The great West. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1889-18??, 1889-12-27
Robinson Once More.

was defense of the railways from a
financial standpoint. The railways
had taken up a subscription and,
issuing large edition, gave them in
to the hands OF employees, with in
structions to scatter far and wide.
This was comparatively recent
matter. The pamphlet was sent to
us by a friend for examination. We
were not aware that it had been is
sued last winter for use in defiling
the legislature of Minnesota, AS it's au-
thor now informs us-by a somewhat
roundabout statement.
| Examination proved the pamphlet
to be concrete mass of misrepresen-
tations and practical frauds, and we
devoted four columns of solid BREWER
to showing them up. The N. w.
Railroader entered silly criticism of
our review. stating that it would not
take space for reviewing our stated
facts. The following week we gave
a bitter and biting analysis OF a GER
tain table of unseen, or clerical, or
constructive and repair expenses
which Robinson published to show
how awfully enormous the running
of railway was. Without any
egotism we may say-and in the Ian
guage Of anOther-that that analy-
sis knocked the smithereens out of
it," 1t simply showed that Robin
sons table was fraud. Now Rob-
inson responds. With any of the
facts at issue? No-but he has used
up nearly page of his journal with
out as yet bringing up solitary
| fact AT IssUE-nOt reference there
| to.
What has he done?
| Well, he issued statements and re-
fused to give their source or author
ity, and now builds a three-story
editorial on the fact that our
''guess" wasn't correct.
He claims:
| LIST. That his gigantic ''balance
sheet" fraud was not from the North
ern Pacific Railway, but taken from
the annual report of another road.
Now we are even with Mr. r. Not a
man in our Office, and the matter
was talked over with four gentle
men, really knew that it was a
Northern Pacific document. But we
all read plain English, and that the
English of the pamphlet refused to
give the source of the ''balance
sheet''-the subject of humorous
reference by our accountant" SO we
all agreed today it on to the shoulders
of the Northern Pacific-until the
latter disowned it.
The document never was "bal-
ance sheet"-never could have been
was fraud from the beginning, and
never appeared on the books of any
company in the world. 1t now turns
out by Robinson's confession to have
been a ''statement" of a railway
company prepared for public re-
port.
Therefore our wager of 81 900 that
the document never appeared, as
given, ON the books of a company is
a sound proposition. The "North-
ern Pacific part of it was only an
annex-and not so bad an annex
either!
| I'd point.-W stated that his as
serted reduction of freights was a
''hummer'-a square-tOed lie. He
asserts that he drew his information
from the Report of the Railway Com
mission, and that we better tackle
them. Certainly-at any time. 1t
makes no difference who says that
the railways have reduced freights in
this country in late years. 1t not on
ly is lie, but can be readily so proven
and the more people and commits
sions who state it, the more people
''prevaricate." AS tar as the COM
mission Reports go they are SO full
of errors that no man would be safe
or sensible in quoting them. Why
Robinson, the Commissions Report
of two years since gives the cost of
building the NJ. & P. Ry. at some
thing over $4,000 a mile, including
the equipment-and gives it SO three
times over. And in the same report
we have noted sixteen errors!
This is all-absOlutely all that
Robinson has to say. He might
better employ his genius for sOph-
istication on his Railway Income
theories.
Now suppose the editor of the N.
w. Railroader let our guesses at the
observations yelled by him take a
rest, and examine the Indictment we
made against his fraudulent ''bal-
ance sheet" And if you object to
the Northern Pacific income of Sc, 0GO
to the mile, take the state average OF