 472.

| uldielN went GOWN, so tlaG
| In 1857 they We're $31, AS 81 s
| . 1858 ea- 1920 So
1861 " 1895 03
| The increased tolls were mainly put on i'm
1857 and 1858-business driven from the Ca.
nal, and tolls dropped down from $50, ,963 IA
10 $1O,395 03.
/ The Canal Company attribute this to the
compctition of Railroads-that the Piftsburg
and G evelapd, and Piitsburg, Fort Wavne
and Chicago roads took the freight. That
this is not the cause is evident from the fact
that those Roads were completed in 1852, and
the receipts of the canal increased until 1857,
when the high tolls were put on, and from
that time they have dwindled to nothing In
the freight of coal on the canal and on the
r. road, they made discrimination of.twen-
ty-seven cents ton in. favor of the Railroad
The Canal, of course could not stand against
such discriminating duties.
Having got the Canal in their power and
by discriminating duties broken it dowI,, the
Canal Company in 1858, applied to Judge
Hitchcock for legal opinion, whether they
could not shut up such parts of it as they
thought best. and take tolls on the balance
II gave written opinion that they could not
and that if they shut up any part of it, or
suffered any part to be so out of repair as to
| be unnayigable, for twelve months, they
wolld forfeit their charter. Next followed
| petition to the Legislature at the last session,
/ asking law to authorize the sale of the Ca-s
nal and the shutting up of such parts of it as
the directors might think proper. This proc
| j ct met with no favor at the hands of the
! Legislature. J ac
From these facts, abundantly proven, it is
| clear, to my mind, that the object in view by
the Railroad company, from the time of their
getting control of the Canal in 1854, has
| been 20 break it down and get its business for
| the Railroad. Having accomplished this,
| they come forward aeHl want to buy W hat they
say is worthless. If it is worthless it is hard
to see why they want to buy it.
The object to me is plain from the testi-
mony. By the repcrt of the Canal company,
january Sth, 1859, the company had $685.
713 ;54 egsz ~
BY Joint Resolution of the Legislature,
passed April II, 1858-"7he Aftor7,sg- Gen
e7ab aoas required to employ such measures as an
his Judgment may be best, to compel the Penn
| sytUanid and Ohio Canal Company to make
dgide,atl to the stockholders OF said company of
all funds in their hands, o7. ltler their control,
| belonging to said company--tqnd that he Be re-
qutrea to collect such part thereof as may belang
| TO the State Of Ohio, except such proportion Of
said fund, together aoitb the proba6le amount of
recenue to be de5iued from said Canal the COM
ing setson, as may be requisite for actual re-
pairs foT 0'ae year.'' aa5izg
Instead of paying over said funds, as re-
! quired by said Joint Resolution, the Canal
Company report, in january, 1859 We
haze declared dividend of one per cent, and
placed the residue of said funds, subject to CALL
| on interest" .sa sta
This q residue of said fund'' of $96, ,713 54,
one-third of which belonged to the State of
Ohio, had been loaned, in various sums, and
at different times, commencing in 1866, to the
Railroad Company, and has never. been paid
4 back. In January 1863, the Canal Company
! had on hand, including this loan, SIP, 139 %,
one-third of which, $37, ,379 IA, belonged to
the State. The State stock was sold in No
/ vember. the price paid, and transfer made in
December, and in January a dividend de-
i clared, and the dividend belonging to the
State paid over to the Railroad, or rather APP
1 piled to cancel the debt of the Railroad to
4 the Canal. The Railroad thus got the canal,
and $37, ,379 IA for $35, ,OoG. or the Canal for
1 nothing, and $3.50 IA for takinn it. -.
4 1 have now, without fear or favor, dis
4 charged my duty in laying the facts before
4 the Senate and the people. PersonGlIy,I / am
4 Indifferent what disposition you may make of
4 the matter, but THE PEOPLE will pronounce
! verdict upon it. They will inquire what is
4 done with the money drawn from their hard
4 earnings by the tax collectors, and you can
: not smother the facts, nor stife the inquiry.