The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1888-01-05
MAY BE MISTAKEN.
Senator Stanford on the Report of the
Pacific Investigation.
He Thinks the Central Pacific Has Com.
Piled With the Requirements.
The Charge Denied that He Ordered
the COmpany's Books Destroyed.
The Job to Annul their Charter Will
Be a Big One.

Chicago, January "A New York
special in the course of an interview
regarding reports of the Pacific rail-
road commission last evening, Senator
Stanford said that the statement was
that over 800, 600 900 was made out of
that S27 ,OOO, 900 of government bonds,
was the sheerest nonsense. I've have
realized 500, 000, 600 out of the road, >
he added, and 1T is nobody's business
but our own so long as we
have faithfully fulfilled our contract
with the government. But we could
not very well make S1O0, coo 900 out of
S27 ,O0O, 600. We constructed the road
at more than double the cost of the
bonds received from the government.
but whether four or four thousand men
owned the road it made no difference
to the government so far as its security
was concerned"
But you will admit that little cash
was actually paid in by the stockhold-
ers, and that an immense quantity of
stock was watered?"
''What difference does it make
whether 100 or 1905 shares are re-
presented? That would not prevent
the road from increasing in value
would it? 1t is true that q great deal
of capital was paid in by way of sub
scription, but the road was built on
stock and bonds. 1t was of little
was paid in by subscription as long as
the company abserved all its Obliga-
tions. If we had had the good fortune
to be presented with an aladding lamp
by which the road could have been
rubbed into eXistance it would have
been of no consequence to the govern
ment.''
''How about the charge that you and
Messrs. Orricker, Huntington and
Hopkins directed that certain books be-
longing to your company should be de-
strOyed in order that the committee
might not scrutiniZe them?"
'SThat is absolutely false. l do not
remember to have seen these books.
certainly gave no directions for destroy
ing them. The committee was afford
ed every opportunity for gaining in
formation as to the affairs of the Cen
trail Pacific company. / refused to an
wer but one question, and that was
with reference to giving the names of
confidential agents. l acted by advice
of counsel, who insisted that l was I'M
der no more Obligations to reveal these
names than L would have been had
some outsiders been determined TO
prosecute an inquisitorial investiga-
ton. We never denied the committee
the privilere of examining our books.
There was not bit of testimony dur
ing the investigation which in any way
indicated that any books had been de-
stroyed. 1t is a most violent assump-
tion on the part of the committee to
make such an assertion"
SWhat services to the government.
in your opinion, has the Central Pacific
not yet fulfilled?"
Not one; in fact, we are supposed
to do what the government asks or us UNI
til our contract expires. When sci
entific expedition is sent abroad via the
Canadian Pacific and Vancouver, and
when goods are sent through Canada
from the United States to reach San
Francisco in violation of the interstate
commerce law; say, when the govern
ment permits this it cannot
be very anxious for our railroad
service and yet such Is the case. We
have carried a few troops, but the con-
struction of our road through the
Indian territory has done much TO
make warlike preparations necessary.
We stand ready to fulfill any obligation
70 the government called for in our
contract. If it continues to see fit not .
to ask anything of us, why our service
is fulfilled just the same, is it not?"
what will congress do with the
committees report"
"Ah, that's more than | know. Pat
tison insists that our charter shall be
annulled, the other two commission
ers think bond and mortgage scheme
would suit them better. Well, l guess
the job to annul our charter will be a
big one. l would like to have court
appointed to consider the equities be-
tween the government and Central
Pacific company as provided by an act
of congress in March last, that declar
ed that an inquiry should be made as
to how much less time it took us to
build the road than that required by
the contract. AS a matter of fact we
finished the road in 1869, the contract
required us to complete in or before
1876. 1t was built during war times,
and at twice the amount it would have
cost had we waited until 1876 before
completing it. We therefore saved
the government $1,000, 900 annually, or
$40 ,000, 600 in the aggregate. /
may be mistaken, but 1 hardly think
congress will coincide with all the COM
mittees' recommendations. do not
apprehend that we shall suffer very
materially from investigation"