The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-04-03
THE PACIFIC RAILROAD.
A Close Corporation beginning to
Leak.
ForcshadOwIngs of n StuPcndOus
Fraud.

United States for its loans in aid of
these roads to that Of bonds issued by
| the railroad companies for an equal
amount; that the bill passed In the
House without call of the yeas and
nays, and that it was openly charged
that many of the members voting for
the measure had direct interest in 1t.
Mr.. Washburne, in particular, never
hesitated to denounce the action OF his
| fellow-members as corrupt, and lncur-
red much enmitY by his blunt speeches
On the subject. Two or three years at-
teward the directors of the Union Pa
citic Railroad reported to their constltu-
ents that secret service fund Of $780,
900 had been expended Tor purposes
which they did not specify, and intelli- :
gent persons naturally drew their own
| inferences.
But it seems probable that $4,000 is
but a very small part of the interest
which mem bers of Congress had in the
passage of the bill which, in effect,
threw away the claim of the United
States for the repayment of its enor-
NOUS advances to the Pacific RailrOad.
Recent developments have shown that
single corporation, known as the
'Credit Mobilier of America" +" has real
iZed enormous profits out OF the con-
struction of the Pacific Railroad,
amounting, according to the sworn
statement OF one of the directors OF the
Pacific Road, to over thirty nlitLiO1lS of
dollars. This Credit Mobilier, which
has thus swallowed up the proceeds of
all the bonds issued i'll aid OF the road,
as we'll as of the mortgage bonds, is
composed of few persons, some OF
| whom were members of the Congress
| which voted to sacrifice the lien of the
Government loan, some OF them repre-
sentatives of and trustees for such men,
bers, and the rest, persons who aided
these members in connecting the
scheme, or who bought out their inter-
est.
A great deal OF Congressional wis.
| dom has been wasted in pretended et-
forts to investigate tire affairs of these
railroads, but two or three days work
| before IL Court of Justice has sunlced
| to lay bare one of the most nOnstrOus
frauds that was ever perpetrHted upon
any Government.
This disclosure has come out incl
dentally from the effort of one of the
stock holders of the Union Pacific Rail
road Company to establish his claim 10
a portion of its profits. 1t seems that
the directors of this Company were un-
willing that the fruits of their genius
should be wasted by distributor
among those who had not planned the
scheme. Accordingly, they devised IA
plan by which the construction OF the
roNd should absorb every dollar OF the
Company's funds, and commit the con-
struCtiOn, and of course the funds, TO
their own charge. 10 this end they gave
the building contract for one part
Of the road 10 the Credit Mobiller, for
another part to Mr.. Oakes Amcs, Ia
member of Congress in 1864 and now,)
and for another part to a mythical per-
son. said to be named Davis, but whose
real individuality appears to include
half q dozen of the directors, including
another Congressman OF lSGlI halling'
like Mr.. Ames, from Massachusetts.
The Vice President of the Company,
when forced TO testify, admitted that
these contracts had been made AT rates
VARYING from Sl2, 600 to 500. 900 per mile
prices VIGOROUSLY equal to thrice the
actual cost of construction And on
comparing these prices with the receipts
of tie Company, it will be found that
they are calculated, with great exact
ness, to strip the Company, as such, of
every penny Of its funds, so that i'll a
short time its property may be sold un-
der foreclosure of the first mortgage
lands, leaving the United States to look
where it may t0r Us paltry loans OF
$50, ,OOO, 900 to $50 O,OOO,O 600.
EaIhe directors OF the Company, alarm
ed at the exposure which has even In
this short time been made OF their
transactions, have twice appealed to
Congress for relief. Last Summer they
rushed through bill intended 10 en-
able them to remove all suits brought
AGAINST them into the Federal Courts,
which only sit at long intervals, and In
which they could not be required to
answer for at least six months. Fail
ing in this project through the want OF
proper words In the statute, they nave
nersuaded the evcr-indulgent House or
Representatives to pass another Dill Tor
their accommodation, enabling them 10
one of a dozen cities or villages, and
forbidding any State Court from inter:
fering with their schemes. rms Dlll
halts in the Senate; but we observe that
"A Senatorial friend OF Congressman
Ames is diligently working to heIp the
measure through in a slightly olnereh'
shape.
we think it Is about time that Con-
press should leave this matter alone.
Bad as may be our State Courts, there
is no evidence or appearance in this
case of any I'M justice having been done
10 these directors; and our Courts have
done good service TO the public in
The attempt to transfer the cause TO
the Federal Courts is not inspired by II
| love of Justice, but by desire TO pro-
| tect gigantic frauds from exposure.
Congress has no inclination to lnVestl-
gate the charges made against Its own
mem bels; and the United States Courts
have not adequate facilities for a prompt
and thorough examination of the par
ties. Let it be understood that this is
| the very reason why such vehement
| efforts are now made to transfer this
investigation to those tribunals, and no
member of Congress, not interested in
these fagitious proceedings, will give
the slightest countenance to the meas
| ure.
C1Nc1NNAr1 is unfortunate i'll the mat