Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1867-08-08
RAILROAD WAR;"
An EiecfiOneering Dodge Of President
Burns

Burns.
NASHVILLE, August 7, 1S67.-For some
weeks past, men in the proxy hunting"
employment of Mr.. Burns, with rolls of
greenbacls" in their pockets, have been
through Franklin county paying the five
per cent. dividend TO stockholders: and
more recently the Auditor of the road
paid visit to Murfreesboro on a similar
errand.
Such conduct on the part Of Mr.. Burns,
to secure votes, is an insult to the stock
holders, and especially 50, when it has been
openly and publicly charged, that if such
dividend was paid, the bonds of the COM
pany purchased by the old organization
for the sinking fund, would have to be sold
or hypothecated to raise the money to pay
it with, and this charge has never been by
Mr. Burns or any one else denied
How apparent TO all are the motives of
Mr. Burns in sending out his officers en-
such business when it is known that ali
respectable corporations, whose President
and Directors are possessed of proper self
respect and dignity, have but one mode of
procedure in such matters, and that is:
When dividend is declard to advertise it
in the papers, as payable on or after a
Why has not Mr.. Burns advertised this
dividend, and placed all the stockholders of
the road upon the same footing?
II takes 100000 to pay five pei. cent.
dividend on the capital stock of the com
pany, yet with no money earned by him-
self, Mr.. Burns leaves the debts of the road
unpaid sacrifices the bonds of the company
which we're earned by the former manage
ment of the road, and to influence votes
for himself adopts this unprecedented land
to all sensible stockholders) dishonorable
mode of soliciting their support.
We await Mr. Burns next move. His
uRdenied intention to attempt to vote in the
the next election the 1904 shares of re-
tired stock, earned and purchased by the
management of others his declaration of
a dividend the funds to pay which are
realized by the sale of hypothecation of the
bonds of the company, and this last dodge
in paying that secret dividend, creates
curiosity on our part to know what he and
his directory will do next. Where, ask, is
that tremendous amount of money which
Mr.. Burns in his "garbled comparative"
claims to have made since he took active
charge of the read? If you have made so
much money why sacrifice our bonds to pay
dividend amounting to only 100000?
Can you, Mr.. Burns, expect stockholders
under such a pressue of facts, to support
you longer, when it is shown that you have
wasted all your boosted earnings and are
now Tenching upon or sacrificing the sub
stance of the company Proxy.
Pcs. Since writing the above, parties
not in the interest of Mr.. Burns have APP
piled at the Office of the company for their
dividends, and payment was refused. Will
Mr.. Burns please speak out and tell rs
why it is, that he sends out his officers
along the line ofthe road to pay this secret
dividend to his friends while others who
apply at the Office of the company cannot
get dollar and will he answer, whether,
while he refuses to pay others, he has not
drawn his own dividend and may not the
same be asked as to Arts Brown and others
of his directory, and immediate friends?
Proxy.