Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1869-01-15
The North Carolina Railroad.

President Smltn, Oh tho
railroad. has shown how injurious to TIT
other railroads in which the State has al
;nterest. is his system of management b.
his contract with the Presidents of the RAJ
eiph and CASTOR, and Charlotte and Column
bia railroads, in which he bargains away
the true interests of his Company for the
benefit of others.
The following is q copy of this e2traor
dinary contract It is certainly very unu
snail with honest railroad officials to tie
their hands and render themselves unable
10 take advantage of competition
CONTRACT.
WHEREAS. The Columbia and Charlotte railroad
company has, heretofore, with view TO me COZ
structon OF the Columbia and Hamburg raiiioau'
endorsed the bonds thereof for four hundred 1nou
sand dollars and the Raleigh ana GaStou a1c az
company has agreed to purchase the oonAs VI ~. ~
Columbia and Hamburg railroad company, LOT nifty
thousanJ dollars at par, and tho North Carroll "a
Railroad company has agreed to purchase the ponds
of the said Columbia and Hamburg railroad com
pany for one hundred thousand dollars at par
and whereas, it is deemed advisable, in consldera
ton of said aid and in consequence of their mu
tual interest in the speedy completion OF the ealo
Columbia and Hamburg railroad, to harmonic
the working of all said companies, with view o.
making great through freight and passenger
line from Augusta and all intermediate polGts &c
New York and other Northern cities, via Weldon
and vice versa" that chickering's ana disputes
may not hereafter arise,
ReSoired That for the consideration aforesaid
there shall be no discrimination for the term o. o.
five years. either as to freights passer gers by
either of said railroad companies against elmer OF
the others, but freights and passengers TO ana
from Augusta and all intermediate points aiong
the respective lines going North or South, sha II
be carried along those lines without drlscrlmlna
ton per mile directly indirectly against either
or directly indirectly IN favor OF any Inc no'
party of this contract.
ResoIred further, That this contract shall be
signed uuadruplicate by tho Presidents OF the
several railroad companies above mentioned,
which shall be in force Immediately on the sign
ing of this paper by tie Presidents OF the EeVeral
lines above mentioned.
(signed( VIM JOHNSON, PrestO =: q a; L. Is, 90
(SignedJ ". J. HAWKINS, Pres't L & q Il 20.
By the foregoing contract the North
Carolina Railroad Company, the Raleigh
and CASTOR Railroad Company, the Char
lotto and South Carolina Railroad Com
pany, and the Columbia and Augusta Rail
road Company are bound by their respec-
tive Presidents to carry passengers and
freight without discrimination per mile
directly or indirectly against either, or
directly or indirectly in .facOr of any line
not party to this contract and this for
the period of fee gears.
In the "face and eyes" of this written
agreement, with an evident intention to
deceive, o tariff Of charges is agreed to
between New York and Charlotte, on first
class goods, at ono dollar and fifty cents
per one hundred pounds, by which sixty
five cents per one hundred pounds is
allowed from New York to Weldon New
York steamer thirty-five, and thirty
cents for eighty miles from Portsmouth to
Weldon), ard twenty cents per one hun
dred pounds is allowed from Weldon to
Raleigh, ninety-seYen miles, and sixty-fye
cents per ono hundred pounds is charged
for the North Carolina Railroad from
Raleigh to Charlotte, one hundred and
seventy-five miles. All this we see in the
face of contract declaring that " there
shall be no discrimination per mile,
directly or indirectly. In other words, the
rate per mile shall be the same from Wei
don to Augusta, Or to any intermediate
point" In other words, these roads sgree
to work their local freights upon the same
principle of charge that they do their
through freights, or freights to points
where competition is required to obtain
business.
All experienced railway managers know
this agreement is fatal to the largest in
come for the North Carolina Railroad Com
pany, but the President of that Company
did not wait long enough after he donned
the robes of Royalty to learn what the in
terests of his road required, and hastily
signed paper prepared by others for his
Roads ruin. Hence the attempt to show
the public. con paper" what he and
the Raleigh and CASTOR Company have
agreed to as q division of rates. This
might deceive somebody, but the Presi-
dent of the Raleigh and CASTOR Railroad
Company has not only been heard to say
that he certainly intended to have his full
pro rata per mile rate, without discrimina-
ton, to competing points, but that he in
tended to have the allowance made by
Superintendent Anderson, in Turner's adj
ministration, as the cost Of hauling to
Goldsboro' from Raleigh. This can be
proved. What, then, is the position
1t is simply this: The charge from
Weldon to Charlotte Zone hundred
and seventy-fye miles, eighty-five cents
per one hundred pounds, will be
divided without discrimination per mile. -
This gives the North Carolina Railroad
fifty-fve cents per one hundred pounds
from Raleigh to Charlotte, and the Raleigh
and CASTOR Railroad thirty cents per one
hundred pounds from Weldon to Raleigh.
Here is the issue. President Smith as
sertions are that he gets as much by stop
ping at Raleigh, as he does by going to
Goldsboro', which never was true, and
cannot from the nature Of things be true,
for this reason:
The Wilmington and Weldon Railroad
Company has offered to divide the charge
between Weldon and Raleigh equally with
the North Carolina Railroad Company. Now
take the Raleigh and CASTOR Railroads at
thirty cents, one-half fifteen cents, added
to ffty-fye cents 1uo North Carolina Roll