Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-02-11
Viee-President Huntington Before the
House Railroad Committee.

1ousc hsiilTOdO committee.
Copyright, 1ssS by tie California associated Press
WASHINGTON. February lOth. - This
morning G. p. Huntington, Vice President
of the Central Pacific Railroad made q plea
before the House Committee OF. the Pacific
Railroad for refunding the debt of his
road 10 the Government, which 10 casual
observer was filed with pathCs, but 10
those who know the details of the manage
ment of his road was a wonderful piece of
irony. He said the road was built by
Mark Hopkins Leland Stanford, Charles
Crocker and himself; that the road had
always been poor and could not meet its
obligations to the Government on the basis
now fixed by law.
Have all these four men kept poor
with their road ?n asked Mr.. McMahon of
the committee
HGntng replied; Well, cannot say
that we have. We are reckoned rich men,
When usked what the road and its
possessions could be duplicated for, Hunt
ington went into great detail what the ma
terial had cost and could now be bought
for, and closed by concluding that the Cen
tral Pacific could be duplicated for less
than the first mortgage.
" Would 1t not be money in your pocket
then, to turn the road over to the Govern
ment?" asked Weber of the committee.
" We prefer to keep the road and pay the
debt, was the reply.
Huntington wants the Central Pacific's
Indebtedness put into $50 semi-annual pay
ments, which would aggregate about ST.
090000 year.
ANXIOUS FOR A SETTLEMENT.
WASHINGTON, February 10th. In his
statement before the House Committee on
Railroads to-day, Mr.. Huntington said that
he did not appear before the committee to
make any argument, but only to have
talk with the committee. The settlement
of the Central Pacific debt was a very old
matter and somewhat irritating, and he
would very much like to have it settled
He wished TO talk little about the build
ers and the building of the Central Pacific,
and to see if an agreement could not be
reached by which the Government could
come into its own and the company pre-
serve its property. He had been with the
road since its organization. His associates
were all neighbors of his, and came into
the organization at his personal solicitation.
He had asked them, not because they were
men OF large means, but because of their
integrity. He had put in twelve hours a
day on the company's business from that
day to this, and none of the cOmpany's en-
ployes had worked harder. The men who
went over the road in a palace car said it
could not have cost much but it had cost
great deal of work.
DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED.
Huntington, describing at length the diff
ticulties encountered in the construction of
the road, said: Nobody knew of the diff
ticulties except the men who built it, and
now we are brought before the American
people as If we had taken something be-
longing 10 the Govern ment. We find moth
ing to apologize for" said he. There is
nothing l want changed, and nothing l
want to take back | do want fair state
ment made, so that this matter can be
taken out of Congress and we can know
just what we have to do"
HIS PLAN OF SETTLEMENT.
As TO the matter of a settlement. witness
said My impression is that ii Ne are
allowed proper equities-snd 7 believe the
Government does not want 10 make auv-
thing out of the road in the way of inter
est, but simply to get its own, and they Ger
tainly do not need any more money in the
Treasury at this time-all can be made
satisfactory. Put down what he company
owes, equate the interest AID TX the debt
as of a certain day-say July lst next, ard
divide the total into 250 senli-annual pay
ments. That is, an extension equal to fifty
two years or Whereabouts on the whole
amount (all great railroads in the country
are increasing, rather than diminishing the
length of their mortgages), and if then our
equities were allowed, it would bring it in
where we could meet it,"
THE CoMPANY's EQUITIES.
Witness said the completion of the road
seven years ahead of time was one of the
equities claimed by the company, and be
believed that any proper tribunal would SO
consider it. Another thing that might be
considered as among the equities was the
fact that the country tributary to the Cen
tral Pacific had been opened up to other
competitors.
The Chairman asked if the Central Pa
cific claimed that it could not pay its debt,
by partial payments, in fifty years"
Huntington" You have record of
what it is doing, and it certainly will not
pay. There is nothing in sight"
Tracy asked witness as to the amount of
the 25O seml-annual payments proposed by
him. He replied that he expected to get
something off the debt on account of equi-
ties, out he estimated that the payments
would be little over 81 ,09O 900 a year.
Collins asked if the witness believed the
Courts would allow the claimed equities,
such as franchises to the Atlantic and Pa
cfc and Northwestern and Northern Pa
NiAO OOAA PaA4Scf dilu lit ldCl ludl lHe TOau
had been completed seven years ahead of
time. The witness responded, Yes"
The payments of 81 100000 contemplated
by his proposition were based upon an
assumption of the cash value of the road.
The $l50,000,000 proposition also contem-
plated the payment of interest at two per
cent.
Collins inquired if the pamphlet prepared
by Conkling and Shipman and published
in the New York papers did not set forth
the claims of the road
Witness could not say positively. but the
gentlemen who prepared it had all the in
formation that he could give them.
At the conclusion of his statement.
Huntington agreed to submit a written
statement of the credits claimed by the
company and a memorandum of his pro-
position as worked out.
The committee adjourned until to-mor-
row, when it is understood Charles Francis
Adams, President of the Union Pacific
Company, will give his views upon the
various funding bills