The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1868-06-04
OUR CHICAGO LETTER
Correspondence Of the Mani owoc TRIBUNEl

CHICAGO May, both 1868
The boat, twenty feet long, in which
Capt. Garrick and Prof LIE Gendre are
going to endeavor to cross the Atlantic,
has been finished and is on exhibition to :
day near the Lake street bridge. 1t is a
frail-looking little life boat and there is
little probability that extra passages on
it across the pond will ever command
very high figures. 8fskl8
The great races of the season are to
come off at Dexter Park on Monday all /
Tuesday next, between Fawcetts celebrat
ed stallion "Bashaw Jr." and Ed. Price S
Jim Hockey" bay gelding Both
horses have madegood time and are as close
match as any two horses in the United
States could. Such, at least, is the opin-,
ion of old connoisseurs in horse flesh.
Bashaw is slightly the favorite. Stakes
are 1000 on each race.
| regret to learn that the National
Telegraph Co.. - which promised so fairly
and through which people expected such
vast reductions of the present high tele-
graphic rates, has passed in its chips.
They have every year promised to build
lines, but never have put up an inch of
wire. People thought that their action
was honestly deferred by the provision
in their charter which compelled them to
dispose Of their vast stock. ten millions
before making calls on which to build
and generally there was confidence in
their being restrained from any trickery
by the express prohibition of their con-
solidation with any other company and
other seeming safeguards contained in
their charter Besides, no one would
dream for moment of their organizing
so vast company and at such enormous
expense, for the purpose of getting the
mere one per cent first payment on stock
issued. The presumption III the public
mind was in favor of their honesty. L do
not intend to say whether that presump-
ton was founded ON fact or not, but viii
give few facts for the judgement II
your readers. some Of whom are no douot
holders of national stock for $500, 900 of
it have been placed in the Northwest
The lists of this stock placed in the North
west, probably one third of all taken,
have been already threatened transferred
bv the "National1 81 agent to the ''Great
Western Telegraph Co., a new organ
ization WHICH has its headquarters here,
while those of eastern located stock we're
at last accounts, In process of transfer to
the Atlantic and Pacific Telegraph Co. .
In the brief limits of this letter L shall
have space only to say little regarding
the latter.reserying the Great Western
for another occasion. The "A. q P.TeE
Co.." was organized by a Mr.. VanKleick
who now has the contract for building Its
5000 miles OF lines, for which he receives
+ its entire capital stock of S5, 900, 000--
eouivelent to 81 600 In stock or at the
fixed maximum of their calls, forty per
cent, 1866 cast for each mile of two wire
line which he builds,-o about four
times, three at least, what = is worth.
This is where the money Is made out OF
new telegraph companies. Sharp chaps
who know the ropes get up company,
get into it as Directors, either by the
presentation of stock or otherwise some
respectable men, whose names give char
acter, but who are quite ignorant of the
business they undertake, from these Dl-
rectors they get such contract for build
ing as Mr.. Van Kick holds and when
the lines are built they are turned over
to the unhappy stockholders who have
paid for them three or four times their
value and find them Improbable after
all. The stock which they have taken
has been although nominally that of the
contractor and he is the only person who
has made good thing out of it. 1t
IS certainly well worth his while to pay a
handsor . bonus and at least FIVE per cent
to have turned over to him by transfer
some two millions of stock for which he
issues his own on which he can make
calls Just as fast as he wants them. The
"a. & P. Co." has now line working
from New York to Cleveland, which is an
excellent advertisement for Mr.. Van
Kleick's stock. The Great Western has
| none, but of them another time Ma