Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1884-01-10
A WONDERFUL STORY.

and CeatTal Pacific Eattyays-How
Five IIen with sIl, 200 Came To BE
worth $500, 100000 $50 Interview
with Huntington In Regard 60 the
Cotton Letters.
Chicago Inter Ocean
The Huntington Cotton correspon-
dence which was offered in evidence
in the Huntington Cotton trial at
Santa Rosa, California, and published
in part, causes some gossip. The let
ters throw some light on an interest
ing scandal
When the Southern Pacific Rail
road was built it was understood that
it should be a competitor of the Cen
trail Pacific. 1t was actually built by
the owners of the Central Pacific,
Gov Stanford, G. p. Huntington,
Mark Hopkins and Charles Crocker,
For binding purposes, and also oe-
cause their hands were full of other
business, these n2on selected General
Cotton Of San Francisco, a man Of
some wealth and considerable ability
TO take charge of the construction
and running of the Southern Road.
They formed with him the Western
DEVELOPMENT Company, which was
the Credit Mobilier of the Southern
Pacific, which built the road and
made great profits out of it. General
Cotton died about the time the work
was completed, and Huntington,
Stanford aud Crocker at once changed
the name of the company and attempt
ed to cut Mrs. Cotton off from
her share of the money made.
She would not submit and
brought suit for her share. The trial
Of this suit is the one referred to IN
the dispatch. Huntington denied
that any confidential relations existed
between him and Cotton, and these
letters were offered to show the CON
trary. The Judge would not permit
the names of third persons to be
| brought in, and therefore blanks APP
pear, unfortunately, instead of names
of Congressman, The publication Of
all the confidential letters of Hunt
ington to Cotton will throw much
| light upon the methods employed by
the Central Pacific combination in
amassing immense fortunes and some
brief
HISTORY OF THE COMBINATION
may be useful in examination the
letters Twenty years ago Q. p.
Huntington and Mark Hopkins were
partners in the hardware business in
Sacramento In the same city Lee
land Stanford was an oil merchant,
Charles Croker was a noted dry
goods dealer, and J. G. Crocker
was lawyer of small means In
1861 these five men, with fifteen or
sixteen others, formed a corporation
for the purpose of building the Cen
trail Pacific Railroad. The united
fortunes of the incorporates at that
time did not amount to more than
$l20, 000 By the statutes of the State
of California they were obliged to
pay up a certain percentage on their
stock. that percentage amounting to
$11, 500.
The next step after Incorporating
the company was to get certain bills
passed through congress, by which
they obtained subsidies for building
the road. This they did, but the sub
sides were given on such conditions
that they could get no money from
the Federal Government until twenty
miles of the road were built They in
duced the State Government to guar
antee their bonds, upon which they
raised money enough to build the first
twenty miles of the road, after which
the enterprise was easy. There was
money enough in the scheme, but
there were too many people to share
in it, Accordingly the five men above
named either froze out or bought out
all the other stockholders. Some of
the latter who stayed il until the
magni6cence of the scheme began to
be foreshadowed realized ten for one
on their investment. Having dispos-
cd of these outsiders, the five proiec-
tors Of the scheme formed the Credit
and Finance Company" which was
the Credit Mobilier of the Central Pa
cific. These five men, a9 directors of
the Central Pacific,
MADE a CONTRACT WITH THEMSELVES
as the Credit and Finance Company
TO build the Central Pacific road, Civ
ing therefor $27, 600, 600 ofgovernment
bonds (Which they received as a sub
sidy), S27O00,O 900 Of the company S
first mortgage bonds, and about S..
900. 600 of land bonds which th6y is
sued on their grants This of course,
came piecemeal as the work was done.
but the above sum, together with
about $27. 600, 600 more bonds on un-
subsidized roads which the company
afterwards bought, was paid TO the
Credit and Finance Company for
building the road. Lest some trouble
should arise because OF this scheme
the stockholders held meeting and
fully iudorsed the action of the direc-
tors; that is, the five men named met
and Endorsed their own action ia max
ing a contract with themselves.
Out of the surplus which they made
after declaring 8 per cent dividend on
sd. 600, 900 stock these men bought all
the other railroads in California, all
the river and bay steamers and the
! horse car lines in San Francisco, es-
tablished a mail line to China, built
the Southern Pacific Railroad. which