The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1869-03-23


this litigation. Itsmay CRAFTY them to know that
even to ths se1tent their effort has been success.
full The public sd may not howeves be equally well
powerful and wealthy corporation have been thus
used to defeat struggiing public ioenterprise, and
to prevent the development and promotion Of pub
lie interests in other directions where so much OF
prostration remains.
The public may not be equally content to know
lie welfare, have been thus perverted to tho sus-
tanning of monopoly of that class against which
the trainers of many Of our earlier Constitutions
thought proper to guard, by the declaration that
Conclusive rights and monopolies were anti-repub-
lican contrary to public policy and not to be tole-
rated"-a principle, the wisdom ofwhich is to-day
more thoroughly impressed upon the public min,i
than at any former period of our country's histo-
ry. Nor can this plea avail that this litig alton
has been thus urged for the yindication of rights
With one who earnestly and i'll good faith asserts
and seeks to vindicatc his rights, there is public
sympathy which will always sustain it.. Bnt this
| differs much from the assertion OF a merely pre-
tcntious claim of right, for purposes of wanton
vexation' and to annoy, embarra's and cripple L
character of their claims.
| The Courts of the State warrant me in saving
that it rnsted upon the assumption Of exclusive
their charter And from the first inception of the
| litigation, the movers of il should have known
that such was the groundlces character of this
pretense of right 1 have authority for saying
that In the year 1857 1885, after tho project OF
| a railroad from Columbia to Hamburg had as
snmed form and shape, the then President of tho
South Carolina Railroad Company, after consulta-
| tion with his Board, referred the subject of the
rights OF his company to able counsel, and alter
deliberate examination of the subject the Presi-
dent was advised that his company had not the
legal right to resist the construction of the pro-
Jectod railroad. This advice the Court of Errors
has since unanimously sustained Mr.. Trenholm
WAS then member of the Board, and must have
forgotten this part Of the history of the South
Carolina Railroad which comes to me from it's
former President. Doubtless he remembered it
when he subscribed to one-fourth of the capital
stock of the Columbia ard Augusta Railroad to
make good investment of his Confederate
money.
In reply to the remarks of Col. Siebels in tho
Convention, llr. Trenholm earnestly dcnounces
popular clamor," and contends that the public
have no right to complain of the policy and ma
nagement Of the South Carolina Railroad, in view
Of the fact that '.stockholders had not received
one dollar of dividends since the close of the war;
stockholder, as well as the public, may fail to
find in this fact an argument to sustain the ad-
quarrel in which L may not properly participate,
nor need to make a defence of popular clamor,"
the denunciatons of which furnished much of
| tho matter OF his speech and that of Mr.. Courte-
nay. Public opinioni generally right and is able
to defend itself, and need only to add that, in
this instance has been vindicated in the Courts of
Law and Equity, in every form and variety ofsuits
and motions, injunctions and prohibition.
But Mr.. Trenholm more particularly seeks to
arraign me for my illiberal spirit in negotiation.
81 have always been willing to meet him." says
he, ION fair and liberal terms. But he never
came" He thoreupon undertakes to repeat
proposition rs coming from me- and giving it in
certainly made no such proposition, and used TO
such language Ny friend is authorized to pub
lation to railroads. And in that connection, he
can also publish his letter TO me, wherein he pro-
posed to broak connection with the Wilmington
and Manchester Hallroad at Kingyille, and give
that through business to the Charlotte and South
Carolina Railroad, provided tho latter would di-
rect its freights to Charleston instead Ports
mouth, with my reply thereto. To this corre-
spondence he has thought it proper to refer in
order to reflect upon my ibera spirit.
Further says Mr. Trenholm:
eve were willing to make money ont of Mr.
Johnston, but could not make bargain with him.
We had paid the city of Augusta s25O, 900 for the
privilege of building our bridge across the Savan-
nah River We had built that bridge at great
expense, and it was incumbent upon Mr.. Johnson
to pay us something corresponding to the expense
1t is difficult to determine how to reply to such
specious reasoning 1t is difficult to believe that
it falls from one whose judgment on business mat
ters is ordinarily so accurate. Let US look at it,
The estimated cost OF the Columbia and Augusta
Railroad from Granitoville to Augusta, including
the the bridge over the Savannah River, is short Of
$780, 600. At any time the Columbia and Augusta
Railroad Company would have been willing to
save on -halfof this expenditure by paying to the
South Carolina Railroad Company 100000, or
even $4,000 for tho use of their track. 1t was
| ample for the use OF both companies, and in all
probability would continue so for twenty years to
come. Readily, too would the Colum bia and Au-
gusta Railroad Company have consented to paw
for the use OF the South Carolina Railsosd track
an annual sum equal to seven per cent on the
estimated cost of constructing separate track ;
and would h ave consented to refer the estimate to
any competent engineer. Such terms as these
would have been much more advantageous to the
Colum bia and Augusta Railroad than the pro-
position to pay the entire receipts upon the eleven
miles. Bnt no proposition of this or any other
| character would be entertained, for the reason
| that this same idea presented by AIR. Trenholm
has pervaded the minds Of MIR. Magrath and some
others associated in interest with him, to wit:
That because it hasicost tho South Carolina Rail
road Company half million OF dollars to con
struct their road from Graniteville to Augusta it
was, therefore, "incumbent upon Mr.. Johnston
to pay something corresponding to the expense"
thus incurred for the privilege of using their
track That is to say, for the partial and
road tracli, including their bridge, the Columbia