New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-02-05

Tuesday, Feb. 4-p. m.

II is now about three weeks since New-fork
newspaper published Wall Street story TO the
effect that the Attorney General of the State OF
Nebraska had been in this city investigating the
status of the Union Pacific Railroad, and that
from the information he had received from Wall
Street wreckers of other peoples property he In
tended to address an open letter to the Attor-
ney-Gencral of the United States, detailing an
amount of ancient gossip, together with here and
there an item of ancient history, and protesting
in the name of the State against the United States
Congress making any settlement with the Union
Pacific Company looking to an extension oil It's
debt to the Government. The story at the time
of its first publication fell fiat on the stock mar
ket and Union Pacific advanced about l per cent
the day after its publication Because 1t was
quickly recognized that when the Attorney-Gen-
eral of Nebraska addresses the Attorney-General
of the United States he does so as private cltl-
zen and further, that the AttOrney-General OF the
United States has official connection with Con-
rressional legislation only in response TO questions
asked of him by Congressional resolution. week
or so later the same matter was repeated in Chi
cago special ~ to Wall Street. Nevertheless,
there never has been particle of trustworthy
evidence that the AttOrney-General OF Nebraska
intended to use his Office for the benefit of Wall
Wall Street as the proper place to obtain informa-
ton regarding the relations of the Union Pacific
with the people of Nebraska, even ii lie had en-
tertlined such a proposition. The open letter
signed by the Attorncy-General has never Dech
About a week ago the foregoing was supple.
mented by a Chicago special TO Wall Street
that the Governor of Nebraska had written a
letter to the officials of the railroads III mat
state appealing To them 10 reduce their rates on
corn that the farmers of the State may live, ana
closing, according to the special, win some
thing akin to Gentlemen, the handwriting
on The wall" And to-day tine minute squire
guns of Wall Street send out, without any
investigation of its truth, the following Chicago
Special-Ihe majority OF the NeoraSka otate
Board Of Transportation are here at Chicago, 10
endeavor 10 get the Nebraska roads to reduce
corn rates, SO as to leave something 1or the
farmer" We do not propose, without authority,
to DENY the validity of any of these reports.
They are placed before our readers in chronological
order. Many men, however, have been sent 10
state prison on clrcumstantlal evidence less CON
vincing than that which locates all these reports
in the limited district bounded by Broadway,
Wall and Broad sts. and Exchange Place.
There is striking consistency between the
nllcged protest against Government relief" of
the Attorney General of Nebraska, and the alleged
letter of the Governor of the State and the action
of the Nebraska State Board of TRANSFORMATION,
the humOr of which probably will strike the
Originators of these reports when they read this.
One asks the United States 10 force the Union
Pacific TO charge the highest possible price, that
is according to the views of the bears; and the
other appeals for mercy to the farmers. 1t is
awfully funny.
II has been repeated again and again that the
"Oregon Short Line has been for weeks blocked
by snow The fact is that during the
blockade by snow of the Central Pacific, the Union
Pacinc's only connection with the Pacific coast
was by the Short Line to Portland. Boston
dispatch from inside sources tells us that the
"only trouble on the Oregon Short Line system has
been a blockade on the naTrow-gauge road between
Pocattt and Ogden which affects earnings about
as much as a ferryboat accident affects the COM
merce Of the city of Newfork." There, how
ever was a blockade of freight and passengers,
because of the closing up OF connection with san
Francisco by the Central Pacific, which oVertaxed
the capacity Of the Short Lines equipment
Once more we say il is funny how disaster 10
one system which temporarily benefits another
system may be and is used against the values OF
the system that accidentally Is benefited. A
limited market. however, and the supreme con-
troll of Wall Street minute "shotguns do the
work in restricting speculation at the stock EN-
change And the members Of the Stock EA-
change seem to like the situation, otherwise they
would cease to contribute to the support Of insti
buttons which seldom send out anything that is
not prepared for them. which is not calculated
TO send would-bc buyers out of their offices. We
simply maintain that Chicago special" 9as less
importance than an item of local news: that II
has been proved time and again that majority
OF Chicago disnatehes had their origin In New