Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-04-14

5000 miles, and the transportation over the
branch line was $50 miles, it has been usual to
divide the amount received for transportation
over the whole road equally between the two
lines, and this because of the fact that the eN-
pense of receiving AMI handling lots of freight
picked up along the branch line and of hand
ling it as it dropped along the branch
line, is considerable, while the main
line has nothing to do but to haul the
loaded car through to its destination. We
allowed, for time, constructive mileage
TO the branch lines not owned by the Central
1t was charged that we were thus diminishing
the receipts of the aided line and reducing its
ability to discharge its obligations to the Gov
eminent The Commissioner of Railroads OBJ
jected to the constructive mileage, and, rather
than be involved in difficulty with the United
States upon the subject we several yeara ago
abandoned 1t, thus imposing Il burden upon the
branch lines which they ought not TO bear, and
giving a benefit TO the hunk line which Ii
ought not to receive The Union Pacific did not
eoncede this point, aud the sacrifice made by Us
In this respect has not been appreciated
BOOKS OF THE AIDED LINES CORRECTLY KEPT
On this point the Commissioners find (Report,
PIP lli-ll4) that in their Judgment the books of
the companies are kept so rs to show the net
earnings OF the aided portion. As matter of fact
the Commissioner OF Railroads. as have stated
settled these earnings for many years past. and
mas had no difficulty i'll aseertaininC their
amount AMI the Commissioners further report
I'd. P. I'D that there Is no money due or owing
TO the United States because of mistaken or
erroneous accounts, reports OF settlements ma .e
by said To5d. The only amounts which the
Commissioners find due and owing are from the
Unlted states to the roads and which the Com
missioaers say shon!d be promptly pals.
The Commissioners report that n trlsl funds
are intact, and that none of them nave been di-
verted Report, D. iIgl.
The Commission was charged to INQUIRE into
and report upon the relations OF saia railroads
which they pass. The Commission ia response
says that IL has taken vast amount al evidence
for the purpose of ascertaining the -tsuding OF
the communities which are served by the bond
aided roads. In the judgment of the Commits
sion all OF these obligations 10 these c0lnmuui-
ties in the discharge OF the duty %. uaintaiu.
ing their railroads and ofearryiuG tneir freight
with regularity and their pa-ae q. with SAFETY
have been carried out. Tine Ouly instance OF
complaints of train service and insufficient
equipment was made 10 the Commission at
Leavenworth IN regard to the use Of
10 the detention of freight by rea-
son ot imperfect connections. The
general character Of the terminal and station
accommodations is reasonably good AT many
points it IS first-class. The engine-houses and
machine-shops at Omaha were found TO b. insult
hcient and IN poor condition. Complaint was
also made at Ogden that the depot buildin :
and accommodations were entirety inadequate
to accommodate the large traffic and that y
promise to erect a new depot had been made
and dlsregarded. In the judgment of the Com
mission the operation of the bond-aided roads
as far as train service, accommodations and IA
c1l1tles are concerned, have been such as to
give satisfaction to the communities with the
exceptions enumerated.
The coming of the Commission to San Fran
cisco was announced in advance and Informs
ton asked. As | remember the testimony but
one man, Mr.. Strong, came forward to complain.
his testimony, as he afterwards admitted, was
founded ON an entire misrepresentation of facts
His complaint was not in the end against US
but against mis- agent, 20 whom he had intrusted
his affairs. With this agent we had wears before
ADJUSTED all matters in dispute, but the agent to
say the least, had not notified his principal.
When Mr.. Strong learned these facts like the
honorable man that be l., he excu pated US
another remarkable fact in this connection is
that the Commission had from its crea-
ton been the recipient of ANONYMOUS
letters making complaints against rail
road companies. We thought some of them
might be directed against the Central and in
CURED of the Commission. at the close of Its
sitting, whether this was so. The response
and It appears upon the records of the Commits
sloD-was that it had received no letters affect
ing. our interests. Considering the immense
business We 60, the large number of men in our
service, it's indeed remarkable that such should
be the relations with our patrons that there
were none to complain.
