The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1875-03-12

airy S1th. 1870.
To tho Directors ard Stockholders Of the Louisville.
New Albany and e. Ioui. Air Line Railway
! | submit this, my Annual keport OF
the operations and condition OF the
Louisville, New Albany and St. Louis
Air Line Railway for the year 1874.
The report Of Mr.. George Lyman. Sec
.iclary and Treasurer OF saiL company,
for the year 1874. is also submitted.
From the report of Mr.. Lyman, we
learn the bonded debt of the company
AZ this time amounts TO the sum OF SSl0.-
766 AZ. That the floating debt amounts
TO Si79, 1872 20: total debt, $9S9,9 62.
| Ii should be borne in mind, that the
floating debt as above, has filed with IL
3i9 Of the cOmpany's first mortgage
bonds. as collateral security. which may
under the contingency Of non-payment
OF The debts for which they stand
pledged, become also lien against the
company. Ii orr corporation possessed
the means. however. of paying off the
floating debt, it would. Of course, carry
with il a return TO us of the collaferals
pledged for the payment of these debts
! am pleased TO state that the finished
portion Of orr road lca.ling from Prince
iou. Indiana. TO Albion, Illinois, near q
lniiIes in length. j. doing full as we'll a.
we could expect, and has during the last
wear more than earned sutiiciency To
ldefray the ordinary running expenses
Tor operating said line of road, as refer
encc TO the report of Mr.. Lyman will
more fully show. The track Of this
part Of the road, is also being put into
good condition. u Respectable force OF
men being kept constantly at work on
The line
| There was some funds lying in the
TREASURY Of Gibson county, Indiana.
! which had been voted by the people OF
l;hai county 20 our road. and under the
law by which the subscription was made
wculd have become forfeited in a given
time ii not used. aud your officers con
tracicd seven miles OF grading and com
plrird ii during last summer. between
,he towns Of Princeton and Oakland
itily. in said county of Gibson, using the
funds spoken OF above, in fun payment
.,r the same. This il about all the road.
from the lack of funds. that we have
brcn able to construct during the year
that is past.
| Al several times during the progress
,of the wear that is closed. we were en-
icour1g.d io believe that our bonds were
on the point OF being negotiated. Our
agents. in Europe. have been working
diligently .or their sale. and frequently
informed III that they were stimulated
with strong hopes of cileciing such a
NEGOTIATION rs would " once enable the
COMPANY to commence work. and COM
plctc our line OF road. hut recently
they have Informed Us that the oppor-
tuniiies for negotiation were not at all
encouraging. that the unsettled condi-
tion of the monetary affairs in our own
lcuuntry.--the failure of so many of our
railroad enterprises 10 meet their ac-
icrued interest: the organization OF So
,ciclics among tic farming interest of
'our country. with sccming spirit of
rut, onism 10 r-iiroad enterprises the
unsettled condition OF matters in some
OF our Southern States, and the unfa-
vorable legislation had in some OF the
Western states ia prcscrib n a low taril
OF rates for railroad traffic has about dis
PEELED all hopes at present of a success :
ful negotiation of our First Mortgage
Bonds. a .ale of our bonds, would, OF
course, enable the company TO complete
: the entire road. In the absence Of such
sale, the company Is shorn of present
strength and ability TO finish it. And
the enquiry presents itself, what is the
best line OF policy for the present com
pany 10 adopt or pursue i'm order that
new capital may be brought 10 the aid
,of the road? We all desire the com
, pletion Of the enterprise, and If IL can
mot be built i'm one way. some other
plan may be suggested by which IL can.
We have valuable line of road, and a
{ considerable amount of money already
: spent upon IL; enough expended TO in
$ sure, upon somc plan, its ultimate com
;; pletion. Ii might be judicious and prop.
Icr for the stockholders TO give some ex-
lpression on this subject AZ its present
injecting. The price of iron, labor, and
II may say of everything that enters into
1.-THE building ofa railroad, beingso cheap,
lis strong inducement for some new ef-
forts to be made. and every such effort
feasible in t. nature, looking TO the
building and completion Of our line oi
road, should meet with prompt and
ready response on our part.
Every exertion has been put forth by
your officers, TO accomplish the OBJECT OF
our organization, namely: the building
lof the road with the means at our dis
posal. But we happened to strike times
that were unsteady and evil in their
y yIcharacter. And our failure thus far
: Imay be attributed TO the same fact, IL we
lean find that out. that has produced q
> general prostration of all the material
Interests Of our country, and caused So