The Republican journal., 1876-04-27
Hlaine's Exclamation,

ol MONDAY MI. Blaine maze personal
explanation, on the floor of the House,
concerning the charges that he had i'm
properly received SG4, 900 from the Union
Pacific Railroad in 1871 He read letter 5
from the bankers and treasurer of the
road, stating that they had no knowledge
of any such transactions. He then re-
terred to his dealings in the bond of q
railroad in Arkansas, as follows
| To give seeming Confederation or foundation to
the story which have dsproved, the absurd ru1nor
has lately appeared in certain newspapers that was
the owner of from $780, 900 to $3.50 900 of the Little
Rock x Fort Smith Railroad bonds, which receive ed
without consideration, and that it was from these
bonds that Thos a. Scott received his SO 900 The
statement Is gratuitously and utterly false No re
| sponsible author appears anywhere for this un-
founded story but in di missing 1t desire make
| the following explicit statement More than tween.
ty-threc years ago. in the closing days of Mr. Fill.
more's administration, the Government granted to
the State OF Arkansas some public lands within Its
own limits to be applied to the construction Of rail
| roads in that State.
The legislature of Arkansas Incorporated the Little
Rock & Fort smith Railroad Co. the same year. aud
gave TO the company portion of the lands it had
received from the General Government to aid in the
| construction Of the road about 200 TO the
| mile, | think. But the company were unable to
raise any money for the enterprise, though they
made the most strenuous efforts, and when the war
broke ont in 1861 eight years after the State had
| given the lands to the company, not mile of the
road WAS built. OF course nothing done during
the war After the war all the grants OF land previ
ously made the Southern states were renewed in
gross in the session of 1866. The Little Rock K
Fort Smith Co. again received grant from the
and again tried to raise money to build their road
laG5 1866 and 1867 passed without their getting d
| dollar.
Finally, towards the close of 1863, a company re.
presenting considerable capital undertook its CON
structlon In raising the requisite means they plac-
| ed the bonds of the road on the New England mar
ket in the summer Of 1869, Offering them terms
very favorable to the purchaser and Offering them
AT time when investments Of this kind fatally
| popular.
In common with hundreds of other people In New
England, and other parts of the country, bought
some Of those bonds, not very large amount pay
Ing tor them AT precisely the that others
| paid | never heard, and do not believe that the
Little Rock Co., which know is controlled by high.
| ly honorable men, parted with u bond TO any
| sale.
The enterprise, though apparently very promising,
proved unsuccessful as did many similar project
about the same time. | lost considerable sum of
| money. over $4,000 by my investment, and pre-
sumo New England made net loss of 81 900 600 in
completing that road for Arkansas She lost over
one hundred millions by similar ventures West and
| South within the last twelve years.
In addition to my Investment in the bonds unit
ed with some Others in raising some money for the
Company when it met its first financial troubles.
Proceedings are now pending in the L. ). Circuit
Court in Arkansas to which aln party Of record
for the reimbursement of the money advanced.
All the bonds ever purchased continued to hold
| and when the Company was organized in 1874 | ex-
changed them for stock aud bonds in the new CON
Gel II, ,chich still
My whole connection with the road has been open
as the day. If there had been anything to conceal
about ii, should never have touched il. Wherever
concealment is desirable, avoidance is adv isable
and do not know any better test to apply to the
honor aud fairness OF business transaction AS to
the question OF propriety involved in member of
Congress holding an investment OF this kind, II must
be remembered that the bonds were granted to the
state Of Arkansas, and not to the railroad Co that
the company derived its life, franchise and value
wholly from the State, and to the State the company
is amenabe and answerabe, and not in any
to Congress. Since 4 purchased the bonds but one
act of Congress as passed in any way touching the
subject, and that WAS merely to rectty previous
mistake in the legislation.
Mr. Blaine then stated that the charge
had more recently come up in another
form, to wit:
Morton, Bliss Co., In 1871, through IhoS A. Scott
then President OF the Union Pacific Railroad Co.
for the sum of soi 600 and that $4,000 of the bonds
OF the Little Rock and Fort Smith Railroad Co.
were pledged As collateral; that the Union Pacific
Co. paid the draft and took up the collateral that the
cash proceeds Of that to and that had
furnished and sold in way conveyed or trans
ferred to Thos. A. Scott the Little Rock and Fort
Smith bonds. which had been used collateral that
the bonds in reality had belonged TO me, or some
friend or constituent of mine for whom was acting
ldesre here and now to declare that all and every
part OF MS story tHlt connects my name with it is
absolutely untrue, without particle of foundation
III fact, and without ttle Of evidence to subsaut
ate it. never had any transaction of any kind with
Thomas A. Scott concerning bonds of the Little
Rock & Fort Smith Road the bonds of any other
railroad, any business in any way connected with
railroads directly or indirectly, Immediately or r..
motely. never had any business transactions what
ever with the Union Pacific K k. Co.. or amy uf it,
ohcers, or agents, or representatives, aud in
any manner received from that company, directly or
indirectly single dollar in money or stocks, or
bonds, or any other form OF value. And As to the
particular transaction referred 10 never much
heard of IL until two years after the alleged occur
renee when it talked of at the time vi the Credit
Mobiller investigation in 1873.
Mr.. Blaine then read letters from Sid
ney Dillon, President Of the Union Pacific
Railroad, A. from COL Scott, totally deny
ing any such transactions lie adds to
these the following explanation
When the Little Rock Railroad fell into the imam
ctal troubles of which have spoken. there
tain interests connected with it that under pc
cullarly pressing enibarras Snens and that needed
relief There had been at different times very con
siderable talk about inducing the Atlantic & Pacific
Road, which on its southern Branch TO be
connecting link East and W est with the l.. k. <. L.
s., and the Missouri, Kansas 4 Texas Road, which
would be connecting link both North and South at
the point Of junction. to aid the l.. Il. & F. : enter.
prise, by taking some of Its securities practice
very common among connecting roads. To both OF
these the completion of the Little Rock Road was
very great IN the Spring
of 1871, when only coupon had been passed bv
the Little Rock Co. on one series Of its bonds ana
none passed on the other and when there san
suine hope OF getting the enterprise its feet again.
the Atlantic and Pacific Co. look 100000 OF its
bonds and 100000 of its stock for the gross sum of
$4,000 and the Missouri Kansas & Texas, If | re.
member correctly, took half the amount at the same
rate. his WAS done not for the corporation itself,
but for an interest largely engaged i'll the coustruc
ton of the Road With the circumstances attending
the negotiation with the Atlantic and Pacific Road
was entirely familiar. and with several of its officers
have long been well acquainted. | also knew of
the negotiations with the Missouri, Kansas < Texas
Road, though never, to my knowledge, saw any of
Its officers and never had an interview With any Of
them on any subject.
But in of both roads desire to say that the
bonds sold to them did not belong to me nor did
have one dollar Of pecuuiary interest In the whole
transaction with either company.