, 1870-03-26
AN IMMENSE sW1NDLEA ATWAsH.
INGT0N.
THE sASOutheFn Pacific TInlIroad
Company OF Californian

H1sh1"91on !AaTen ~ correspondence az fat .st1s
fHk Journal 0J CoEn1aercz.
Seemingly with all power against him, vou.
correspondent assumes the task Of again point
Ing to the most subtle, dangerous, and opnros-
sise scheme get attempted Of corporation to
deceive Congress- and The people, and wiring
from lew honest settlers possession Of their
hard earned lanis and home. Az the rotten
ncks Of the s~indlc ~ now being forced to view,
aud the corporation will p.ohably soon be be-
yond reach Of justice by securing al they want
10 cover up their tracks, HISTORY Of tho case
short .s can nake il, will be- interesting.
The California Law Of incorporation, passed
May 70. 1861, allows IN case OF railroads. char.
tcrs to associations nnder certain contlitions.
Ihs aEticleR Of association mi,s: set forth 'ithe
place from and to which tho proposed road
IL to be constructed, tho counties into and
through which it Is intended to pass, and its
length"
November 25. 1865, articles OF association
we're regularly fled under the law, and cor
Erration established known NJ the t4Souther1,
Pacific Railroad Company OF California - aud
the length Of tho proposed road WAS stated
ms near az may be- 7eo miles" It was to
nm from some point on the Day OF San
the Counties Of Santa Clara, Monterey, S2n
Louis Obispo, Tulare, Los Angeles, and san
Diego, To tue eastern line OF said State OF CaI-
ifoT1la, there To connect with = contemplated
railroad from said eastern line OF the State Of
California to the Mississippi River"
July u, 1866. Congress made land grant to
build a road on their chartered line. It gave
the odd sections for twenty miles on escA sido
nf the road. January 8, 1867, they filed with
the Secretary OF the Interior map Of q rps
running IN an entirely different direction. leav-
ing Los Angeles tiftysaven And San Diego, ths
principal objective point, 1c0 miles to tho
southwest, attending through the fertile uuoc-
cnpiel San joaquin valley ,Iv Lake Tulsrc
Fort Mohave. This change was clear attemp
to fraudnlently obtain several millions Of ause
nt valuable land more than they would get On
the coast line
The Secretary If the Interior, March Is.
1867. or,lered a withdrawal Of something like
ll5.uO0.0O0 acres Of land from market upon
this map. The matter caused such surprise at
the time that no one would bolievs it possible
till tho thing was actually donc-
Tie Secretary, learning that he had Sane
TONED . swindlc, ordered, March II, 1868, that
the lands be restored to their former condi-
ton. August 20. 1858, ho suspended SO much
Of his order III directed tA>ir restoration, ex-
cept AZ to lands between San Fraucisco ard
San jose, as they had been already granted to
company whose road had been completed aud
III running order for yesrs, doing large busi-
two pages Of legal arguments upon both sides
had been examined, the Secretary again or
dcred restoration Of the lands to their for
Iner status.
Congress refused 10 pass, a bill in their
favor at the Last session. A direct vote in
the sonate showed that tho swindle was uuler-
Etool.
In December. 1863, before tho GO days legal
notice required by law when lands arc thus fe-
stored had expired Een4tor Stewart introduced
: resolution in the Senate, ordering tho Score
taly Of the Interior 70 suspend hi. order of
restoration till tho rights Of the settlers and
the railroad company could be considered. Ho
also induced the introduction Of \ resolution
in the House on the next Monday moniug
during the call for bills. Dy means Of .
