Evansville daily journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1863-1866, 1866-01-30
slraIeht lime Rallroad.

To the Mayor, Council and Tar Payers
of Eraasville:
On the eve of an election, free discus
sion is both the privilege and duty of
American citizens We first wish to
know that we are right, and then, only,
to go ahead. propose to plainly state
the question upon which it is your right
to vote on next Monday, the 9th day OF
| February.
Some questions, well stated, stand in
very little need of argument.
The question upon which you are to
vote appears to be, in substance: Will
tax payers, BY their vote, authorize the
City Council to issue city bonds at per
cent, to the amount of $l50,000, to a
set of men-strangers TO them-calied q
"new company" who appear only by
Col. Jones as their attorney, and who
propose, If the city don't voluntarily is
sue these bonds, to recover them by Law,
as a debt already due them as the sue
/ cessors of the concern known as the
"Straight Line Railroad Company; and
who also propose, if the city voluntarily
hands over these bonds to them, not only
to pay, themselves, the old debt, which
they claim to % recoverable by Law, but
to give the city the benefit Of the old
Straight Line Railroad grade, and, fur
thermore, to do all in their power to as
sist the city, and all others who may sub
scribe stock in the concern, in building
a railroad to the Ohio & Mississippi Rail-
road, thus giving the city broad gusge
railroad from Evansville to Cincinnati,
provided, always, that the money can be
raised to build it.
This 10 the whole question, as / have
learned from the speeches and written
articles of Col. Jones. Attorney for the
New Company.
This is remarkable proposition, the
most remarkable / have ever kown to be
! attempted to be submitted to q vote of
the people, and / fearlessly assert that
il is nothing more nor less, whatever
may be Col Jones opinion of it, than
an attempt to transfer controversy be-
tween certain spectators aud the city
of Evansville for the recovery of these
same bonds, from the courts Of Law.
where they know they will be beaten, to
vote of the people, where, as they put
the case, they have very slight hopes of
winning / know that without treach-
cry or foul play on the side of the city in
this controversy, the city and the tax
payers are safe in the courts, where the
controversy has for years been pending,
and where, over and over again, the
questions raised have been deci ed in
favor of the city. Aud know equally
we'll, that If these same spectators on
our misfortunes should finally recover in
the courts, we shall have quite as much
chance of getting this road built as %
we vote them the bonds on the terms
proposed.
Permit me to define my position upon
| q question not necessary to be raised or
discussed in connexion with this elec-
ton, to wit: Whether or not we ought
TO build the Straight Line Railroad from
Evansville to the Ohio d Mississippi
Railroad; and then, to show you plainly
why the building of this rival line is not
at all connected with the proposed vote
Of the city on next Monday.
Having assisted in building the Ev-
ausgille and Crawfordsville Railroad,
| and in negotiating its railroad bonds,
| which are now out TO the amount of
i $40, 600 per mile, for the 100 miles be-
tween Evansville and Terre Haute, l
cannot, nor can ths city of Evansville,
| which enjoys, to the largest extent, the
| advantages of the Evansville and Craw-
ferdsville Railroad, in honor, assist in
the construction of rival line, go long
| as it is tolerably certain that the con-
struction of the rival line would render
insolvent and destroy the value of the
said mortgage bonds of the Evansville
/ - j C.o rorJcrslIa Ra;lrnad uhioh aauId
not have been built to this day, but by
| the negotiation of these bonds.
When in the original inception of the
Straight Line Road to Indianapolis and
| Cleveland, took stock in it to the ex.
tent of my means, it never entered into
| any of our heads that the mortgage
bonds of the Evansville and Crawfords-
4 Vile Railroad could be thereby made in
solvent Before wrote my pamphlet
| against the mal-administration of the
affairs of the Straight Line Railroad, and
after the attempted fraud of the mana
| gers in converting that great enterprise
into a besgarly broad guage branch OF
the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad, such
had been the breakdown in railroad
credit, and such the common experience
| of railroad earnings in the West, that
became convinced that the construction
of this broad guage branch OF the Ohio
| and Mississippi, whilst it could do Evans
vile no good, would destroy the securi-
ties of the Evansville and Crawfords-
| vile Railroad, and probably render the
maintenance oil the line in good and safe
i running order an impossibility without
calling upon stockholders for more mo-
ney to keep the line up. My subsequent
experience has convinced me that I
took q correct view of the situation,
and what did, impelled by this view
has more than Justified by subse-
quer experience. =
/ ing thus accounted for my past
acf in this connection, go on to
make good the assertion that the build
ing or not building this broad gauge
branch, or any other gauge railroad
hence to tho Ohio and Mississippi Rail,
road, is not in controversy in the elec>
ton fixed for Monday next positively
assert, however it may look to Ron-
professional railroad men, Col Jones
among the rest, that the subscribing or
not subscribing of the proposed $150,000
by the city, can make no possible differ
ence one way or the other, and there
fore assert with esAal positiveness, that
the only question to be decided on aext
Monday is, will the city vote away $780,
600 without consideration, without fee or
reward, or the hope thereof, or will it
not Whether, in other words, in the
absence of any money offered by any
other individual or corporation to assis, ,
to build this road, and under the GER
tainty that any securities-bonds or
mortgages-that the road itself can pos
aibly make could not be sold ct any
! urice, the city of Evansville will volun-
teer to pay out $3.50 600 to these specula