The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1886-06-26

spade in the ground until they had
got every privilege which they
desired. When they went to work !
they worked slowly and dIlatorily
but when they came to that part
of the performance which that old
Roman, that old Democrat Thur.
man, had said would be the end
and consummation of this proceed.
ing, no lightning fash ever trav-
eled with greater speed than they
did. Under the swoop of the at
torneys and agents Of this railroad
company these proceedings were
hurried; and so in August or Sep
tember of the same year--I have
forgotten which, and it is not ma.
terial-the thing had all been com.
pleted, the road sold and bought,
and bought by whom? Bought
as Senator Thurman had said, by
a ring of bondholders.
This was in September, 1875.
Then came reorganization; and
how did they reorganize' With
only $50 miles of road completed,
this is the way they reorganized
they reorganized by issuing to the
bondholders the S30,0O0,000-which
had been spent on building these
$50 miles of road in preferred
stock guaranteed to pay s per
cent. interest and 's2l 100000 more
of preferred stock-s51, 900, GOO.
Then what became of the balance 7
They could not give up this mag.
! nihcent empire, and so they ISSUED
Si9,000.000 of common stock to
the old stockholders.
My friend from Texas Mr.. Cokel
a few days ago told us something
of the watering Of stock by the
railroads Of this country. | DO
not know whether he referred to
this company or not, 1t he did
not, when he had occasion again
to say as he did then in eloquent
and strong pointed language any.
thing about the watering of stock.
he ought to talk about this. All
other waterings of stock were
nero little dews failing on the
morning grass 10 vivify and make
it fresh but here, when the stock.
holders had never paid cent, as
was charged by MI. Thurman IN
his speech, and he challenged Sen.
ators on the other side to show
that they ever paid cent, they
turned loose Niagara of water
into the stock Of this corporation
sol, 100000 of preferred stock
and $40, 100000 of common stock,
slO0,OO0,000 to represent $50 miles
of completed road.
Mr.. President, that is not all.
Here is 100000, 600 to represent
$50 miles of road, just $25,O00,OO0
more than the Commissioner OF
Railroad estimates as the cost of
the whole 1000 miles.
Now let us see what else they
did. THIS Sl00,000,000 of stock
preferred and common represent
ed $15S, sos a mile of railroad built.
The line built was the easiest in
the world. One Senator said they
had nothing to do but to stick a
spade in the ground and level it q
little and put the cross ties on,
and the Commissioner of Railroads
put the cost at 52S,0OO o mile.
That left 100000 of stock to each
mile of the railroad for $4,000 a
mile of actual expenditure.
That was not all. They were
entitled on the $50 miles to a land
grant and nobody proposes to take
T It away from them. That land
grant amounted to 10.51S,756 acres
, AT S4 an acre-and they sold their
, lands at that, and those $50 miles
of road were in the best part OF
the country, as l understandable
value was s42,O75,0OO, or at the
rate of $4,000 q mile for a road
| which ought not to have cost and
? did not cost over S2S,O00 a mile.
| A land grant worth over twice
the cost of the road and 100000,
900 of stock is the proceeds OF
i. this first operation on the proper
f ty of the American people and
: yet we are told that we are bound
5 IN good faith or we are bound by
. some sort Of generosity on sub
| iects of this sort to waive the right
D of the Amarican people in order
/. that the men who captured 53(
!, miles of this railroad and this enor
/, nous sum may capture still more
1 The company reported that it cos
J. them $4,000 a mile to build th,
Q road.
!. They charge $4,000 mile ii
n the report. / will show you how
/. they made up that charge. 1t ap
T pears that in this $4,000 a mil,
l. was s1,lOS,27s.52 or $1,000 {
Q mile for surveys. That is a goo,
# deal for surveys of $50 miles, an'
|. it would almost build the road
r. The equivalent was put at s2,434
o 346, pretty extensive equipment