The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-11-30
OFsICE OF CHERhw AND DAHIiSGTuN
RAILROAD CoMrAGr,

ton Railroad Company:
The president and directors OF This company
beg leave to submit, their seventeenth annual
report:
From the trcasurcrs report, herewith sub
mitted, 1t appears that for the fiscal year end
Ing 3lst August last, TIE gross earnings have
And tho expenses have been. ~ 2i,ll2 AZ
Leaving as net earnings. .$lS.447 so
This Is q very gratifying exhibit when COM
pared with the results of the previous years
operations, AMI gives ground Tor the hope that,
with the increasing prosperity of the country,
we may look for IL corresponding Improve
ment in tho condition Of this company. When
looked at more closely, it vii! bc found that
while The receipts Of the year have been bit
little less than those of The previous year, tho
expenses have been reduced about thirty
three per cent, showing that the utmost
economy has been used, Willie at the same
time, as appears from the report of the super
intcndcnt, due regard has boon had to the
main considerations Of safety and prOmpLness
in the transportation Of passengers and freight,
us evidenced by the absolute freedom from ac-
cidcnts and failures TO connect according to
schedule, and the good condition of the road
bed and rolling stock. For further informa-
tion and details us to the general operations Of
the road, and condition of its property and
machinery, yOm are respectfully referred to
the accompanying report OF the slipcrn-
tcn,lent.
The most prominent object oi interest, at
this time, is .hc debt Of the company, a sum-
mary of which is as follows:
put Y,p nh ham
April, 1870. 0....................Sl .Sl50, 600 90
Second nortgrsc bonds, maturing
first July, 1883. ................ $4,000 90
Coupons overdue and outstanding.
siS. -. .......:.. lb,300 w
Ccr;ii.cutcs OF Indebtedness i;sucd. IS, 760 20
FioatinS dcbt, say................ 1000 90
o; this tic second mortgage bonds have al-
ready been adjusted by tho issue Of new bonds
| having twenty years to run, which have been
substituted for the old bonds; and the certill-
Gates OF indebtedness will not fall due until
tirst January, 1875, so that the only debt Tor
witch provision has soon TO he made is that
f,,fescntcd by the first mortgage bonds and
,ilu pas! tl!te coupons now outstanding, say in
tho aggregate, slG3,6ou; ,hc iloating deb; be-
Ing comparatively so small. as 10 he within
fine control of The company by tho use of lis
ordinary means.
IL Is very 0bviOas that this debt cannot be
paid at maturity, and, therefore, some means
should he devised for its arrangement This,
IL is confidently believed, can bc dona, be-
cu,lsc the amount, when compared with the
assets OF the company, is small, and the sccu-
rity which can be offered Is ample. W0tRii is
considered That very soon after the tcfmlha-
lsa lien l 9E ere6ffPh 81 WaEtRsl 6phh s hdd ddf'G 'Ge
and have ever since promptly met the same,
increased IA it was by coupons on its bonds
falling due during the war, and held over for
payment, and afterwards since funded IN Ger
tlflcatcs OF Indebtedness, the hope is conf
IDENTITY entertained that the whole debt may
he arranged upon satisfactory terms. The
board would therefore recommend that some
steps be taken towards the arrangement of
this debt as soon as practicable.
The prospects OF an cxcnsisor. of our rail
road connections into North Carolina, by the
Chcraw and Coalields Railroad, which, since
our last annual meeting, has been changed
into the Chcraw and Salisbury Railroad Com
pany, have been very much cloudcd by events
occurring during the past summer, to which
1t ls proposed to invite your especial attention.
II Is we'll known that tho Chcraw and Coal
fields Railroad Company, which, by an amend
mcnt OF their charter ut the last session of the
Legislature, was converted inso the Cheraw
and Salisbury Railroad Company, own four
thousand and thirteen (40l3) shares OF the
stock OF this company-more than u majority
of the whole number. In August last Major
B. d. Townsend, acting as president of the
Chcraw and Salisbury Railroad Company, un-
dcrtook to sell this stock to Messrs.
Walters & Newcomer, of Baltimore, who are
,tufIar ,tn 70 1.n
tine Wilmington and Weldon and tho Whining
ton and Manchester Railroads Soon after
this agreement for sale was made, which,
however, was without any notice to the public
that this stock was In market for sale, Mr..
Townsend and Mr.. Brldgers, (the latter as
agent of Mcssrs. Walters tS Newcomer.)
called upon the officers of this company, and
desired to know whether the proper transfer
Of thls jck would be made upon tho books of
this company. Tho president replied that hc
could not make such transfer, because he had
received from counsel representing q majority
of the stockholders of tho Cheraw and Sails
bury Railroad Company o formal protest
against such transfer, together with notice
that, as soon rs practicable, legal pro-
cccdlngs would be Instituted to set
aside such agreement for the snlc of tho
stock. Accordingly, soon thereafter an appll-
cation In the namc Of q large number of stock
holders of tho Chcra'g and Salisbury Railroad
Company was made for leave to flo en- informa-
tion In the nature of q writ of quo 1rarranto
against B. d. Townsend, claiming to be presl-
dent, and othora, claiming to DO directors of
the ChcraY and Salisbury Railroad Company,
the object OF which was TO test tho validity
Of the tito by which ihoso persons claimed
TO hold their respective Offices, and thereby
to test tho validity of tho agreement for tho
sale OF the said stock. Ponding this caso, an
application was made by Mr.. b. d. Townsend,
for n n,anlanns to compel tho president and
troaslrer OF this company TO transfer the
stock to .Mcssr5. Wnltors &c Newcomer
which, however, was amended during tho
progress of tho case no as 10 make Mcssrs.
Iy.x1N