The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-01-06

The Credit Mobilier Corruption-nIore
Light for tho Investig ating Commit
tee OF Congress.
As the committee appointed by Congress to
investigate the charges made against certain
members of that body of o corrupt interest in
the Credit Mobilier is about to renew its
sittings, and as its time is short we place
before it, through the medium of to-day g
HERALD, the inner history of the connection
Of that company with the Union Pacific Rail
road. The information is contained in an
affidavit Of DR.. Thomas @. Durant and.
although this statement is portion OF the
records of the Supreme Court, in the suit
pending between the two corporations, the
facts it sets forth are now for the first time
published. The story of the corruption
will be tho clearer to the general public. and
the more easily understood, from this expose of
the transactions and after its perusal the
investigating committee will be better able
to discover the importance to the parties
interested in the magnificent scheme Of
plumber of such friendly aid in Congress
as would insure them against any in
Pacific Railroad was o ward, as it were. Of the
government. The people. whose substance
was invested in the road, were interested in
the honest and efficient management Of the
affairs of the corporation, and stood, in fact, in
the position of preferred creditors. If faith
full and honorable Representatives in Congress
had investigated the charges made from time
to time against the management of the COM
pany they would have exposed the bold plum
der of the road by the Credit Mobilier ring
and the government would have stepped in to
rescue it from the hands Of the conspirators
Secrecy was the great object to be achieved
in order to enable the few men who were
banded together to detraud the stockholders
and the government, to carry their designs to
success. To accomplish this it was necessary
to seal the lips of the most active members of
the Senate and the House, and it will be the
duty of the committee now engaged in the
| investigation to ascertain from the record
whether the votes of those who have been
interested, either in their own names or in the
names of relatives and close family connec-
tons, in the Credit Mobilier, have not been
uniformly cast to obstruct and defeat investi-
cation into its transactions.
The simple history of the affair that has
created so much excitement is soon told
While the Union Pacific road was under con-
struction 'tring" was formed inside the
direction, embracing, as such q combination
always does, the shrewdest, most active and
least scrupulous of the Board, for the purpose
of making large fortunes for its members in
ON illegitmate manner, at the cost of the road
and of the unsuspecting stockholders. As
usual, the object was to be achieved by means
of construction contracts. Through the votes
of the ''ring' the work was to be awarded in
q lump to some dummy contractor, OF price
double, or more than double, the cost, with
fair profit added for, as q great many capa-
cious appetites had to be satisfied, ON ample
margin was necessary. The contractor was
then to make over the contract to
the ''ring' directors, in their capacity
of stockholders of the Credit Mobilier,
the pretence being that the Credit Mobilier
had the means to push the work vigorously
forward, and would be better able to do so
than any single individual. In pursuance of
this conspiracy-for it was nothing else-the
contract for the construction of large portion
of the road at fifty thousand dollars mile
was awarded and duly assigned to the "ring'-
a price which, according to Dr. Durants
statement was more than double the legit-
innate cost of the work This, however, was
not enough. By the votes of the conspirators
many miles of road which had already been
constructed and accepted by the United States
government as complete, and which had
nearly all been paid for by the Union Pacific
Company, were included in the contract
at fifty thousand dollars mile, and
thus an enormous amount Of money was
taken bodily, as it were, out of the pockets
of the stockholders without O shadow of JUS
tifcation and transferred to tho greedy grasp
of the ring. The shares of the Credit Mobilier
were thus made at once worth from eight to
ten times their face value-that is to say, o
single thousand dollar share was worth from
eight to ten thousand dollars in cash. Armed
with this capital the members Of Congress who
were in the ring set about satisfying their
associates at Washington of the great virtues
and benefits of the Credit Mobilier, of the ad-
mirable and honest management of the affairs
of the Union Pacific Railroad Company, and of
the propriety and patriotism of frowning down
all attempts to interfere with its great work by
petty inquiries and annoying Investigations
of the wisdom, in short, of allowing it to con-
hnue close corporation, sealed up from the
eyes of all except the conspirators and their
allies. Of course no Improper inducements
were offered to Senators and Representatives
to bring them over to this way of thinking.
The offer of money bride would, no
doubt, have been Indignantly spurned as
vulgar and dangerous proceeding. A 'pure
business transaction" took place between the
lohbvictc IF tho Crad;t Mob;Io~ ~;,r, 40, 4 xbo