Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1870-01-14

ara in receipt of the published pro-
1:ncs Of the several meetings held by
stockholders of the Wilmington, Char
and Rutherford Railroad during
% The Report of the late President is
fnll and lengthy. It gives a detailed
torv Of the present and past condition
.ha Road. Its length does not permit
- nublish this Report in full. but we
:, the following extracts therefron.
1f.ar presenting in detail the present
"nrial condition Of the Company, and q
e retrospective view of its history and
tnagement. the Report says
In to this time the course of the Com
md the conduct Of the Directory had
=. ,pproved by all parties through bout
state. from the highest to the lowest !;
the tockhOlders themselves, in their
e1ections and otherwise, had frequently
ostod their unbounded confidence in the
4 |naritv. integrity, and fidelity of it's mem
We owe it to Ourselvesl now to en-
re what, if any thing, has occurred in
administration of its affairs, since this
mod of the necessary suspension Of the
/, so to impair the general confidence
III tLn Company and its Directory as to
Ipoest the propriety of altering its organ
ft5,u. When those who have successfully
3nIacted this Company through its fiery
Id are laid aside, and others are sub
&tuted in their stead, who, 10 say the
IL Of It, are total strangers TO its trOu-
and necessities, it IS due to them that
Il, world should know that the change
not required because OF derel1ctlOn
lnty on their part, or Il loss Of conf
N nee on the part of the Stockholders. "
#Iue Report then gives the equipment of
IL Road at the breaking at OF the war,
NJ the losses occasiouod by the war, and
H. depIorable condition of the rolling
4 ck and track at its close.
VI Tpe efforts OF the Board Of Directors in
HALF of the reconstruction and compile
\ Du of the Road are thus referred to:
N The first effort made by the Board re-
ted in the passage of an act by the
" neral Assembly, authorizing and direc
Il the renewal of four hundred and thir-
thousand dollars of State bonds IL the
|,Dds of the Company, which were value.
v IS. by reason Of the fact that they had
f. issued during the days of the Con
Rdrracy, and were made payable in good
H. lawful money of the Confederate
n tatcs. It WAS hoped that the proceeds
these bonds would enable rs to pay al
asst that portion of our ~nte-war debt
Hh.uL was due IN the city Of New York, as
| Il IS the new debt which we had con
kacted for reconstruction and equipment
i Thus, establishing our credit, enable
l. to make further negotiations for the
eleiit of the road. North Carolina bonds
i { 10 quoted at eighty-slX cents, and the
kcnds of North Carolina IN New York as
red us that, just as soon as we resumed
b.. Constitutional relations with the Genera
eovernment, North Carolina credit would
land as high rs it ever stood. 1t would
penn, therefore, that our hopes and ex
|c.tatious were not ill-founded but W.
ad not anticipated the financial policy o
Furth Carolina !; we had not felt the opera
ion Of that shrewd financial regulation
bach, quoting bonds at eighty-siX cent
N the dollar, only paid for them abou
rom fifty to fifty five, unless they hap
'ened to bear from thirty TO forty pc
cut of coupons and, above all and be
uud all, we had no idea of the amazin!
Ii7tance which we would be required t.
ravel, and the destructive sacrifices whicl
: would be required to make before on
relations would be regarded
! esumed.
The result of that whole whole opera
& IL. then, was this For an unreasonable,
oug tine the Stock Board of New York re
u.rd to admit any new North CAROLYN
bonds upon their call list, or to recognize
them as good delivery, because, SO far u
We could understand their reasoning, the.
we're not quite sure but that the Genera
i cmbly, which authorized their issue
v. still in state of rebellion. 1t wa
Il I0ng time, " e say, and it required grea
lhor and a good deal of expense to chang
tins ruling of the Stock Board. In tn
the credit of North Carolina de
pteciated so rapidly that when the bond
could be sold at ali, the proceeds were no
Efficient to pay even that portion OF on
view York debt which was contracted 6t
tie tCu1', for that very iron whlc
North Carolina impressed during tie qCa1'
tDd refused to pay for after tie eCdr. An
they were sold as advantageOusly q
al North Carolina bonds we're sold at tina
ne"
The failure Of these efforts and thei
ect upon the progress of the work al
.scussed, and copious extracts are mad
nom previous Reports to show that til
GARD had foreseen these difficulties an
lad given the Stockholders timely and re
geated warnings of the dangers wh1c
To meet the necessities of the Company
application was made to the General Al
5embly, which resulted in the passage {
N act authorizing the issue of four mi
IONS of dollars of first mortgage bonds
to the State the right of secon
l1ortgage only. The Report then Pre-
leeds as follows, to show by what mean
this mortgage vas rendered of little benet
10 the Company
Gas we have previously reported
You, we sold one million dollars Of thes
bonds as soon as they were endorsed br
50 much time had elapsed, and such We
the stress for payment of the debts lon
due, that the proceeds we're applied prir
clpaIly in that direction, and not to tn
building of the road but we could sell n
more at that time. The first difficult
which met us arose from the amount OF tn
mortgage-$4, 0OO,0 600. 1t was thought t
be too large. We could not get others t
estimate the road at the value which W
Knew 1t to possess and as it was our ow
erEor-an error into which we had bee
'sd by good reasOns-we Immediately pre-
ceeded to correct it. The mortgage va
ltduceo to $780, 900, at which it nov
STANDS and which would have been sui
HcIeht 10 complete the road to Ruthel
!oLuton, but not to the Tennessee line,
- uau not been for OufSi1p intarfere0Ce