Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-02-02
CREDIT MOBIIIER.
Its Birth Place.
Pennsylvania Claims the Credit--The
Charter Granted for S50,OOO-Eew
York WOuldn't DO 1t for $500, eco,
Nor New Jersey for SI50,00O.

Pennsylvania Claims the Credit-The
Charter Granted for $50, ,OOO-Eew
York WOuldn't DO 1t for $500, goo,
Nor New Jersey for $4,000
PHILADELPHIA, Jan 2S, 1673.-The his
tory of the organization cf the Credit Mo-
bilier came out this evening, during IN ami
mated discussion in the Constitutional
Convention on the corruption IN the State
Legislature. Mr.. Boyd, Of Montgomery,
said:-T viii vote for biennial elections,
and will follow it up by voting for biennial
sessions, because believe there is standing
betw. en- the people and the Legislature a
body of men known ss politicians, who
have been working for evil. Sir, notwith-
standing gentlemen rush from the House of
Representatives and tell US that there Is no
bribery, that there is no corruption in that
body, believe that there is corruption in
that body. believe that there is corrup-
ton there. l believe too, with the most
glorious and grandest Roman of us all, my
colleague, Mr. Black, as he wrote a. few
short months ago, that
CORRUPTION WAS LIKE A TIDAL WAVE
sweeping through the country, and was ap
to the very feet of the judiciary. believe
that If reformation is to begin anywhere by
this convention it should be in the Legisla-
tIIre. Why, do gentlemen forget it was In
the Legislature of Pennsylvania that, for
the paltry sum Of $50, 900, they enacted the
Credit <Mobilier, a corporation which was
refused incorporation By the Legislature of
New York for not less than 100000, and
By the New Jersey Legislature for not less
than Si50,000? But when they came over
H. Il 4.
ture ready for the Insignificant sum of $780,
000to set it on foot. Then it was trans
ported to Maine and ran its silly course
throughout the entire Union, and, sir, it
has corrupted men in the highest walks OF
life as well rs those in the lowest, until we
are told by the Investigations now going on
that this country has been robbed Of over
one hundred million dollars. If this is not
glory enough for the gentlemen who favor
such a Legislature as we have had during
the last few wears, it seems to me their am
bition can never be satisfied. | believe, if
We have biennial sessions, one half the poli-
ticiaUs will be Topped OFF, for this "third
house" cannot subsist unless they are fed
st the crib Of the State, and want the peo-
pie to have an opportunity of Kidding them
selves of those rascals who have helped to
make our State
"A BYWORD AND A REPROACH.
Besides my advocacy of biennial sessions
/ will, at the proper time, vote to increase
the members of the Legislature. In the
Eastern States the Legislatures are much
larger than our own, and we do not hear of
their members being brought up as it is re-
ported our members are. Why? Because
the amount of mon ~ required to 90 around
that large body viii, when divided up, be
so exceedingly thin to each member Chat he
will consider it not adequate. And as an
other safeguard viii vote for increasing
the pay of the members, in order that they
may have competent compensation while
in the discharge of their public duties, with
out resortiDg to corrupt schemes.
Mr.. Smith, of Lancaster-Mr. Chairman q,
the gentleman from Montgomery Mr. Boyd)
has given you an idea as to
THE ORIGIN OF THE CREDIT MoBILIER,
and he IMPLIED that our Legislature could
be much easier bought than New York or
New Jersey Legislatures. have correct
version of the history OF that corporation,
which l will briefly give you. A distin-
guished Democrat of this Commonwealth,
Who had been clerk in both houses, met
me on one occasion and told me that a gen.
tlemen who was usually full Of speculative
theories came up to the Legislature one
session. The project that he had in hand
at the time was the organization in this
country of a corporation similar to the
Credit Mobilier established in France. He
framed bid and had it passed by the
Pennsylvania Legislature before the Pacific
Railroad was barely conceived Of. A COM
pany was organized in this city, and each
of the directors then and there elected were
voted thirty sbSTes Of paid up stock-they
being of the ground fOor-st 81, 600 share.
Afterwards, at another meeting, the name
Of the corporation was changed to
THE PENNSYLVANIA FISCAL AGENCY,
bat nothing was ever done by the organiza-
tion. The charter, stock-book and the pap srs
were stolen, and bodily carried off to New
York, where the company known as the
Credit MobiIier was organized. The
changes were stricken out, and they re-
turned back to the original title. The
father of the bill said that he would have
been entitled to receive large sum at one
time if he had held on to his paid up
stock, for when the question of the paid
stock came up in New York they sent a
party to Philadelphia to buy it all up. He
would have received, according to his cal
culstion, $1,1O0,OO0, whereas his thirty
shares brought him, when he sold it, but
S270. believe this to be
4 TRUE HISTORY
of the origin Of that company. don't
think that the Legislature Of PeDrsylyauis
should be charged with hayiD2 sold itself
so much cheaper than the New York Legis-
lature.