The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-04-01


The Railway magnates are quarrellng.
Fisk, Jr., opens his batteries upon the Union
Pacific, and, careless of those who furnish his
ammunition, fires away in all directions to the
edifcation of sharpers and the disgust OF
honest men. The great apparent object at
the present moment is to discover whether the
law case now commenced is before the Supreme
Court of New York or the United States Cir
cult Court In this contest we have shown to
us the condition of law in the United States
for here it comes to quarrel between two in
struments of justice to find which is the true
and which the false. Aside from law techni-
calities 1t appears reasonable that the govern
ment-having assumed the construction OF the
Pacific Railroad, having furnished money and
lands, and having been prodgal in all that
could be given to urge the road to rapid COM
pletion-should have any legal matters with
reference to its great national highway decided
by the courts of the general government The
effort is, however, not a question of courts but
question of where Fisk, Jr., is most likely to
make his point. He virtually pits the power
of Erie against the power Of the Pacific Rail-
road, and, forcing into a nine days wonder a
struggle of two great corporations, gains
little unenviable notoriety. Fisk, Jr., is the
natural product of Erie corruptions and bad
management-simply an overissue of stock.
He will float the loftier in proportion to his
lightness. His head is dizzy from being sud
denly called upon to represent concern whose
stockholders are, in lieu of dividends on the
immense earnings Of the road, called upon to
accept magnificent ideas of broad gauges
to Chicago and third rails for the accommo-
dation of vast traffic. They are tickled
with quotations of "Erie preferred" or ''Erie
common" as the stock is withdrawn from or
floods the market. For the accommodation of
country stockholders a first class opera house
is purchased, and upon the stage Fisk, Jr.,
makes an effort to put the Erie Railroad Com
pany upon its legs. A few smaller and less
important operate and theatrical establish
ments dazzle the public by their gilded dis
plays, their fanciful 'cancans" and their lack
of drapery. The whole of this drama is now
in the phase where the manager wishes to get
possession of the Pacific Railroad, and, failing
to do it, through the Credit Mobilier tries to
drive the entering wedge through the inter-
ference of the law. The Erie stock and I'M
paid dividends have shown themselves power
full; but they have not heretofore had heavy
guns to oppose them defensively. The Pacific
road is not in the condition in which Van
derbilt found himself when he tried to buy the
controlling stock of Erie and discovered that
the corporation could manufacture it faster
than he could purchase.
The operations of Fisk, Jr., have a very
bad effect upon our railway securities and
tend to unsettle the public confidence even in
solid corporations. Our railway system, upon
which we count 80 largely for national pro-
gress, is made the sport of INSCRIPTIONS men,
who, regardless of legitimate stockholders,
toss the stock about in the Wall street vortex
and make use of its power in such manner
as we see Erie now used. There is certainly
no commercial prosperity that can grow out Of
this, and instead Of the law being invoked
to aid in the unsettling Of valuable enterprises
it should place itself Immediately on record as
the earnest protector of our national interests.