The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1880-07-30
CREDIT MOBILIER-wHAT WAS TIT

the necessary grounds for buildings work
shops, side-tracks etc, and alternate sections
of land for ten miles on each side of the roads
and issued to it United States bonds a. the
rate of SIC, 600 per mile for $50 miles, f4s. 600.
per mile for 800 miles, and 81, 900 per mile
for $50 miles, which bonds were declared to-
be first mortgages on the road. In addition,
various branches were projected which added
further millions Of money and further mil
lions of acres of land. In 1864, after Garfield
had taken his seat in Congress, another act
was passed which doubled the land grants
and relinquished the preference OF the Gov
ernment bonds as the first mortgages by al
lowing the company to issue its own bonds as
such mortgages. The passage Of this act was
stoutly resisted by such men as L d. Wash
burne, of Illinois, and as stoutly supported
by such men as James A. Garfield, OAkes
Ames, John B. Alley, and others, who after
wards figured in the Credit MObilIer opera
tions. Here was Garfeld's first participation
in the business. The nature Of the scheme
was fully exposed by Mr.. washburne. We
quote his words In the Congressional Glcte:
''Who are the men who are here tn lobby
this bill through2 Have the men OF high
character and OF national reputation whose
names were At an earlier period connected
with this enterprise been here, animated By
a commendable public spirit, by motives OF
patriotism, TO ask US to pass this bill2 L
have not heard OF such men being here for
! that purpose; but, on the other hand, the
work of putting the bill through has gone
into the hands of such men as Samuel Hallett
and George F. Train, par mobile frutTun4
Sir, on my responsibility IS Rep
resentative / pronounce this as a monstrOuf
and fragrant attempt 10 Oyerresch the gov
I eTnment and the people that can be found In
all the legislative annals Of the county
When we look at the original law with al It's
liberal and just provisions, when we look At
the company organization under u and see
/ how far Il has failed to meet its proper obi
I Cations and consider the extraordinary
amendments here proposed. are We not filled
with astOnishment at what is demanded OF us
as the guardians of the peoples rights In
/ deed, may we not exclaim:
/ "sCan such things be,
And overcome US like a summer cloud
Without our special wonder7s
81 warn the true friends OF the road, warn
I Congress and the people OF what viii be the
result"
/ But the jObbers had Congress fixed and the
/ bill passed-passed the House, June "a, 1864
Garfield, Ames & Co. voting for it. Having
thus put the government ana the corporation
. in a position to be plucked, the jObbers next
( turned their attention to the means with
which to do the plucking 1t was necessary
/ for them to organize a ring For this pur-
| pose the charter of a corporation granted by
! the Legislature OF Pennsylvania in 1859 and
called the Pennsylvania Fiscal Agency
/ was purchased and an act Of the Pennsylva-
mia Legislature procured changing Its name
/ to Credit Mobilier Of America" All the
large and controlling stockholders in the
Union Pacific were stockholders in the Cred
it MObilier, and the object and use of the lat
ter were to enable these stockholders 20 con-
the road at enormous prices and so enrich
themselves at the cost of the government and
railroad corporation. Precisely as il William
II. Vanderbilt and his associates in the direc-
ton of the Central Railroad should organize
another corporation and by contracting one
with the other, rob the Central OF all its val
ne The conspirators in the Credit MObilier
scheme made the contract with themselves
and got along very well until 1861, when thev
had portion OF the road constructed and In
operation, and being unrestricted were chaTg-
ing enormous rates for passenger and freight
transportation. They had nothing further to
ask of Congress. What they wanted WAS to
be let alone. Their railroad stock was Of no
account, but the value OF the stock OF their
Credit Mobiier machine which was robbing
the nation was enormous. But Mr.. Wash
burne did not propose to let them alone
And accordingly, in December, 1857, he In
trOduced in the House provision restricting
the charges for passengers and freight to no
more than double the charges on the lines OF
railroad between the Mississippi and Allan
tic coast.
Il SHALL" he said, continue TO press this
matter upon Congress while have a seat
here. This company, whose road the gov
ernment Is building by its enormous subsidies
of S95, ,OOO, 900 and some 1000, 900 acres OF
land, the company getting the road without
the expenditure Of a single dollar OF its own
money, Is charging ten cents mile FOR every
passenger, and on freight one cent per mile
for every hundred pounds, more enormous
charges than have ever been known In any
country"
Garfield, Dawes Of Massachusetts. and
Others opposed Mr.. Washburne, who char
acteTized them as parties to the monopoly" q"
IL was here, at this point, that Oakes Ames
began to place Credit Mobilier stock among
members of Congress, where to use the
words of his letter produced in the Poland
Report, cit will do the most goOd'-no TO
procure favorable legislation, for all was had
that was wanted, but To prevent unfavorablo
legislation and to prevent threatened inves-
tigation. To quote the report of the Poland
Committee in their conclusions after investi-
CATION in 1873:
? 'In relation to the purpose and motives OF
. Mr.. Ames in contracting to let members of
4 which he and all other owners Of il consider
ed worth at least double that sum, the com
< mittee npOn the evidence taken by them and
r submitted to the House, cannot entertain a
doubt. When he said he did not suppose
the Union Pacific Company would ask or
need fnrther legislation, he stated what be
{ believed to he true. But ne feared the in
, tereSts of the road might suffer by adverse
. legislation, and what he desired to accom-
plish was To enlist strength and friends I'm
: Congress who would resist any encrOach-
h ment upon the rights and privileges already
, secured, and To that end wished 10 create in
them an interest identical with his own
, This purpose i clearly avowed in his letters
t TO McC0mb, copied in the evidence. He
n says he intends to place the stock where it
= will do the most good 10 us And again,
l we want more friends in Congress In
his letter to McCOmb, and also in hts state
: ment prepared by counsel, he gives the phil
h. O~ophy Of his action, to wit that he has
found there IS no difficulty in getting men "a
I look after their own property The Com.
N mittee are also satisfied that Mr. Ames en-
r tertained fear thai when the true relations
between the Credit Nobilier Company and
the Union Pacific became generally known
L ana the means by which the great profits are
er expected TO be made were fully understood
If there was danger that Congressional inYes-
tigatiOn and action would be invoked"
From this recital of facts, the reader viii
TT be able 10 gather the character of the Credit
Il hObilier corporation, its relations to the
ii Union Pacific Railroad and the value OF IL.
. stock, and the true nature OF the transac
:" ti0ns between Oakes Ames and Garfield and
n. conspicuous champions Of Union Paciil
Raiiro4d Interests On px-nr-- occasion xrhar