The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1879-01-11
THE PACIFIC RAILROAD ROBBERY.


VIVA, is The precise function of the govern
linen, directors of the Pacific Railroad anyhow
Every dollar that both the Union and Contra
Pacific Railroad cost WAS raised on bonds len
Ihy the government to the two corporations I'm
der whose names VIVA, now constitutes the on
Pacific railroad WAS built and Is now owned
land operated Outside of the cost Of buildin!
and cquipping the road, however the director
and managers of the corporations borrowct
about SD, 100000 more, and raised about SEQ
100000 by selling stock, and these SsO,OOOO O'
were stolen outright by the Cakes Amcscs
billions, liunlingtons, iiarlans, Nc, that man
ipulatrd that monster steal, except what they
distributed among members of congress ano
the lobby TO get congress to lcgalizc the stca
and make it stick The way that was don,
WAS this: Congress. in oaning the bonds OF
he government for $4,000, 900 took rs security
u mortgage on the road, and to enable the di
rcclols 10 make their big steal they had To get
la law through congress To remove this mort.
gage and allow them To borrow SGOOOOOOO on
of with II second mortgage, or, in other words,
with no security at all. A few years expert,
rnCe, however, showed, so enormous were the
earnings of The road, that even the govern.
rIcnls' second mortgage WAS worth something
# the finances + The road were honestly man
aged. Therefore The government in accord.
ancc with il original bargain, placed in the
board of directors Ol each oi the two corpora.
function it was supposed to bc to insist on such
u management OF the road and its finances that
the first mortgage should he discharged, and
especially that the road should redeem It's
pledge to the government To pay the interest on
the bonds the government had loaned it,
Wcll--lhe Washington dispatches say the
government directors Of the Union Pacific
Railroad eastern haIf) have just made their
annual report. They say the earnings Of the
road have been so enormous the past few years
that dividends amounting to s. per cent. have
been paid to the stockholders (whosc stock
never cost them 25 cents on the d0llar3 and
they complainant that part of this money
Was not used in paying the interest on the gov
eminent bonds loaned to the road, ~ the con
pany is bound by every consideration Of honor
and honesty to debut that they have spent
les, money IN repairing and renewing the road
he'd and furnishing the road with palace cars,
50 rs To make il the best equipped and most
magnificen, railroad in the world There is
no Il syllable il the report to Indicate that these
who were placed in the board to look
after the Interests Otthc government ever made
the slightest effort in that direction; but they
grnmble because the swindling stock holders,
in their hoggi,h swallowing up OF all the prof.
lis, didn't leave part 10 equip the road with
steel rails and palace cars
No wonder Charles Francis Adams resigns
rs government director in disgust, and says
no man living is honest enough to hold such
a position and do his duty.
There is no way in which the gigantic
system of robbery which the management off
this Pacific railroad has involved from its first
to this day can bc Stopped eAcep, by
the government taking fDrciblc possession of
it, placing it in the hands of II receiver until all
its honest debts are paid, and then turning il
over to new company that shall have come
10y their stock honestly.