Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1866-04-25

q
suspended and thrown into confusion, all
the unfinished contracts sppertaining TO
the construction Of the road were aban- :
d6ned. Many of those contracts had
- been taken by stockholders, whose sub
scriptiOns had 10 be credited with,
10 some cases all, and, in others I
O. part OF the consideration money
3 Many OF those incomplete contracts
O. were forfeited; but the stipulated
RS price Of the work charged up % eonstruc-
ton account With but few Of those con- :
tractors have the company made any 4,
n, settlement aud SIS the most OF Them are
81 dead or have left the State, or their con- G
o. tracts with the amount Of work done
% thereon are now forfeited, the company =
will never be called on for settlement. !
a This will account, in great measure, Z
for the discrepancy between the amount o
of money received, together with the as c
ss certained outstanding debts OF the coni- 7
- pauy, aud the ascertained amount in $
IN vested in the road.
4r Statement No / shows the actual cash 4
receipts and expenditures Of the company Z
of for each year, from November, 1852, 10 g
November, 1861, with an aggregate for S
81 the four ensuing years. The receipts and Ia
,r expenditures for those four yeans were in u
Confederate money; the receipts de- q
ie rived entirely from the sale OF iron and Il
st other materials which had become dis q
7 placed, damaged and exposed 10 loss by 81
J the disasters Of war. q
Statement No. 2sh0ws amount of stock e
e subscribed amount forfeited. and, as Il
f near as We could ascertain, the amount !a
- that has been paid on subscriptions- TIL
: which, less the amount paid on forfeited D.
stock, that is 10 say $40, sos IS, is the ;
! amount with which the company is at Il
present chargeable. pl
. / Statement No. 5 shows a general ex- y
hibit of the financial condition of the az
company. OF the amount stock sub y
ri ffssaeH HHnrarr
the condition that the route Of the road az
should cross Red river at OF near the y
T Cut OF, about thirty miles below a'
I Fulton. The future payment Of this Ia
: amount depends upon the said condition !"
u being compiled with by the company. DC
= OF the amount Of SOLO, under ca
. head of "bills receivable - in our
opinion only about one half could now be | DC
made, by reason Of the death and failure th
{ in business Of most Of the payers. ot
The real estate - which is estimated OF
at SIS, 500. consists Of land purchased by "a
and donated to the company at various D
times along the route of the road. These le
v lands are estimated at value based upon iu
= the probable construction OF the road. If Isl
2 the road should be abandoned or the Siu
! prospects ofits being built become doubt A iAal
! ful and uncertain, the valuation would h'
] be reduced 70 a very small amount. But M
- if the road should be built, We are deci-
dedly Of the opinion that they would be co
worth considerably more than we now WI
estimate them. re
In regard to the item Of cash on hand tn
on the 10Th Nov. 1855, We have to say MI
that that amount is in Confederate money {
and "a a matter Of course worthless. A. hit
We have reported above, the transactions WI
I Of the company during the period Of the $40
war, which were confined mainly to sell prs
ing its property which had become dam OF
aged and exposed by the disaster OF war, pa
flrs4 fr4Inlfrirraga ffr LllE
Company were conducted upon the basis cia
Of Confederate msney and with the me
means thereby acquired some so. 900 Of ma
the ecompany's liabilities we're discharged. pa'
In regard to the present material con De
I ditiOn Of the road, We have 10 FAY /: ! me
I That prior to the war, the whole route 1u'
1 Of the road from the Mississippi TO the IN
Z Red river, embracing distance Of one IA
I hundred s udhDy-fve miles, with the eX- DlIl
ceptiOn Of about sixty miles In various pro
gaps, was cleared and gTubbed 100 feet VaI
wide, and graded. OF the route from All
Camden 10 the Mississippi river, 50 miles lani
were cleared grub5ed and graded, and OhS
seven miles Of track laid across the Mis- anu
sissippi river bottom. All the trestie ecu
work on the road, together with the track Nlhi
Of miles has been utterly destroyed ecu
But the grading has not been materially sdIu
damaged on the contrary, having been pc
protected by a thick underground, has SAID
been admirably preserved; ; and the only cert
expense thst would have to be incurred bou
10 prepare It for being laid, would be that one,
OF clearing away the growth Of bushes ton
and shrubs-with the exception Of about pan
i've miles across the Nli=sissippi bottom dou
which will have to be raised about two law
feeU-it not having been built high 1 IA
enough originally. Of q
We herewith submit that part Of the Gov
report OF tie President of the Board of islat
Directors made 10 November, 1851 hav- ing
rEfaFarpA - fna ion ff fhn
subscription on the part Of the State OF was
some %, 900 acres Of land under act Of ann'
the Legislature OF 1860, for which the ! ing
Governor refused 10 execute a deed to the was
company. 1t meets all the questions in quel
vOlved fully and completely, and we sub oeio
nit it without comment: Asse
OFFICE ". o. & r. T. r. r Co., IN
CAMDEN, AK, March 5th, 1855. ! ton
On the sth day Of November, 1861, func
made application in writing, to Gov. 4 tain
Rector, for a deed to the Swamp Lands pret
In the Champagnollc District; a. the tory
same time rendering him q certificate OF | broa
stock for the full amount, at which said venl
lands are estimated by the Audi chal
tor, 10 which application received the MOD
following reply: legis
LITTLE Rock Nov eth, is6l com
Sir: In reply TO your communication out
Of yesterday, requesting deed for the our
lands granted TO the Mississippi, Qua char
chita and Red River Railroad, by gait,
act Of the General Assembly approved 40 Z
10th OF January last have 10 inform this
YOU that by Ordinance of the State Con- ture
ventiOn, adopted 2Sth MAY, 1851 the the
said lands situated in the ChampagnOle mUc
District were appropriated as part Of the Of Il
revenue OF the State for Military purpO- Stat
ses the said Ordinance declaring that for.
