Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1876-05-16

and with which Blaine bad nothing
: do. Colonel EcOtt was sworn, and, o
/ being examined by Hunton, testified
. He formerly owned those seventy-fv
| bonds OF the Little Rock and Fort Smit
railroad company, and had bough
, them a year aud four months previCu
to his selling them to the Union Paciti
railroad company; he bought them from
Josiah Caldwell; was negotiating bond
OF that company; Caldwell belonged I
Boston, but he did not know where b
was now; he understood, however, tha
Caldwell during the panic Of 1873 went +
Europe after bis failure in the west, ant
it was there he gave Caldwell eight!
cents on the dollar for the bonds; tn,
purchase was made in 1870, when b,
had nothing to do with the Union Pa
cific railroad company; he gave sixty
thousand dollars for the bonds, and sole
them to the Union Pacific railroad com
pany, through Morton, Bliss & Co., fol
nearly sixty-four thousand dollars; WheI
in March, 1861, he entered upon the du
ties Of president Of the company, the
stock was low-dOwn and everything
connected with it depressed, but it wsi
! provement in all its affairs; he had be-
lieved the company would give him 8
liberal compensation for his services; he
was pressed FOR money, which he
wanted more than the mere sal.
sry, and it was fioalIy suggested
thai the company should buy these sew.
enty-five bonds of the Little Rock and
Fort Smith railroad company, he was to
have the option of buying them back
the executive committee agreed to buy
| the bonds at the price fixed, through
Morton, Bliss IL Co., and the bonds went
| to the Union Pacific railroad company
| in this direct way, and in no other; his
| years salary had never been paid-that
would be eight thousand dollars, with
| interest; il the Arkansas road had been
| completed, the bonds would have been
worth from ninety to one hundred cents
on the dollar; he had rendered the Union
| Pacific railroad company a service for
| which there was no market value; he
was satisfied that if the Little Rock
| and Fort Smith railroad had been
built, it's bonds would have been
as good as those of the Union Pacific
are to-day; he repeated that this pur-
chase of the seVeniy-flVe bonds by the
company WAS in consideration OF val
liable services rendered by him; the in-
vestment in these bonds was because the
company wanted to do an equitable
thing for him; the company did not dis
play the transaction on their books and
never expected that it would become q
subject Of investigation by congress
siOnsl committee.
Question: understand you to say
that the executive committee, of which
you were an er 06iciO memb-r, bought
these seventy. five UOnds to oblige you?
AnsWer-PartislIy to oblige me and
also in consideration Of valuable serv
ices.
Colonel Scott repeated that the bonds
belonged to him and were sod to the
company when he wanted money, and
the amount he received was asked by
him to pay his debts; he had twice asked
for his salary, hut had not yetreeeived it.
QuestiOn-DO you know whether Mr..
Elaine had any part IN these transac
tiOns?
Answer-I never had any relations
with Mr.. Blaine ia Little Rock and Ft.
Smith IailIOad bonds, directly or indi-
rectly.
Mr.. Lswrerce-If 1 understand you
correctly, the sale of bonds to the Union
4 ENAAAN ARAAApNI VOC 0uORlCu
as means to compensate you in paIt
for extraordinary services?
ATswer-Yes.
Question-NOw, does the compenss-
ton you received compare with the
compensation Of other companies for
similar services?
Answer-The Reading railroad COM
pany gives its president thirty Thousand
dollars per snnum; Philadelphia, Will
miDgton and Baltimore thirty-four
thousand dollars, and the Erie forty
thousand dollars, but when you come to
consider how low down the stock of toe
Union Pacific railroad company was
when / became president, and the Tros-
porous condition of the company soon
afterward, my compensation was worth
double the value of the seventy five
bonds Of the Little Rock and Fort
Smith railroad company. The reason
why compensation was given in this
form was that the executive committee
did not wish to interfere with, or disturb
the fixed salary of eight thousand dol
lars to the president.
QuestiOn-Hsve you any knowledge
or information that connects Blaine
with the seventy-five bonds?
AnsWeT-None whatever; i have al
ways believed that Caldwell, from whom
purchased the bonds, was principal
man in negotiating them.
Mr.. Blaine-Did ever speak or write
to you in behalf OF Caldwell?
Answer-You never did.
Mr.. Blaine-Havey you any knowledge
at eli that l was interested in the bonds
before The purchase Of them, or was In
any way interested in the proceeds after
you sold them to the Union Pacific rail-
road company?
Answer-I have no knowledge or be-
lief whatever that you had anything TO
do with them.
John M'Clurs, of Arkansas, was
sworn, and testified that he was ac-
quainted with Josiah Caldwell, who
was connected with the Little Rock and
Fort Smith railroad company. He was
asked the question: Did you ever hear
from Caldwell the disposition made OF
any bonds OF the company? when Mr..
Blaine inteTposed, saying he had suffer
ed no doubt in the estimation of all
good people, because of the allegation
that be was interested in the bonds that
went to the Union Pacific railroad COM
pany, but as there was nothing else in |
tbs resolution under which this inyesti- |
CATION was held, he was entitled to a re- |
port on that subject alone. He did not |
want it complicated with anything else |
or connected with any other question. |
1t should stand exactly where the wit
ness left it. He thought he had right |
in the name of justice to make this de-
maDd.
Witness (M'Clure) said he knew noth-
ing about the matter that would he tes-
tiD1ony.
BY Mr.. LawrenCe-HaYe you any |
knowledge or information IS to the sale |
OF the seventy-five bonds concerning
which testimony has been taken?
Answer-I never knew that any
bonds were sold, and all know about |
them is what Caldwell told me.
1t was decided that hearsay testimony
could not be taken.
The committee then adjourned.
MEKECO