, 1870-06-16
surroundings, but Just to resolve into :ts
original elements Ind disappear.
TIE RAILWAY WAR.

THE RAILWAY WAX
Of course Vanderbilt and Jay Gould have
been interviewed by the New York papers,
and have told their Stories Vanderbilt
says there is no particular " war pending;
that he hus withdrawn from certain COM
pacts because, after seven years steady OBJ
sevnnce of thom by the Central, and
violation Of them by the Erie, stIt had been
found utterly useless to make any arrange
ment with them, for they would violate it
within twenty-for hours" This answer
may be true in itself or not; but, in either
case, it does not give the true reason of
Vanderbi1ts course. Mr.. Vanderbilt does
not run railroad for the purpose Of teach
ing lessons Of morality to Fisk and Gould,
or vindicating the obligations Of contracts
He does little for revenge, and nothing for
abstract principles. Hence his course to-
ward Erie can be solved only by
the advantage be expects to de-
rive from it. He has headed
of the Eries Western connections,
and obliged it already to sue for aid to the
Pennsylvania Central. Gould has tele-
graphed in great haste to tho President Of
the Pennsylvania Central to know if he
could be su1c of being accommodated by
his road with connection ria Mansfield,
Ohio. OF course he could. So could We
all. The Pennsylvania Central will gladly
send over the Pittsburgh d Fort Wayne
Road all the passengers they can get. But
in begging thus on his knees to one rival
route 10 save him from being garroted by
the other, Jay Gould shows that he isalready
whipped. The cards are not in his hands. The
Pennsylvania Central, which thus befriends
him, has nenrly Us much interest in ugiug
him up as the New York Central. Ithas no
power to save him the passengers and
freight that 60 east over the Michigan South
ern Lake Shore Road, which, in due time,
will 60 to New York over the Vanderbilt
routes, especially if, as Vanderbilt promises,
he reduces the freights and fares to the
lowest point. Nor will it send him those
that 60 east over the Pittsburgh l. Fort
Wayne Those aro bound for the Pennsyl-
vania Central itself. ALI the aid Gould can
get in response to his appeals to one Of his
rivals against tho other is to get such Of his
passengers as viii accept it to take through
ticket ria Erie and the Pittsburgh l. Fort
Wayne. But this would not suit one-tenth
OF the Erie's westward business, nor help ut
all its eastward traffic. The Erie is henmcd
In by superior Htrategy, md We do not doubt
that this is the death-warront of Gould and
Fisk, and they know it. Time will be given
them TO die, md that is all. They plead
contract with the Lake Shore Road,
which, if its Directors violate, they
forfeit their charter. It is scarcely proba-
ble that Fisk and Gould, after conhscating ali
the rights OF their stockholders, will make
much head against other railway officers in
getting them removed for mere breach of
contract.
There is a law, also, of the State of New
York, which, h1r. Gould pleads, will com
pei the Lake Shore to grant all the privi-
leges to him it does to the Central. Since
it has only been By underselling the Con-
tral that the Erie could run with full cars,
equal privileges will not help him. Let the
Central fall to, or below, Erie rates from
Buffalo, and, without violating either the
law or the contract, it will be all orer with
Fisk and Gould. They have assumed to run
the road on their Individual account, paying
not dime to stockholders. Vanderbilt
viii give them full liberty to do so US long
ns they can stand it, It is probable that,
with the means ct his disposal, he can re-
duce the receipts Of the Erie by two-thirds,
compelling it to run at dead loss Of sew
eral millions a year. Of course, under this
pressure, Gould, the Bill Sykes Of the con
cern, and Fisk, the "artful dodger," must
retire A1r. Could, in arguing the case to
the reporters, lays great stress On the point
that he can stand the fight longest because
he has no dividends to pay. He says:
"We have no sso,coo,0o0 worth Of stock upon
which We have 70 pay 9 per cent interest," thus
laying yearly burden Of 1900 600 upon the stock
This point rests upon the same principle
that the man who steals his brooms ready
made can sell them cheaper than one who
steals only the broom corn to make them
OF. But unfortunately, there are about ton
millions Of yearly expenses to the Erie
which cannot be stolen. They must be
paid. And if Vanderbilt can reduce the in
como of the road below the point at which
it will pay these expenses, Gould aud Fisk
must desert their Opera House and ballet
troupes, aud betake themselves to green
fields and pastures new.