Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1882-01-31
JACKSON'S JOB.
The Collapse Of the Chicago, Portage and
Superior Company-A Conference Of the
Parties in Interest in Chicago Saturday.

The Collapse Of the Chicago, Portage and
Superior Company-A Conference Of the
Parties in Interest in Chicago Saturday.
From Chicago Times, Jan. 29.]
Active negotiations between the officers of
the Chicago, Portage and Superior railway
and the parties who have secured, as is sup
posed, controlling interest in the stock of
the company, together with the officers OF
the st. Paul, Omaha and Chicago railway,
were opened In this city yesterday. Gen. scho-
field, president of the Chicago, Portage and
Superior railway, arrived from New York yes
terdav morning, and in the course of the day
was Joined at the Palmer house by Charles B.
Peck, general manager, MIR. Barnes, vice presi-
dent, and Mr.. Titus, chief engineer. Mr..
George Peck, brother of Charles B Peck,
and attorney. for the Atchison, Topeka and
Santa Fe railroad, with Office at Topeka, Kan,
arrived in the afternoon, and will act as ad-
visory attorney for the Chicago, Portage and
Superior company. Messrs. Tourtelotte and
Eidridge were also retained as counsel for the
company.
A reporter for the Times took advantage of
lull In the conference to interview President
Schofeld regarding the sale of the stock by
A. A. Jackson, and the collapse of the com
pany which followed. President Schofeld
gave connected narrative of the transaction
and the circumstances leading up to it.
sin 1881" said he, 81 made an examination
of the property of the Chicago, Portage &
Superior railway, and the conditions upon
which it was to be transferred to nv control
were agreed to, as follows: The original pro-
prietors and present owners, Messrs. Barnes,
Ludington, Price and others, who were repre-
sented by Jackson as attorney, had expended
approximately 81 100000. The contract for
the change of management involved these
conditions: That the parties named were to
ExTINeUIsH THE OUTSTANDING OBLIGATIONS,
consisting of two mortgages and the out
standing stock, and cause the same to be
cancelled and returned to me, for which I
should issue to those parties seven hundred
bonds of $1,000 each, and pay off in
cash the miscellaneous floating debt,
amounting to about $40, 900; and, in addi-
ton, there was to be issued 81 100000 in
stock to John G. Barnes of New York, who
was the largest owner of the property of the
company. But, for reasons known to the
parties. Mr.. Barnes desired that the stock GER
tifcates should be issued in trust to and in
the name of A. A. Jackson, and they were is
sued and delivered to Barnes, and were held by
him until few weeks ago.
ITO whom did Barnes transfer the stock?"
was asked.
swell, two or three weeks ago Jackson re-
quested Barnes to put him in possession of
| the stock. The understanding between Jack
son and Barnes was that Jackson was to hold
the stock in trust for the following purposes:
1. To enable Barnes to secure and cause to be
Cancelled and returned to me as president a
certain amount of old corporation stock then
outstanding, which Barnes had not been able
| to reach: 2. That Barnes had agreed to
pay to jackson certain sum as compensation
for services rendered the company prior to the
change of administration, together with a
| small amount due Capt Ruger, the
engineer, after which the balance of
| stock or its avails, should belong to and
be considered the rightful property Of John G..
Barnes. Jackson had been in full possession
of all the facts touching the transfer of man.
agement, the conditions of the contracts en-
tered into by the railway company for secur-
| ing means with which to construct the road,
| was present at all meetings, and assisted to
RATIFY ALL PROCEEDINGS,
| and, in short, was the trusted counselor and
attorney Of the corporation, and knew of the
| contamination of agreements which were be-
| ing perfected last week, and from which the
company was, on Thursday of last week, to
receive the first installment of $50 900 in cash,
that being one OF the five like amounts which
we're to be advanced prior to the placement of
$780, 600 of the bonds in London, ali of
which was provided for in contracts by re-
sponsible parties. And it was only on the
morning Of the day upon which this first
payment OF 81, 600 was to be made that Jack
| son sought the attorney of the agent for the
London parties and communicated to him the
statement that there was to be great fight
in the Wisconsin legislature, by which the
land grant was to be transferred
to the Omaha and Chicago rail-
| way company; that the legislature had been
| sage of such measure; that it would be i'm.
possible, in any event, for the company to
complete the work of construction so as 10
earn the land grant within the period limited
by Jaw; that if the work could be done, and the
! land grant'earned, yet the question Of right
would be carried into the courts, and it would
probably consume from five to ten years to
determine the issue; that bill would be intro
duced of such characterize adverse to the
| land giant interests of the Chicago, Portage &
Superior cOmpany-that it would estop the
London parties from issuing prospectus or
selling the bonds of the railway COMPANY
Jackson stated, further, that he held the only
lawfully issued and fully paid up stock of the
corporation, and that he had an offer in cash
for his stock, which he should avail himself
of that day. He told the party to whom this
COuuuulCdtlOu was udu0 tlldG u6 COQuQ6Q Tie
facts to him from a sense of duty, ia order
that the London parties might understand
what was being done.'
"What was
THE EFFECT oF THIS ACTION
on the part of Jackson?" was asked.
"This had the effect, of course, of causing
the agent of the London parties to hesitate in
making the payment of $4,000, and which
prevented the Chicago, Portage & Superior
Railway company from paying. as it had in
tended doing, the wages due the men for the
month of December, amounting to about
$4,000. Later in the day the same day on
which this communication was made to the
agent of the London parties-Jackson called
upon me-that was a week ago last Thursday
between 1880 and 10 o'clock, and informed
me that he preferred to sell his stock to the
railway company, provided it would pay him
the same amount offered him by other parties.
In answer to my inquiry, he told me that he
would accept 5000, 1000, but it must be
paid him by Q o'clock of the
same day; otherwise, he should accept
the offer made by other parties. told him
that he had so effectually thwarted the agree
ment which would have secured the payment
of $50, 600 to the company, and had thereby
defeated the intended payment of the employees,
and had brought the company into such per-
picking embarrassment, that it was not posi-
BILE, under the circumstances, for me to raise,
in two hours, the sum of 5000, 900. The prop
osifion ms de hv Jackson considered most