the proceeds arising from the sale thereof, SUPP
shall constitute a trltst ytll1ld subject TO Of III
be appropriated by the General Assem- Cow
bly, etc. etc. The Convention thus 600
% defGct0" exercising Legislative func- In Il
tons have imposed a restraint upon Ex- Stau
ecutive actiOn, which fOrbiGs the CNecu- land
tlon Of the deed appIied for. besides by exen
the act aforesaid granting the lands a wear
subscription OF the stock by the Governor held
il required, as q precedent act 20 invest pure
the company with inchoate title, or lion
equity, the legal rights remaining In the forte
State, until the deed was passed as pre- the 3
scribed by law. The communicates on -
presented, with a copy Of this reply, viii yeau
be placed on die, in the State depart void
ment, for future reference, in any act vent
that NAV be taken by the parties inter ubIl
ested: the certificate Of stock being supp
returned. nasss
Very respectfully lion
NJ. RECTOR, Gov. OF Arksusas ' 1loil'
Pres't OF ths n RRRCo. GOV,
Gov, Rector, it will be perceived bases yisio
his refusal upon the grounds, first, that tiUn
the convention has by ordinance adopted any
May 18th, 1851, appropriated the lands IN tract
the Chalnpaguuile District, az part Of the preu
revenue of the State, for war purposes, cOuv
constituting them with other lands, lOf ers
which the State by RESUMPTION OF its SOW must
ereigntv had an undefeasibe title trust the
fund; the proceeds Of the sale Of which then
were 70 be appropriated for the redemp- by al
tiou of the war bonds issued by the Chic
State, and thus imposes 8 restraint on STATE
executive aCti0n, aud secondly, the act stan,
granting the lands, subScrip- tract
tion Of the stock by the governor is re- pOHt
quired as precedent act 10 invest tie arer
company with inchoats title or equity, men
Tie legal right remaining 10 the State, OF
until The de,d was passed as prescribed adop
by law. These propositionsm must Of course stay
hang together, for If the act Of the assem- that
bly, vested q right in the rsiiroag c9p- had
pany 70 those lands, then the aoOnven- stiN
ton, nor any other power could dlvest the
the company OF its rights, without its factC
consent. The question then arises was as il
tbs grant perfect one, and complete or the
did The legislature fail 70 accomplish its stat,
purposes, and attempt to delegate 10 the conv
governor power which alone under the / am
could be exercised by them railT'
Was this grant Of these lands 20 the COM orac'
many, by act Of the legislature? If so sibis
That grant could only have been defeated or Of
by the governors interpasitson Of bis am
veto. The plain words of the act can talen
leave 10 doubt as 10 the intention Of the In
Legislature. 1t says appr
That the lands belonging 20 the State prom
Of Arkansas in the Champagnolle urge
swamp Land District, granted the State ii on
by act OF Congress, approved the 2Sth prom
1850 Dc and the sCbSs are whic
hereby granted 70, and invested Us stock that
in the Missi- sippi, Ouachita and Red the G
River Railroad Company, al the mini TO m
mum prices now established by law" ing 4
And the governor j. authorized and re- In
qlared TO subscribe for such amount OF this
stock in said company as Is equal TO the river
value, at said prices, Of all said landa iraYC