Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-03-11
RAILROAD KINGS.
Visit of Mr.. C. p. Huntington, President
of the Chesapeake and Ohio Road,
to Memphis.
A Little Scrap Of Unwritten History
About the Louisville and Nash
vile Road.

The presence Of several railroad msgnates
in Memphis yesterday occasioned the usual
hutter of surprise and curiosity, and no
sooner had II become known that Mr.. G. p.
| Huntington, the head and front of the
| Chesapeake and Ohio system, was in the
city than a great number of the business
| men called to see him. President Hadden
was the fret to call. Among those who
| paid their respects to him during the day
were Mr.. Napoleon Hill Colonel H. A.
! Montgomery, Mr.. Frank Davis, Mr.. n. NJ.
! Jones and many others. There were many
| speculations OF course as to the cause OF Mr..
| Huntington's visit here, and the conclusion
arrived at is that he is seeking pleasure and
/ transacting business at the same time. As
announced by him recently to a Courier
Journal reporter, he is gradually perfectiDg
his lines. He expects to have the gap be-
tween Paducah and Memphis completed by
June LIST. Just now he is on his way with
Colonel Tom Pierce
TO TEXAS,
he having been invited by the colonel to in
spect the latter's system of roads in that
State. Mr.. Huntington spent considerable
time in examining the work here and the
trackwork done, and was gratifed at the evil
dences of prosperity. His visit set a-wagging
the tongue of rumor, and mao saw in it
confirmation of the report that Gould and
Huntington b lad pooled issues and gobbleI
the Louisville and Nashville road. For the
last few years the great system has been
SORT OF CHESS BOARD,
upon which all the railroad msgnates have
been playing; and in order to gain a clear
insight into the matter, probably it would be
was well to drop into history-a little in
side history which so far has never been pub
lished. A goodly number of years ago a
gentleman by the name of Z. d. Stamford,
a doctor who had made money out of every
thing but his practice, large man, of bull
dog tenacity and iron will, was of a sudden
elected president of the Louisville and Nash
road. The stock of the road was then in the
condition of the body-snatcher, down among
the dead men," The vice-president of the
road was an
OBSCURE BUT WEALTHY YOUNG MAN,
with the dainty name of H. Victor Newcomb
When these two men took charge the road
Immediately began to change for the better.
Dr. Standiford took the infant road up and
put it upon its feet, making it a first-class
road by repairing the track and furnishing
all equipments. The stock took an enormous
shoot, and people who held shares and
despaired of ever realizing anything found
themselves omparatively wealthy in little
while They bought for song, and were
able soon to sell for a fortune. There is no
doubt that the solid work of perfecting the
u.
Toward the latter part OF his presidency the
public attention began TO center on Mr.. II.
Victor Newcomb, who had for long time
been regarded as a sort of fgurehead. He
had come from school, it seemed, only few
years before. There he had been known as a
WRITER OF PRETTY ESSAYS,
and sort of dabbler in art and literature
People spoke of the magni6cence Of his liv-
ing, and when he came back from Europe it
was with many trophies of art. Many OF
the finest examples of the modern French
school Of painting were to be found upon his
walls. And so for a long time he was known
as a member of the circle of "cash and Gull
ture." AS soon, however, he became vice
president of the Louisville and Nashville
road, he began to study its possibilities, and
when he had mastered the details Of running
a railroad, he longed
TO EXTEND THE SYSTEM
His mind had a Napoleonic sweep of
vision, and he SAW a line from Louisville to
the gulf and ramifying through the South.
He had the daring to plan a Southern sys-
TEN. DIR. Stamford was rather timid about !
absorbing new lines; bold in old ways, he was
in this. Newcomb's fire and
ability however, persuaded him to il, and once
Roadway, the young railroad king
directed his attention to king Cole"
whom, in little or no time, he hurled from his
throne and left him scepterless. In the |
short space of few months the world saw
what master diplomatist Victor Newcomb |
was, and learned that he had not been idle. |
Having so long furnished
STYLE OF BRAINS
to the road that Standiford never possessed, |
and having converted it into great system, |
he not unnaturally thought that the presi- |
dency of the read was Justly his. He had |
eclipsed his steadier colleague. When the |
time came for the election of a president, |
the public we're not totally unprepared to |
read in the papers that DIR. Standiford had |
sent in his resignation, and that Mr.. New |
comb had been chosen president. DIR. Standi- |
ford hardly knew of his own resignation as |
soon as the reporters. The New Yorktinterest |
in the road had sided with Mr.. Newcomb, |
and thus wiped out Standiford. That same |
interest now, under the leadership of Bald |
win, began to devote its attention to wiping |
out Mr.. Newcomb, and he went the way of |
his prede cessor. Out of all this grew
THE RECENT LIGHTNING CHANGES
in the road. Mr.. Newcomb transferred his
residence from Louisville to New York, and |
started bank. He went there most likely |
to be on hand where the business strings of
the country were pulled, and in order to take
some revenge upon Baldwin. short time
ago the Louisville aud Nashville stock took
a tumble. The hand of Victor Newcomb
was behind it. He and Messrs. Green and
Standiford were the clears" in the tumble.
The object of the depression was to turn the
road over to Gould and Huntington. That
having been done, and Baldwin having been
frozen out, the revenge of the young railroad
nan was complete. In the meantime New
comb and Standiford have patched up all
he ill-feeling between them and are drink
ing lemonade through the same straw.
The result of throwing the Louisville and
Nashville road into the hands of Gould and
one can hardly forecast now.
Memphis has great liking for Mr. Hunting
on and would not be averse to seeing him