tempting preamble and with the operation
OF the previous question it Was passed with
House hxd no iutfmation that it referred
in any WHY to a proproed land grant to
railroad. Senator Stewart afterw1rd boasted
Of his Hnoartness in this transaction, and when
the Chairman Of the Committee OF Public
Laln1r WAS asked by one Of the company's le-
gal opponents why lie permitted euch resol1-
uon to paes, an attorney Of the company, Stew
arts Fidus Achster, sneering1y remarked,
. You are fishing behind the net" and Walked
on in high glec- The counsel for settlero in tho
San Joaquin Valley appeared befors the SEN
ate Pacific Railroad Committee to oppose
Stcwatt'r resolution. several Intellectual
Efforts we're made to secure quorum, in
formal discusaion being had in the interim,
Mr. Stewart and the attorneys debating the
matter with Senators Sherman, Kamsev, and
othets Of the committe- Stewart on bchalf Of
the railroad company and the othera on behalf
Of the eettless: Finding that he Was likely to
encounter in the committee more active op-
induced ME. Howard 70 visit the Secretary of
the Interior. The dxE he w1s absent At the
Interior Department = quorum Was secured and
the committee tinally convened. Senator Stew
art forthwith assumed the chair. Con-id-
crins his attitude in the case the DEL
cf - fIc{S n&AItrnUfi0n ia nh
Tie ordered In 4 rough tone TINT 3Ir. GRAY
state hie objections to the bill, aud did not al
low him 10 utter eingle connected Sentence
without interruption Of character seldom in
dulged in By polite gentlemen Under these
circumstances no argument could be made,
sud, POOR II the opportunity afforded Was, NJ
Stewart refused to allow Gray to finish, and cut
him short and called upon other narties Ia
etate the claims Of the railroad company,
Meantime NJ: Howard had succeeded with the
Secretary. The order q restoration WIS sue
pended without tho direction Of Congress,
and the committee afterwards reported
a resolution ordering tho Secretary 10 do
what he had slseAdy done. After the commit
tee had thus reported 10 tho Senate their judg-
ment upon the Senate joint resolution, and
after it had been before the Senate for some
time unzcted upon, Mr. Howard aaled that
enage, except in the preamble. he referred TO
The committee. Adverse claimants we're not
notified, Ana had no opportunity to submit
their case. Cpon an e- porr investigation. the
committee, through NJ. Scott Of pennsrlvania,
a sn etans IL .s it
letters. but in the last few lines taking the
ground that therc ought 10 be railroad on
The route indicated in the bogus map filed br
the company The resolution is then actually
amended by striking cut the title. preamble
and ali after the enscting clause, and Inserting
. nd ,r~rt M fEo - g., pnJ.
Comrary. embracing al the odd sections Of
land contained in the immense tact referred
to in the order Of the Secretary OF the Inte.;-
or-sAv one hundred millions OF acres 1t least.
Here are two reports upon the ssna subject
matter, and the last cleAr s1indle upon the
public.
TIE entire ground Of defence BY the rail,oad
company is tint they have built the road from
San Jose to Gilrpy thirty .niIesl and incurred
millions Of indebtedness on the faith Of the
proposed Erant-
In answer to this l. Ia Inserted thst they
have not built one foot OF road or spent one
dollar for construction anywhere. The rod
from San Francisco to San Jose, and thence to
Glroy. was built by the San Francisco i San
Joee RailEosd Company. and has beeu and is
now ornsased BY the litter, Aud the tickets
tear the nane Of that company. On February
4, 1855, the sonthern Pacific sold out their
entars franchise to the othcr company,
hut reserved their land grant The
contract OF eale also reserved to the
Southern Pacific the right to purchase bAck
their franchise md tho re0 md personal prop
e1ty Of the San Francisco 4 San Jusa Railroad,
including the Market Street Horse Railroad
Company. San Francisco. on OF before Dece1n-
ber 81, 1870, for s2,7so,0N. It appears BY the
Ada oalis7sia, Of Fehrn1y Is, thal tho pur-
chase haA 1urt been effected. The Geutai Pr
ciec Railroad Company, Is understood, arc
the real purrhase5e. and the lobbyists here up
On the new l1pd grant are the Central PaG6c
attotneya Tbs principal OF these spends
good portion ct his evenings in dining and
Winning ConE1esancn-
From ths newspaper A1Iuded to, issue of
March ]. it srpears that 1t the invitation OF
tho Southern Pacific Railroad Company, the
Legislature Of California has authorized cleo
tons In San Francisco. Monterey, and San
Lnia Obispo Counties, to dctaru,ine the voting
Of money subsidies to build the road on its
legal chartered line. How is it that they ask
the coast counties to yota them money sub
sidy OF ell. .D00 per mils for this road along
tho coast, while at the same time they aek
Congress TO give them another lind grant in
an entirely different place- hundreds Of
mlen away through the interior? and
uron a line whcrs they have no State eharter?
Il means Clearly that they expect to c1ond tbs
making 1t appear that they only ask the ons
they a1e entitled to, and either build two
foa1s CT sell cut the land g. ants General ".
b RoseGa1s, n honest mso, an original
stoe1holdcr in ths company who was tucGly
sold out oT tho rest, ia now here oprosing the
new Land Grant bill md adrocshns the con-
etuctlon o1 the Enc down tho coast
senAtor SteWa<t charEes that the opponents
OF The Company are land epecaiators, md are
waiting to ponnce upon tho lands in question
% buy thsm III up "a soon ~ they ara releaaed-
nEsN of this asatanant it seems strange th4t