New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-02-08
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE
THE I-NIoN PACIFIC RAILROAD AND IhE
''1 CREDIT MOBILIER
.voTuER CARD FROM MR.. BUSHNELL.

lent letter 10 Won convnces that your only de-
are Is that the real points at issue shall be frankly con-
sdered and that you are content that your vast nu
tnde OF readers shall be free to decide whether 'no
nrs against the directors OF the Union Pacific Rail-
road and Credit Mobilier true or false hanA 9o
for your not unexpected courtesy thahh YOU sun
more that from the mass Of base and scahu"ouS iSu
nation vaguely expressed and Impossible 10 oomOa"
that has for weeks been pressed upon the Puohc you
have al last given shape 20 those charges against ~
that our feuoTeitizens may fairly understand them
Tho most serious charge is "that we have employed
,orrppt agencies 70 obtain legislation" lis conceded
Ibelieve that employed no such agencies until AFTER
We had obtained all the legislation had or de-
Fired 70 have Certainly when the amended bill OF 1864
was passed nearly every in the land in or out of
Congress was openly and avowedly Its favor leaving
not the slightest temptation TO use corrupt agencies
Later IN 1855, found ourselves compelled TO lmpOre
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. and foreign-to come TO our ara
and share great prospective riches and we at last
got effective aid from Cakes Ames and his friends
assure YOU the idea Of corrupt agencies entered
our minds. We had not the remotest thought OF ever
asking any further legislation. We wanted capital, not
legislation when again we came to just such another
crisis aud had enlarge the circle Of our Construction
Company fail il undertaking. urged my friends
OF happened there no Congressman among them)
10 invest-and they did so-sOme $4,000 at par and
below OF them upon my written guarantee against
loss Is it ovcrcharable 10 believe that not thought
Of corruption Of Congressman entered the mind of
Cakes Ames when he made the contracts with his
friends that we had in 1865, made with himthe same
contracts that / was then making with my friends
1t charged that do repay the Government ao
cordng the of the charter under which we con
structed the road do not intend to- Ianswer
that the terms of the amended charter clearly provide
just how the companies to repay the Government
prepared 20 live 10 the letter and spirit OF
the contract as we have always than done There
are be considered the interests OF the road OF its humid
11ors Of no
land who hold their securities Shall these interests be
sacrificed "a word, because of a misapprehension OF
the real facts upon the part OF the publcl
IL Is charged that built the ROAD at enormous
and egiumate profit to ourselves" guessed elsewhere
TO be thirty millions" Now had we, under the
circumstances having fulfilled contracts 10 the let
ter made thirty millions ventures aggregating one
hundred millions, who could justly complaint confess
my inability TO understand how this charge interests
the public The profit spoken of is not, understand,
supposed 10 be iloHtimae as between the Umted
States and the Union Pacific Railroad, but only between
the Union Pacific Railroad and the Credit Mobilier
private matter between private citizens. How is the
public aG,ctedf The gst Of the charge is OF course
that the profit ilegitimate and the iegltmacy If
charged on the single assumption that the profit was
"enormous" assure you that the profit was not even
adequate that the real profit hardly exceeded ten
per cent on the aggregate amount Of the contracts
This repued profit gross caused by estimating
the dividends their par value, when in fact the stock
greater part OF those dividends mas ever been so depIe
eated that even by exercising the utmost there
has been realized Ovor t1l0UoO) all told 10 the
beuedcares under an the cOutracts-contracts which
aggregated over SlO0OO0OOO Was this an enormous ~
profit
That in our superhuman efforts TO drive the road
through spent millions which we might have saved
is admitted but the Government and the peope should
be the complain, as IL benefited them at the sac
Tifce OF profits that would have been Justly ours Two
motives mpeled to this sacrice the first that We
might build and much OF the through road across
the Continent possible believing as we do STILL that
In due time the road would be valuable than the
millions ave spent for ito the second that we had dis
covered. or thought had dsOyal element working
n the community that feared might possibly poison
public sentiment and lead Congress in an evil hour of
excitement and misapprehensOn TO repeal the Act and
leave us with the road incomplete the securities
worthless. and we bankrupt or beggared.
II the amended act OF liberal, and handsome
returns have to those persons who accepted its
provisions and unwse as to drag their dis
agreements before the public gaze we have the practical
Lincoln TO thank and his urgent advice 10 Dr. Durant
and myself to he and ask sufficient aid in said
amended bill, that enterprise should not, like
nearly every Western railroad OF whichhe had known,
break down when half bHilt 70 the complete ruin Of all
the original projectors We followed his advice Con-
gress its wisdom, and If anything disturb his
quiet rest 1t the advsed camOr of the press, urg
ing the Government e repudiate the simple and PLAN
terms Of the amended charter. Respectfully,
NesC-Haren, Jan. p, 1873 G. 5. BUSHNELL.
LEGISLATION AND CREDIT MOBILIER STOCK.
To me Edttor Of The Tribune.
SIR: Your statement relating TO the history
of the Credit Mobiler of America in O-days issue is
duly appreciated by the reading community. Permit
one question. In the article you state that the Gov
ernment meanwhile had allowed its claim for It's loan
OF bonds 10 become second instead OF first mortgage,
and permitted the Union Pacific Road TO issue first mort
gage bonds which took precedence az lien on the road
Now vital point regarding the Indebtedness 70 the
Government, to be- whether the legislation Hecte-
sary make that change done before CT after the
placing Of the Credit MObieT stock 10y Ames where 10
would DO the most good - LE
Ne0 York, Feb. G. 1873.
1.-THE present exposures respecting Congressman have
principally had TO the recent stock trans
actions through which, explained in the article
referred to- legislation obtained that adjourned to
A. d. 1900 the payment of interest by the road to the
Government Further Investigations may yet give com
pIete evidence on the points concerning which lie in
quires.-EdJ
NO SYMPATHY FOR CREDIT MOBILIER SUFFERERS.
TO the Editor Of The Tribune.
SIR: Let us feel no sympathy for ColfaX,
Wilson scofeld Co.. their present unenvia Die position
before the public. Let remember how, during the
cent campaign, these men encouraged and profted by
that deliberate system Of classifying the motives Of Mr.
Greeley and the Liberal Republicans, which the
chief means OF warfare used by the Administration
party. Let watch with equanimly whatever suffer
Ines they may now undergo. H. W. W.
Summit, n. j., Jan %, 1878.
THE RAILROADS TO THE PACIFIC.
70 me EdftOr 0 / The Tribune.