New-York tribune., 1872-10-19


you do not squander it that way.
Our next Assembly threatens to be poor az
best, judging from the average run of candi-
dates presented. Take good care that your
vote does not tend to make it worse.
------
| WILLIAM L. AVERY md HENRY CLEWS.
/ Mr.. William L, Avery writes US long let
ter in defense of his late partner, Mr. Henry
| Clews, maintaining that Mr.. Clewss conduct
was irrcproachable up to the 10Th Of NOvem-
ber 1870 The principal charges THE TRIBUNE
has made against Mr.. Clews relate to his con-
duct after the 10Th of November, 1870. The
great frauds were perpetrated after that date,
but to please Mr.. Avery, we will briefly con-
slider what was done in tho earlier stages of
this remarkably shrewd operation Of Bullock,
Kimball, Avery, Clews g. Co.
In August, 1851, the Brunswick and Albany
Railroad had sixty miles of its road finished,
and quantity of iron on hand for its fur
ther extension. The iron which had not been
laid down was bought for the Confederacy
and paid for, and III the latter past of 1862
the remainder Of il was seized by the COnfed-
crate Government and the track taken up.
The road, meantime. had beer used simply
for the transportation of troops This other
iron was also paid for, and both sales were
acouiesccd in by the Board of Directors Of
the Company. (See pages 35, SO, and 42 of the
Bond Committees report, for testimony of Col.
Schlatter, then chief engineer of the road,
and of Mayor Blain, then director of the
company On the 9th of January, 1869, the
bondholders foreclosed upon the stockholders,
and bought in tho road for fifteen hundred
dollars. This business was done by Mr.
William L. Avery. The amount of bonds
which had been issued amounted at that time
to S924,OOO, representing investments made
previous to the war. This sum, increased by
S350OO0 in watered stock, became the share
capital of Mr.. Ayery's new corporation. Mr.
Avery then had bill passed by the Georgia
Legislature, comforting the franchises of the
old company upon the recently created corpo-
ration.
The next move was to make the property
worth something to its new owners. The
result was that, through the exertions Of Mr..
Avery, the act of March 19, 1869, was pushed
through the Georgia Legislature, under strong
suspicion of bribery and against the written
protest Of IA Senators. At that time the
Legislature consisted of 124 Democrats and 05
so-caled Republicans the Senate being tie.
In the Bond Committees report Cpage 29) we
find the testimony of ono Hall, member of
the LEGISLATURE, who swears that he received
$1,000 in stock from Avery as present, and also
81 900 from another of the corporators. Hall was
also made "selling agent" of the road at
Brunswick at a salary of $4,000 year. He
appears to have been very active in lobbying
for Avery at the State capital. The act OF
March, 1860, provided that the State of Geor-
gia should indOrse the six per cent gold bonds
of the Company at the rate of $4,000 per
mile, payable on the completion of ten-mile
sections. This act, though preceded by cat
alogue of false assumptions OF damages sus-
tanned through the action of the State of
Georgia Tin reality the COnfederacy), was un-
constitutional, as the Constitution forbids the
loan of the States credit without an equal in
yestment of private capital; neither can the
State of Georgia assume Indebtedness con-
tracted by the late COnfederacy.
William L. Avery, Hannibal l. Kimball,
Henry Clews and j. Edwin Conant then pro-
ceeded to organize a Credit Mobiier for build
ing the road, these gentlemen being at the
same time the owners Of controlling inter
est in the stock of the new company. They
voted, nrSt, 10 ISSUE common Iul palu
"stockn to the amount of S1,274,000 being the
same as that then outstanding, and to give
the same at the rate of $4,000 per mile of
completed road to the Credit Mobilier, alias
j. Edwin Conant and Company. alias Avery,
Kimball, Clews, and COnant, in part payment
for building the road; second, TO give the
said Avery, Kimball, Clews, and Conant
the $4,000 per mile of first mortgage
gold bonds, indorsed by the State of Georgia
third $4,000 per mile of the COmpany's
second mortgage bonds; and fourth, $4,000
per mile of the company's preferred stock
that is, $4,000 in securities for every mile of
this dismantled railroad which should be re-
laid with iron and put in tOlerable condition.
Experienced engineers testify that the work
could have been done for $4,000 per mle
The then respectable name Of Henry Clews
was depended on to make quick sales
of the bonds and stock, and for the use of
that then respectable name Mr.. Clews was
to share the profits Of the operation with
Conant, Kimbal, and Avery. There is no
evidence that he was called upon at any time
to put in any money of his own. That Mr..
Clews was 10 have one-quarter Of whatever
the public or the State Of Georgia might be
- A..