The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-03-25
AN HONEST LETTER.
Secretary Whitney's Connection WITH tAs
Broadway Street Railways.

Secretary Whitney has sent the 81
lowing letter to Henry r. Low the
Chairman of the Senate committee OF
the New York Legislature Investigate
ing the Broadway railroad matter:
take the liberty of addressing this note to
| you because you are chairman of the com
m ttee authorized to investigate the methods
| by which the consent Of the Board of Alder
| men was obtained to the construction of the
! railroad now laid upon Broadway, and be-
cause the public press has more than once
| assoc ated nv name with the subject of your
| nqu ry. Ii IS, perhaps, an inevitable penalty
| of holding public office that any association,
| however honorable. with transactions or per-
| sons thereafter subjected to public osioquy
| should be made an occasion for mi5repre5ent-
alton, and therefore desire to enable every
body who wishes 10 do so to term q
correct Judgment TO my con-
nectiOn with these matters. Mr.. James
A. Roosevelt, Mr.. George Henry Warren, Mr..
George G. Haven, Mr.. Brayt ton Ives myself
and other citizens of New York were direct
orS of a company which had promptly availed
Itself of the general street railroad law of lss4
and was the first company to lay claim to u
railroad from the Battery to Fourteenth
street. In behalf of our company we labOred
earnestly TO prevent Mr. Sharp and his asSO-
ciateS from obtaining the consent of the Board
of Aldermen. We used all proper means ut
our command to make this opposition effect
ual, and we strenuOusly ins sted that the
PRIV le'-e should be sold at public auction to
the highest bidder. When these efforts failed
we appealed to the mayor who vetoed the
ordinance. 1t was passed over his veto. We
then attacked the validity of the resolution,
and as we had no right of action ourselves,
furnished legal aid to prOperJy-Owners for
the purpose. Subsequently,, in Difference to
public sentiment aroused in great degree by
our efforts MIR Sharp and his associates
abandoned the resolution and procured the
passage of new one with conditions
favorable to the CIV and conditioned
upon annual payments based upon a
valuation of a million dollars or more
for the franchise Some time afterward par
ties from Philadelphia informed Us that they
were arranging for leases OF the lines in
Broadway and seventh avenue and intended
to lease other lines, and thus, by introducing
economy OF mana cement and a system OF
transfers. secure at the same time returns
from the properties and greater accDmmOds-
tiOns for the public They proposed to us to
abandon our attitude of ho>tIi ty and take
part i'll the new enterprise. whic, proposition
was accepted bv large majority of our
stockholders. including myself. and by a ma
jOrity i'll interest of the stock excluding mine.
1t was in the line OF what we had been advo-
eating in the public interest. We had pro-
tested against a grant of Broadway without
conditions providing for general transfer
system applicable TO it IL was subsequent
Iy discovered that the lease could not
he Obtained. and the Philadelph par
es purchased controlling interest in
on February 3 lSo6 II that contract remains
in force. and the STOCK is taken under it, it
will enable the purchasers. if they see lit to do
so. 10 carry out with Us the agreement they
made when tIey expected to obtain a lease of
these roads. IL " II n:o!Ve new agreements,
however. on both sides. i have. however. no
interest IN the purchase recently made. and
no Investment i'll nor comm trail to the. r gen
eral enterprise. PrUr to the disclosures
made on this invest gat on looked upon IT IA
the public interest, and. if il had taken
shape satisfactory 10 me from "A business
standpoint and at 4 time when felt at liberty
TO JON il in vew of other Investments and
duties, | SHOULD have done so. That states my
exact relation to it What effect this inveSti-
cation NAV have upon it, and whether / shall
ever join it are as open questions for me as
for any one else If nv connection with the
transactions l have mentioned is in any
spect open TO just criticisms, | am not aware
of II Respectfully yours,
VIC WHITNEY.