Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1872-09-21
BUYING CONGRESSMEN.
The Alleged Revelations through Col.
McComb's Suit against the Credit
MObilier,

The Baltimore Sun, of Monday aft,r
rrvieNing the persistent opp0si ion to
much of the /, glslatiun in connection with
subsidies to It's Union Pacific Railroad
Company, says
1--WE repeal that we were never able 10
tocqticlle suth legislation with the good
+ it'll dnd ldlr dealing Whici we d, sired 10
attribute TO the Matt nal Legl ildtute. The
tirst subsidy ac of Congress resp Ing
the two Pac lc railroads-the Union aid
Central-were approved July 1st 1862,
and July I'd, 1864, during the late civil
war, when lOUse pOlltlcu aud financial
Ideas and p'aciees might have found
somr apollo s ~ tho general confusion
and Excitement 0l tho iOridd. These TWO
acts granted subsidy in per cent jU-
year United States bonds, which were to
he a llr,t mortgage on tie roads, with u
grant Of IL, 500 acres Of land for each mile
Of road. A cor, oatlun call d the Credit
Mob li,r was organ zed under Pennsyl-
vania charter as "a ring within the ring 10
hNild the road aid Uak the subsidiesi IN
rnd Which ii fulfilled so completely llidt
II is said the road which II built cost In
the gross s25, $50, 900, and that the values
1t fcteifed amounted $tll,dlS,5l2, the
profits thus reaching to the enotmous
figure of $s5, ,GGs,jl3 After The profits OF
the Credit Mobllier had reached total of
some 300 per cent. the release above re-
fcrred to Of the Union Pacific from certain
obligations and liabilities was effected.
Some singular develOpements in regard
to this extraordinary matter have been
eliclied by a suit now peudiut beflre thu
supreme Court Of Pennsylvania, in equity,
IN which Col. Henry 5. McComh, one Of
a
ciiir railway and of the Credit Mohilier,
Is plaintiff, and thr Credit Muhllicr Of
America is defndcnt, and Id this suit tho
tes imOny of Colonel MeComb has been
taken. Col. MeComb sues the company
to recover the value of $50 shares of the
Credit Muhllicr which lie alleges rghtiully
belong to nm. In his testimony he as
scrts-and supports the assertion by two
letters aud a memOrandun-that Mr..
Oakcs Ames (menbsr of Congress- from
the Second district of Massuch isutts, and
II priucipal manager Of tue Z edit Moblller
and of the Union Pacific rulirOad) pro-
iesses to have used these 200 shares, and
many more shares also, of the Credit
Mubilier stock in influencing members of
Congress to cooperate with him (Odkcs
Amcs) in securing the legislation which
was necessary 10 enhance the value of the
Credit MubiIirr stock to the enormous
point which il finally attained OF some 200
or 500 per cent. advance upon its face.
Col. McComb produces a list, drawn mp
for him hy Mr.. Oakes Ames, which, as "A
memorandum in pencil, is put in the ease
with Amcs's letter telling of ''distribu-
ton" to certain States, without mention
Ing the names Of individuals in the letter.
This is the list ON the pencil memo
randum; Shares.
Bliue. of Maine ine......................3 3.0uO
Patterson, of New Hampshire. 5000
Wilson. Of Massachusetts...... 1000
Painter, ttcpuhlicau,l Tor Quigly,.. 3,OuO
:. tOlfnN. Speaker r...-................ 1000
Scoiicld and Kelley, of Penna,t each 1000
Eliot. Massachusetts ................. 5000
Dawes. Musaachusetts..... 2,0ub
Fowler Tennessee c.................... 2,nnO
boutwell,. Massachusetts ............. 2.nnl
bingham and Garfield. ohio. teachl 1000
Endorsed uAKEs AVIS, Jan, 30 lsds.
To Col. McCOmb Mr.. Oakcs Ames IT
this time wrote that he had placed a part
aud would place the whole Of the stock he
was distributing at Washington "where il
would do most good"
II is not surprising that Mr.. Blaine,
Speaker Of the House Of Representatives,
has promptly replied to this publication,
so far as he is concerned, declaring that
he never owned a dollar in the company
in his life, either directly or indirectly,
through himself OF through another. A
part of the statement made by McComb
shows that the dividends on the stock OF
the Credit Moher were very soon far in
excess of the principal Of its par value,
and il is ind Gated that these did reach
nominal holders. As, however, these
charges are part of important legal pro-
ceedings, it is incumbent on the colleagues
of MIR. Blaine in Congress, ms well those
friends Gas Painter and Quigley, out Of it)
enumerated in the above list, to rise and
explain. 1t is certainly very desirable
that the mystery of such giving away OF
the peoples substance to u comparative
few, as was involved in the Pacific rail
road legislation from the start, should he
mmraycled and made clear.