The Commission was also directed to INQUIRE
II either the Pacific Rsiiroad Companies had
been embarrassed and its earning capacity i'm
paired by
he Commission states (p. 1l7), that 1t is of
the opinion that these roads have been EN- bar
raised by the frequency with which such bills
intended to effect them have been introduced
10 the Legislatures of States and Territories
through which they run. Many of these bills
contained provisions which, if adopted would
have been ruinouS TO the railroads. Very fire.
quen'ly the persons introducing such bills
failed to realize the effect which their rass7ge
would produce. The constant threat Of adon-
ton OF such measures has been a source of en-
DaTrassment To all the bond-aided companies
ana mas forced them to protect themselves by
frequent and constant attendance before com
mitteeS of the Legislatures"
Inc principal portion of the Central Pacific
road as far east as the State line was contracted
for by Charles Croker & Co, and constructed
by them. Mr.. Croker was not at that time a
Director of the Central Pacific road but this
tact Is of minor Importance The road from the
state line to Promontory was constructed by the
CONTRACT AND FINANCE COMPANY.
corporation organized under the laws OF the
state Of California Tor construction purposes
The testimony shows that it was impossible for
the projectors of the road to convince mnneyed
men that il was business operation. and that
outside OF its little group Of projectors few, if
any, believed the road would ever be completed
IN California against its construction was
arrayed the interest of the Overland Stage Com
pany, the Overland Telegraph Company, the
steam Nav CATION Company, the Pa
cine Mail Company, and many other powerful
interests centering in San francesca
all of which would be affected seriously by the
completion of the transcontinental road. But
little stock was subscribed for outside of that
taken b. IT'S projectors. Under the laws of the
state OF California the stockholders were liable
for all debts contracted by the company This
taken i'll connection with the doubtful character
Of the enterprise, ana the further fact that at
that time money on the Pacific coast was worth
from 2 to per cent. initiated against the en-
terprise.
The projectors pushed the road along until all
of the funds that they could control were used
ID. Il 7th ff.la tiafKs -.a11
you they were willing to give up the road if BY
so doing they could secure its mpetion. They
formed the Contract snd Finance Company-a
construction conpany-and offered its stock in
the money markets OF the world but il was re-
lected at every point. No amount of Emporium.
ing, no Oder OF great advantages, rs the testl-
mony shows, would induce any OF the leading
o. the Pacf tic coast, or in tie East to
iaSe an interest III The company and furnish
The balance OF the money necessary for the con
Of the road. It's projectors,
ALMOST DISCOURAGED,
ANA finding that its progress depended alone
upon them, gave up these efforts and returned
to the work. The persons constituting the Con
tract and Finance Company, or represented in
II, were substantially the same persons who
constituted the Central Pacific road. There
were few shares of stock in the Contract and
Finance Company not held by them, and there
were few shares OF stock i'll the Central Pa
ellie road not owned by them. II is claimed
that the Directors of each corporation being
the same. they had no right 10
contract with each other. The complete an
swer to this Would be that there was no one else
on earth who would contract with them. They
had worked the contract through the money
markets of the world, and had failed.
The Pacific Railroad Commission criticised
severely the fact that the contracting parties OF
each side were the same. The mere statement
Of this fact ought to be an answer to the criti-
cism, for certainly there is no rule or law of
ethics preventing man from making a contract
with himself, if he wishes to do so. The Com
mlssloners entirely misapprehended the situa-
Ilon OF affairs when they invoked and applied
the principle that the agent of the principal has
no right TO contract with himself about the
business of the principal without his consent
but this misrepresentation comes from the fact
.hat the Commissioners did not properly appre-
mend the nature of some things which prevail |
in California. Eminent domain is the right of
The State to take public property for private use
This right in California has this limitation |
That the property cannot be taken without lust |
being first made. The laws of |
California provide that every person who |
desires to build railroad, to construct |
water works. or to do thousand and one
.hings which are in the nature of public
uses, is an agent of the state, and may as such |
invoke the power. At common law the corpor- |
alton holds the title TO the property. Our So |
called California corporation holds the naked |
egal title, the whole equitable or beneficial |
N. erect being in the stockholders. The legal |
title, for the purposes of convenience alone is
held by the corporate body entirely, but the |
own the property, and their shares I
N. An unbroken line of California decisions |
sustain this view, and about 1t there can be no |
question. Therefore, when A, b, G. and d. COM
posing the Central Pacific Company dealt yvith |