Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-01-31

Neither GraspiPg Nor Immoral,
but H Sustained by n Mejority of
the Owners OF The Stock of the
Centra.-HIgh Tribute 90 Wr, Wad-
ley" STOCK T. OIdet'-o Position For
IIfied by Facts and Figures.
SAVANNAH, January 30 Editor Morning
Mems: The Macon Telegraph and Messenger,
on the 9th instant, in a long editorial,
severely criticises what it calls the "scheme
of the Alexander party"
This piece is ably written, and is well cal
culated to II fluAnce stockholders against the
new policy proposed by those who favor the
payment of larger dividends ~ the Central
r ilroad and Banking Company. and ema-
mating from so respectable and influential
paper, it carries weight. Il is, therefore,
well for those who are interested to have
pointed cut to them the spuriousness of the
argument.
The weak points of this editorial are, first,
tho verv bad taste in which it is written.
II political discussions personal invective
and abuse are rPsnrted TO, but in matters
pertaining to finance and railroad policy
writers who wish TO command the respect
| Of business men do not pre- ume to criticise
the motives which may actuate men who
may be selected to carry out anv line of
policy. The practical sense of the dav
teaches stockholders to lock at figures and
facts, and not 70 blackboard any set of men
who differ with them as 70 the line of policy
TO be adop'ed AS an example Of this line
Of argument quote from the editorial the
| following paragraph: 8 7uud Judgment and
4 A.,
o. the scheme accredifed-prOperlyn no douht
to General Alexar lar, which could not
have been conceived except in either folly
or ignorance"
Second. The false arrangement and die
play OF figures upon which the argument
is based.
Let us look into these figures, for upon
them his cause must stand or fall
He tells YOU that Mr.. Wadlev puts the
net earnings OF the Steamship Company at
about $300.000 Then goes on to say that
the company owes in bills payable 1924 900,
and that the cost Of the three new shins
will make the total liabilities 81 524 900,
with an annual interest TO pay of $9l ,440
He neglerts to tell his readers that the
company has sold two of its smaller
ships for about the amount Of its fl 1atirg o
| daht thus reducing the to'al debt to 81 ,0OO,.
090 and the annual interest to 100000
He then goes on TO deduct from the net
earnings OF $500 900 this exaggerated and
doubled uD interest, and, by adding TO It
a reserve of 100000 reduces the amount TO
! $10S $50 as all that would be ''auplicabln to
the payment of interest on the proposed
issue Of five millions Of debentures or
bonds" ard then winds up by foul sneer
| al the "Alexander party"
Now let us take the figures and facts as
they are. On the last psge of the forty sixth
rerOrt Of the Central Railroad will be found
a "COndensed statement of She workings
| OF the steamships - If YOU will compare
this with Mr. WadleY's statement. on page
! II, where he gives the net income mot e. rn-
! ings) as 1901 121 81, you will find that the
! Treasurer puts the ODerstng expenses of
the ships as $217,6l2 So To make up this
! amount Of expenditures, you will note that
he includes among the items
| Interest. ........... ..................S 80 479 25
! Fire insurance. e................ ~ 22 1875 SO
| II then we odd these two amounts to
Mr.. Wadey s net increase ........ 30f, F2t 81
We get total earnings of. ...... $355,b76 IS
| To that. IL were TO de-
duct the amount Of inter
est to be paid on the total
debt IS rearranged, saw s 600 ono
! And add to this a reserve
OI....-...,....... ........ lO,OOU-T1bOUO OO
The company would have left & '95, go rs
MIR. W. dizzy tells Us on pages 70 and so
| that, ''notwlrhetanding the addition to our
| carrying capacity it was fOreseen that we
| should want more ships for the approach
| ing business season." etc, ard '1ater in the
season it is probable that we shall he called
upOn TO charter other ships" etc AID
! Mr.. YOrge, the agent, tells US on page 81
that "the additional ships which have been
| yearly provided to supply the demands Of
business have been Inadequate TO meet the
mu"h greater increase in the business
| Itself Mr.. WsdIeY slso tells you that
| they have added to the fl oet the Juniata
! and the Dessoug, and we are further
| Informed that the cOmpanv IS now having
| built three large ships for the coming sea-
| son. Under these circumstances it IA within
| bounds to say that with these additional
Sips and with the increased facilities Of the
Na'e Royal property, press, elevators. ware
| houses, etc we can c0un' on the additional
net earnings of some $l50,OOO, wh RI would
give total Increase OF at least $500 roo Ou'
| OF which 10 nav the interest Of $50 COO. and
a reserve of $40 C00-s2OO ,000-leaving fer
the owners some $500 coo
L. may be noted aS sigr rificant that no
where in the report can be found any figures
showing the gross earnings of the steam
| ships or of the Vale RHval property and
| Gordon Press. The sum total of one hun
dred and fifty voyages, added t. the entire
receipts of the Vale R0yal property ard
press, must have amounted to grand tot j
OF over million dollars; but are only
tod that the ships earned 1865 442 20 and
the Vale Royal property and the press $52 -
29l 80 Then follows statement OF how
this $5lS,734 l6 was spent. (Spe psge 80
There is no man for whom l have a
l have for William NJ Wadlev. He
is grand in his honesty, his
indef4tigsble energy and his far reaching
| sPgacjty In railroad combinations If he
loses sight of the pecuniary interest of bis
stockholders. his arduous duties and great
responsibilities are sufficient excuse. In
his conception and development of the
Savannah Ocean s eamship Company he
has built for himself a NOR ument that
wou be a memorial to him as the suthor
of the most magnificent scheme that 1uth-
ern intellect has yet developed. But are
! the members of his board of directors
free from the responsibility Of the six
'coun's" s" that the new party score against
them Are they not to blame ?
! First. That for three years they paid no
| dividends, although they now admit that
| during those years the company made %
| per cent. over and above all expenses, say
an average of 9 per cent. per annum.
Second That they passed a resolution
and placed 1t upon their minute book in
structing their bank not TO take the stock
OF the company as a collateral on loans,
thus forcing neodY bOIders TO part with
their stock at less than $40 per share,
whereas the stock was intrinsically worth
much more.
Third. That from want proper OF foresight
they paid par and interest on a large amount
of the income bonds of the Western Rail
road of Alabama, whereas these bonds could
have been bought up by them, or their
agents, at from fifteen to twenty cents on
the dollar.
Fourth. That they attempted to lease the
Central Railroad and Banking Company of
Georgia to a foreign and weak syndicate
known as the G lie combination-at yearly
rental OF six (6) per cent?
Fifth That they persistentlV uusettle and
unnerve the investors tn this property by
making gloomy predictions as to the future,
as for instance in the 45th Report, page 6,
they tell their stockholders that "the in
crease in earnings over the previous year is
due to the general prosperity of the country,
and 1t is to be hoped that this will continue.
but it is hardly reasonable to expect as good
result for the ensuing year" etc. And
again, on psges aud Of the 46th Report.
they say, "The country has been unusually
prosperous for the past year, much more Sd
than can be reasonably expected to con-
tinue," etc.
Aud yet when we take the figures for the
years we find the
Gross earnings of 1879 to be. 81, ,S24,546
Gross earnings of 1880 to be. ... 3'1gO4sg
Gross earnings OF 1881 to be. .... 3.7O7, ,S9l
Thus showing a marked increase from year