Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, D.T. [N.D.]) 1878-1884, 1883-11-02
Gen. Haupt Has RESIGNED.

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ST. PAUL, Nov. 1.-The following correspon-
dence was made public today, and created con
siderable excitement in railroad circles.
TT. OAKEs VICE PRESIDENT: Dear Sir-I have
received from you instructions to curtail ex-
penses in every department, to discontinue work
in progress and discharge employees who have
tions that have been placed upon it's general
manager are of such nature that cannot see
how it is possible to continue in the manage
ment and secure results that will be at the same
time creditable to myself and satisfactory to the
stockholders. As you propose to devote great
portion of your time personally to the direction
of operations it is clearly unnecessary to retain
the services of of q general manager in addition
and therefore prefer to sever my connection
with the company subject to the five years con-
tract under which assumed charge in 1881.
Very respectfully,
October 40, 1883.
10 this Vice President Oakes responded as
follows:
GEN. II. HAUPT, GENERAL MANAaER:-I
have received your communication OF October
20. The retrenchments ordered by the board
of directors are doubt ex-
tremely radical but they are necessary, and if
your plans for the improvement and protection
of the property of the company and the better
ment Of the condition of its employees cannot
be Immediately carried into effect no one can
regret the fact more than myself. You have
certainly labored zealously and intelligently to
advance the interests you represent. 1t is true
that expect as vice. president to devote much
time to the supervision Of operations
personally and it is also true that in
view of this fact the necessity
for your continuance as general manager will be
less imperative. Your resignation is therefore
b. kolr NovoTnhar lat and
the conditions of the contract made with You in
1881 will be complied with.
Very respectfully, L. +. OAKEs.
The following circular has been issued:
GENEKAL MANAGERS OFFICE, Nov. l.
Herman Haupt, general manager, having
severed his connection with the North Pacific
railroad the undersigned in addition to his
duties az vice president, will for the present,
also assume the duties of general manager.
THOMAS F. OAKEs.
General Manager Haupt, in an interview with
a reporter of the Associated Press this evening,
said that his resignation was entirely due to
the policy of radical retrenchment adopted by
the North Pacific, which practically tied his
bands and prevented the proper running of the
road. At meeting of the stockholders they
had decided to cut off all possible expenses and
ne 06O I0C81Vcu 4uouIuCVAOAo w Ouo AO"A
the force past actually necessary numbers. The
directors complained that the expenditures were
too much in excess of the receipts. Gen. Hsupt
explained this by stating that the road was
turned over to the operating department by the
construction department in q very incomplete
condition; in fact as fast a. the parallel rails
were laid 80 bad was the condition of the road
/
could not be run with any degree of safety or
speed. The road was miserably ballasted, cuts
were narrow, no stations nor water
tanks were built, no sidetracks were
put in-in fact nothing done to put
the road in condition. This had to be done and
the cost of it had to be met by the operating
department., supposedly out of surplus earnings
which did not exist. instead of by the construc-
ton department. This of course made the ex-
penses very heavy. Another reason was that
practically all the work of the year has to. be
done in June, July and August. After August
it is difficult to get men to work on the road as
the harvest fields pay so much better, and
after harvest wet weather begins
and it is impossible to do
any work until the ground dries in the
spring. Gen. Haupt further said that the pol
icy Of retrenchment was being carried to an
extent that would be detrimental to the inter-
ests of the road. The roadbed- would become
very bad by being neglected, especially consid-
ering its present condition, and as to the dis
charge Of the 400 men in tho repair shops at
Brainerd, the result would be that the yards