The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-01-01
iHE q. 2. UMMISSION.
The MAJORITY Report to the
Pre- >ident.
FACTS, FIGURES AND FINANCES
The Managemepts of the o. p. and
c. r. Crpsider ed-A Reform
Bill Proposed.
Pacific railroad Commission Report,

Pacific Railroad Commission Report,
WASHINGTON, December 81. Under
the act of Congress approved March, 90
1887, entitled AN act authorizing an
of the books, accounts /
and methods of railroads which have
received lid from the United States.
and Tor other purposes. y the. President
appointed Messrs. Robert E. Pattison.
OF Pennsylvania, E, Ellery Anderson,
of New York, and David L. Littler, OF
LII nois. commissioners to cary on the
investigation. Two reports have been,
submitted TO the President q majority
report by Messrs. Anderson and ilitller,-
and minority report by Mr.. Pattison
/ THE MAJORITY REPORT. utt
The majority report opens with
statement of the methods pursued by
the commissioners, showing the labori-
Gus nature of the work, and setting
forth that owing to the. fact that none
of the reports were completed before
the month of November, and that the
-6ual report and tables affecting the
Uni N Pacific railway were not re
celyed until near the close of that
month, it was impossible to make any
critical examination of the results
reached by the accountants and in
spection engineer of the commission
| The com uission itself examined the
directors and officers of the respective
| reads and all witnesses whom they
| Judged possessed OF knowledge of the
4 subject matter of the investigation
They subdivided the report into three
parts. The first part relates TO ,he
present condition of the companies,
their relations with the United States,
and the remedial measures to be
adopted; the second part reviews the
financial opeI alton of the companies,
aud the third part contains answers to
the various interrogations contained IN
the bill under which the commission
was constituted. .
The Union, Pacific railway is first
considered, Its total mileage, exclu i've
OF branches, being stated at 1915. l.
miles, including railways formerly
known as the Kansas Pacific and DIN
liver Pa life, while the total mileage o
the connecting branches; according t
4 the company's report, for 1886, i
! 2, 76l .93 miles. an 1890 ,.ld
For $50 miles west of the Mississippi
river the territory is agricultural, o
great fertility, and with rapidly IN
creasing population. Beyond this tn
country increases in elevation and de
creases in fertility and population t
the Rocky Mountains. From Chey
enne to Denver it has mineral wealth
and from Cheyenne to Ogden the re
sources are scanty. In these section
, branches have been constructed 9
secured, which exceed in mileage To
main road. These branches add largrl
to the earning power OF the Unlo
Pacific road, and without these feeder
: the road would soon become bankrup
= The commission, after good deal {
examination, reach the conclusion tn,
the branches and main line are mt
:, tuaily dependent on each other al
that, through their union, they presel
vastly greater earning power tha
they would if dismembered. The u
: earnings OF the system Tor two yea
have averaged SO 500 000 Of which $e
DIT 900 should be credited to the pare
line, and 81 SOC, 900 to the branch sly
9 TEN. the value of the system bling a
proximately stated at $3.50 600 600
The t,.tal funded uebt of the Upit
Pacific Company December 81, 49,
q Yas SOL 969 127. so Exclusive of its OBJ
Il alton 10 the United States) Of viii
1 S33, $50 900 was prior to the Unit
( Estates statutory lien. The present b,
lance of obligations of the Union, T
CHE road to the government is 50
III 992 81. .s7ptl Y.f5l.v5sV
4 To secur- the payment of this 81
and interest the commission offer
bill providing for a mortgage up
which the Union Pacific Company,
the first ten years will pay the sum
81 776, 495 annuslly this being 3 7
. cent. OH the present worth of the q,
+ j to the government, and n of per ce
j OF the outstanding bonds; and, at
that, an annual payment of $4,000
The commission shnw that the sinki
fund provided by the Thurman act
- 1878 is not as large AS it was expected
I'd would become when. the act was pass
owing TO a decrease III the net earpll
of the road and the failure OF the fu
to earn compound interest at the r
H. of per cent as was expected, and
commission therefore concludes e
the road cannot pa it's indebte' ness
the government at maturity under
present law relating to the subject.
The system requiring the annual p
ments OF q percentage of net earni
is declared to be undesirable, as lead
Ito endless disputes, involving 'ncess
litigation, to which the sovereign po'
OF the United States should not be s
i iected. In the bills submitted 1.-THE p
ments to be made by the respeo
companies are fixed by the semi-anr
4. amount of the interest accruing on tt
bonds and by a fixed percentage of
outstanding bonds. which is direete
be paid annually into q sinking fu
/ In the event of q refusal Oh the par
i the companies to accent the terms
fered to them by these, bills the c.
nImission has found 1t impossible 10 8
d1stitute for the present sy sted a met
of fixed payment however earne
desiring to do so. ~ 81 ilH'pl9' y
,r. The history of the Union Pacific 3
= way, as developed in the second par
III the report, will ,Oit is claimed s's
that its assets have been in former y
largely misapplied, and that its finaf
ability to meet its jEss obligations
Il been largely impaired by the actio
LoyI El- 81 loft q fr