Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1885-02-04
A CITYS DEFENSE .
WatertoWn's Plucky Fight with
Creditors.
A REVIEW OF A LONG AND
STUBBORN LEGAL
CONTEST.
The Reign Of Terror at an End, Bond
holders Beaten and Citizens Re-
joicing. The Case from Wa
tertown's Standpoint.
To the Editor of The Sentinel:

T.
of jan 81, find article. under the caption
| Fighting City," which processes to lay before
the public statement of the difficulties the
/ holders OF certain Watertown railroad bonds
! have experienced in their attempts to collect
| payment thereof. The subject of the bonded In
debtedness of the city of Watertown 10 not an in
| wiling one to her citizens, nor is it new to the
| people of Wisconsin, but inasmuch rs the gen
tlema1i Who is well posted on this itigation has
tempt to convey the impression that grevious
wrong has been done to the holders of these rail-
| road bonds, not only by Waterfowl, but also by
the legislature of Wisconsin,, by the circuit court
of the United States, and by the supreme court
of the United States, it is perhaps well TO review
the matter and let the people, see where the
wrong lies and why no sympathy can 6efelt for
isaures courts will aid or abet their in Justice.
The city of Watertown was incorporated by
Chapter a55 local laws Ss of 1888 approved March
passed IN act to authorize the city of Watertown
| toad in the construction of the Milwaukee &
| Watertown and the Watertown & Berlin railroad.
THE RAILWAY BONDS.
| On the LIST of August, 1s5s, the city ofWater-
| town delivered to the Milwaukee 4 Watertown
| railroad company bonds of that date in the ag-
| gregate amounting to $4,000, to run tenyears.
with coupons attached for the payment of inter-
est at per cent 1t was provided IN the act au-
| thorzng this issue that before any of these
4 bonds should be delivered to the railroad COM
pany, the company should execute and deliver
to the city bond; duly sealed in the penal sum
| ofS60IU0 conditioned that the company should
| puuctually pay and discharge the principal and
| interest due on said bonds. and save the city
| from all harm that might come il from issuing
| them. IL was further provided that the railroad
! company should execute and deliver to the city
a mortgage on their railroad to further secure
| the city. The company upon receiving the
| bonds did deliver to the city their bond OF in
| demnity of which the following is a copy:
Know rll men by these presents, that the Mil
| waukee Il Watertown Railroad company, a COM
pany incorporated by the legislature of the state
! of " isconsin, is held and firmly bound unto the
city Of Watertown. in said state of Wisconsin, in
| the penal sum OF SlG0,000, to be paid to the said
| city, or lis assigns for the payment OF which
| well and truly lie be made the said Milwaukee
| & WATERFOWL Railroad Company does hereby
bind itself by these presents.
Signed and sealed the first day of August, A.
| D.. 1853.
WHEREAS The city of watertown, by an ordi-
nance passed by the city council thereof, on the
30th day of July, 1858, were authorized to issue
I bonds of said city in aid &c said railroad COM
| pauv, to the amount of $50, 900, payable in ten
years. with interest at per cent, payable semi
annually in the city of New York. upon certain
terms aud conditions mentioned and specified in
| said ordinance. Now, the condition of the
above obligation is SUCH that if the said railroad
| company shall from time to time, as the same
| shall become due and payable, pay and discharge
| all interest that shall become due and payable
OH said bonds, and shall also pay the princi pal
| amount of said bonds when the same shall be-
GENE due and payable, and shall in all respects
save the city of Watertovn harmless and in
demnlied from any loss, damage, expense or
costs that may accrue to said city of Watertown
by reason of the issuing Of said bonds, that then
and i'll such case the above obligation shall be
void, otherwise in full force and virtue.
In witness whereof, the president and secretary
OF said Milwaukee & Watertown railroad COM
pany, in this behalf duly authorized by reso-
luliun of the board of directors have hereunto
set their hands and affixed the corporate seal of
said company the day and year first above writ
ten. JOHN S ROCKWELL, President.
lSeall j. l.. HATHAWAY, Sec'y pro tenn.
