The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1884-01-26

To the Editor of Tie Dispafch

This lis q subject that ~ no" cAss "
ROOD deal OF attention and interest III so'ne
Of the States. and the evil has become sucn
a CRYING one that laws prohibiting the ,ssu-
ing Of free passes by railroads pave oeeh
nussed by several State Legislatures. AS
TEXT for some reflection on the suo1cci, ai-
low me 10 place before the readers OF tue
Dispatch few brief extracts from re-
markabIe correspondence that has aieiy
come to light, and which was published ID
full in the New York Weekly Sun OF the "a
al January. 1t consists OF about eighty let
tiers addressed 10 ID. ID. Cotton, vice-presi,
dent OF the Southern Pacific Railroad
Company, by Charles Z. Huntington, VINO
at that time-that Is, during the years
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. yice-president ana
general agent Of the Central Pacihc Kan.
road Company. and general agent ana
attorney ut New York Of the Southern Ga-
ciic. and Is now president OF the Cnesa-
peakc and Ohio Railroad Company. Ihese
letters show clearly the methods employed
10 push the Interests Of this stupendous
monopoly. Among them will be iouna
many references TO certain senator's ana
Representatives In Congress. which VIII
| be entertaining reading for their constitu-
ents, some Of whose ears may be mace 10
tingle slightly when they see their names
| i'm such a disgraceful connection. That
the correspondence is authentic there can
be no doubt, for II appears that the widow
of d. ID. Cotton has recently filed these let.
tiers as testimony In suit she has iound
it necessary TO bring or to defend, IN
which she claims some SGW,OO0 10
have been expended by her husband
| I'm buying up members OF Congress,
which the railroad company refuses
| to pay or allow her as credit.
During the period referred to lively COM
petition was going on between the TeXas
Pacific under tho auspices OF Thomas A.
Scott. the famous railroad king. and the
Southern Pacific, under the auspices OF {. L.
Huntington. for subsidies and other con-
gressional favOrs, and both were actively
engaged in their intrigues and counter
intrigues with members OF Congress.
Huntington does not say In so many words
what was the ruling rate paid by him for
congressional votes and influence, but In
one of his letters t. Cotton he says that
Scott is offering $1,000 cash down. $4,000
when the bill is passed, and $4,000 in
bonds when they are Issued." The way in
which Huntington APP lies epithets TO dis.
tinGUish his friends from his enemies Is
truly amusing. The first are all "good
fellows" the latter are "wiid hogs y
(as Luttrell, OF California; and I'D
hogs" (such as Piper, OF California;
On the 18th day Of May, 1877, he
writes: 81 have given Senator ingalls,, OF
Kansas, letter 10 you. He is a good feI-
low and can 90 us much good, and
think is well disposed towards u.s." In the
same letter he says: "Senator Morton is
coming over, also his brother-in-law, Bur-
bank. They are good fellows" Another
letter is almost entirely devoted to the sub
iect Of free passes, and the importance OF
distributing them freely, especially to the
Associated Press, which Scott is stated to
have bought up. IL appears. too, that these
INSCRIPTIONS wire-workers had their legis-
k,tive Hobbies here in Virginia; with what
success Ii is not stated, but we all know
that there were some very ugly tales in cir
culation about the time referred 10 in con-
nection with Tom scott and his friends in
the Virginia Legislature. We find out from
one OF these letters where Malone proba-
bly, got his famous expression about Bour-
bons being reasonably convinced" for
Huntington SAYS OF two congressman, Low
and FrIsbie, "they are both men that can
be convinced" But there is one OF the
letters which is so curious and so interest
ing az bringing these guilty transactions
home to us here in Virginia that it will be
given in full, though somewhat hard on
Walker:
NEW YORK, October 10, 1873.
Friend COlton,--I have ven Gilbert &. Nalkor
letter TO you. He IS member of the Forty
fourth Congress, eX- Governor of Virginia, and u
slippery teifoic. | rather think he Is In SCOTS
interest but not sure. gave him pdsS over the
trail W Mon
Pacific: 80 do the hest YOU can with him, bit don't
trust him foo much. Yours &C.,
This is but Il specimen Of many others,
equally sharp and equally shameless; but
ali based obviously on the idea OF Walpole
that every man has his price, especially the
average legislator. Some can be bought
with money, some with promi'es OF politi-
cal preferment. some with free passes, and
some even with "wet groceries," such rs
Malone dealt in about the same time in |
carrying out his famous railroad-cOnsoli- |
dation scheme. This was the beginning |
of Mahoneism proper in Virginia, and it |
has been going or from bad TO worse until |
The people rose up in their might on the |
9th OF last November and threw off the |
" malign influences with which they had |
been surrounded for 10 these many years.
Whether the present system OF free passes.
which has become welnigh il not entirely
was first introduced by Hunting
ton. Tom Scott, or by our sweet William
las one OF my ncishbors calls Mahone), the
people are demanding, in the name OF good
morals and public virtue, that it must 20.
You con hear the question asked on every |
side, Why should member OF the Lcgis-
lature (who is allowed by law twenty cents
a mile for travelling both ways) have a free
pass on the railroad not only for himself
but also for his family, IL he has one, while
his constituents must pay thei: fare every
time? Some will tell YOU that it j. only
intended Us a compliment. A compliment.
indeed These rail. Dad gentlemen are the
last people in the world to be paying idle
They claim to act on bust
ness principle, and expect quid pro quo
for everything they do for other people.
Their own cOnsciences di they have
any, being very elastic, they think
those OF other people must be equal
ly so, and will yield TO their soft
and compliments IN the
form OF free passes. DC. But in the view
that plain PEOPLE take OF such things, no
legislator can accept such compliments
without compromising his scf-respect and
which is the most favorable
view that can he taken OF IL. II l. related
Of that old Roman, the late Judge John
that he once resented az an In
suit the offer made to him OF free pass.
saying, in the nervous language that was
OF him, "TO HI with you
md your intended bribe!" To bring these
reflections to close, is it asking too much
)f the members OF our present General As
,embly, many OF whom are young men and
have future to look forward to, that they
will inaugurate some steps looking to the
prohibition OF free railroad nasses, For