The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1884-01-05
THE c. P. HUNTINGTON STINK.

The large city dailles east and west ar
lust now full of what may with great pro
prleiy be called the Huntington stink. /
arises from the publication Of some three
Tor rou, hundred letters of 6. =. Hunting
ton that sere read in evidence !nswha: :.
Known rs the Colton-Huntington law sui
now IN progress al Santa Rosa, in Calilor
mia. But about these letters further on.
C.P. Huntington is the man who, TWEEN
lty years ago, in company with five othel
gentlemen in San Francisco, whose united
fortunes was less than 100000, ORGANIZED
themselves into company and undertook
the construction Of the Central Pacific
Railroad Congress, 1t will be remem
bered, gave them a bonus OF $4,000, 600
all the road cost-and every alternate sec
ton OF land for 90 miles on each side OF the
road, ard allowed them to borrow 100000,
900 in addition by a first mortgage on The
road The five gentlemen, exactly as the
other five or SIX gentlemen did who became
famous in connection with Oak Ames IS
the Credit Mob.lier that bull, the Union
Pacific railroad and stole sixty millions oil
dollars, organized themselves into Credit
Mobilier, took the contract to build the
Central (or Western half of the Great Pa
citic railroad, 'snd like the Ciedi, Moblllei
of the Eastern half, stole sixty millions by
the job besides owning the road when VI
was completed.
Two or three OF these five gentlemen
have since died or sold out to Huntington
so that he now virtually owns the Central
Pacific Railroad alone, and in addition has
gobbled all the other railroads in Caliior-
MIA, so that on the entire Pacific slope
every foot of railroad belongs to the Hunt
,ngton monopoly.
But eight or ten years ago, project Was
started to build rival TO the Great Pacific
railroad by constructing the Southern Pa.
cifc Road. II was to start from Marshall,
Texas, we believe, aud have branches to
Memphis and New Orleans, and terminate
at San Diego, on the southern coast of Cal.
,fornla. The project was started by John
G. Fremont, who undertook to engineer 1t
but failed, and it fell into the hands of
Tom Scott. Meantime the government
had made the same generous land grant in
It's aid that was made IN behalf OF the
Union and Central Pacific Road.
But Huntington saw that the success of
this road would rum his monopoly OF the
entire trade of the Pacific coast and thence
with the East, and made up his mind Scott
must be defeated. To this end be projected
his Southern California road, and the
Southern Pacific road thence by way of
Yuma, through Arizona and Texas, which
he has actually built But the strife be-
tween him and Tom Scott was, which
should get the land that had been made to
the Fremont road 1t involved many mil
lions Of dollars, and the matter had TO be
decided 10y congress.
The Huntington-C Cotton letters illumln.
ate the character Of this strife. Cotton was
lluntingtOn's lieutenant in the battle, and
sitter ], was oyer claimed he had not been
paid 1.-THE OF what Huntington had prom
ised hun, and hence the law suit IN which
the letters we're produced as evidence
The dates Of these extraordinary letters
reach from 1874 to the middle of 1878. a
period during which the contest q. Wash
ington was sharp indeed. Scott aud Hunt
ingion were pi,ied against each other like
two giants 10 the lobby, while the Con-
gressmen over whose convictions their
arguments or their cash had prevailed
carried the battle INTO the committee rooms
and on The floor Of both Houses.
twas for The possession of Congressmen,
that the efforts of the rival railroad build
crs were expended Mr.. Huntington's
contemptuous opinion of the average leg.
islator at Washington is expressed in the
frankes, language THE coming session."
he writes in the fall of 1874, will be COM
posed of The hungricst set OF men tina. ever
got together, and the devil only knows
VIVA, they will do" In January, 1876, he
writes, IL believe that with $500, 900 can
pass our bill, but take it that 1t is not
worth tina, much to u.s." Scott" he re-
ports, fortnight later, lis working mostly
among the commercial men. He switched
Senatot Spencer Of Alabams, and Walker
of Virginia this week, but you know they
can b. switched back with the proper ar
arrangements when they are wanted" In
March, 1877, he stayed in Washington
two days 10 Fix up the Senate Railroad
Committee" In November, 1877, his OBJ
servauons n. the National Capitol made it
seem to HIM US it "sll the strikers in the
world were there"
The names of aGzens of Con gressmen
occur IN the letters as accepting brides or
ready 10 do 80, though happily moet of
them have since passed off the stage. But
it would take columns 10 indicate bu
d,utv The mnnv comprotp,stnr ravals.