A VITAL CONDITION EvADED.
Nlo f1rth ar ~ 1n1;1 Il,
railroad company of mortgage upon their road
was delayed, evaded and never complied with by
the railroad company "a certain amount of the
stock of the company was deposited with the city
as collateral, and the guarantee OF the company
endorsed on the back of each bond. but the oft
repeated demand of the city for the mortgage
was never complied with, though the company
often promised to execute and deliver it, and
even formally resolved and recorded its resou-
tiOn to execute and deliver the mortgage provid-
ed for in the act. They never did and we was
defrauded oft But while considerable irrita.
ton was OccasiOned among the citizens ofWater-
town by this breach, their feelings were some
what SoOthed and their suspicious kept in abey-
ance by the railroad company paying the cou-
iS57.
MORE BONDS
In 1856 more bonds were wanted from Water
town, this time to build the WATERFOWL & Madi-
son road, and the Chicago, St. Paul & Fond du
Lac road, or Rock River Valley road as it was
sometimes called Four hundred thousand dol
lars in bonds were demanded. Contention arose
about it, an act of the legislature authorizing
their issue was obtained; the opposition of the
great majority of the citizens was controlled at
the polls by the importation of hundreds of non-
resident railroad laborers who were marched to
the polls and voted to build railroads. setting
at naught the tax-paying protesting citizens,
and making their vote count for nothing. By
the cooperation of certain city officers, who I'M
doubleday had greater immediate personal in
terest in the issuing of the bond than in the well
fare of the city, or in the faithful discharge of
their responsibilities to the city, and for which
their names are held in everlasting remembrance
these bonds for ali additional 100000 were is
sued to the Watertown & Madison and the Chi
cago, st. Paul d Fond du Lac railroad compan-
ies-S200. 900 to each company-on the LIST day of
June, 1856. Payment Of these bonds was guar
anteed by these railroad companies, and secured
by stock deposited with the city collateral Sc
curity, and by the bonds of indemnity of the re-
spective companies in like manner as the bonds
issued to the Milwaukee & Watertown WERE
From those issued to the Chicago ST. Paul 4.
Fond du railroad the city of Watertown has
been largely saved from harm by the action of
the Chicago & Northwestern railroad who are
the successors to the Chicago, st. Paul & Fond
able stock of their company with responsible
parties to exchange for the bonds issued to that
company; but still there is about s27,50O Of the
face value of those bonds in the hands of private
parties. the syndicate it is believed, who refuse
to exchange them for this stock:
A DIsGRACEFUL RECORD.
OF the disposition of the bonds issued to the
Watertown q Madison railroad company most
lars worth were hypothecated at from to 10 per
cent. OF their face value and never redeemed;
$4,000 worth were reported stolen from the box
ofthe president of the road, and $50.OOO worth
4 more were currently reported and generally be-
/ neVed to have been divided up among certain
| ohclals OF that road and retained by them and
their proceeds. never applied by them to the
building OF that road. There is every reason to
DeileVe mat not more than per cent. of the face
value of these bonds were ever obtained from
tnem ana applied to the building ofthe Water
| Town d Madison railroad. The guarantee and
bond OF indemnity Of this company were totally
! ignored by them and never observed while the
| company existed 1t was twelve years after
/ tnese ponos We're issued before the road was
Dulit' ana when the became Co. extinct the fran
chlses OF the road passed into others possession
and the bonds of the city passed into the pos
session OF brokers and SPECTATORS some for from
10 ~ per cent. of their face value and the bal
ahce OF the Donos, as Is generally understood
were deposited with them, to be collected from
| the city at the face value thereof and certain
amount of1nterest, the collector to get at least
| half the amount collected
Ihese are the men with whom the city of Wa
| tertown has had for the past twenty-eight wears
to contendearly and late, in councils and courts,
In legislatures and commissions at all times
ready ana Wiling to settle these bonds all of
them, at q 1alr compromise succeeding manv