Omaha daily bee., 1890-01-18
READINGS PASSED DIVIDEND
Attempt to Square Corbin Before
Foreign Stockholders.
AN AGENT TO THE RESCUE.
He Writes a Long Communication to
the Press In Defense OF the
Action Of His Chief in
the Matter.
In Defense of Corhin.
LCopuriqht 1890 bu .Iamss Gordon Bsnn.,,

ttOUUTeDHt ic1U bu JUNtSs uU6uOn bSlI>Lf.l
LONDON, Jan. 17.-TNew York Herald
Cable-Special to TuE BEE. l-Sebastian b.
Schlessinger has sent the following letter to
the London Herald, dated No. s Wilton
place, Belgrave square, January IL: NJ
have refraired from taking any notice Of the
attacks that have been made upon Mr.. Cor
bin because my position as agent of the
Philadelphia g. Reading railroad company
makes IL a delicate matter for me to speak at
all. In the interests of Justice and fair play
l ask your kind permission to trespass on the
valuable space Of your columns to the extent
of a few words, not as an agent of the com
pany but as an individual having a right to
express his opinion. 1t is just b ecause l am
Corbin's representative that 1 nave had
ample opportunity to judge him and
to know the motives which guide his
actions, and it was because 1 knew
Corbin so we'll before l had business rela-
tions with him and felt convinced of his hon
esty of purpose as well as ability that l was
glad to accept mis- offer to represent him on
this side. Corbln is neither a wrecker nor
an operator. His past record shows that.
His mission has been and is to work for the
benefit of the proprietors of the Long Island
railroad, which was hopelessly in the mud.
He took 1t out of the mire, and the stock,
which was selling ut % cents on the dollar,
ls,now not far from par and for years has
paid regular dividends to the stockholders.
The Jersey Central railroad, which was In q
similar position, he helped to put on its legs.
The stock is now worth $l27, against about
$50 per share. Corbln has left to
others the management of the road, and the
talk that his interest in Jersey Central has
induced him TO sacrifice Reading has not q
vestige Of truth at the bottom of it. Now, as
regards Reading, 1 have suffered, In COM
pany with others, a large loss, but this fact
does not diminish the esteem and respect l
have for Corbin and the confidence 1 repose
in him.. 1t Is perfectly true that when Cor
bin was here he confidently expected to pay
the full interest on the first preference in
come bonds, and he 30 exsresseu himself at
the time. have no doubt whatever that he
and the other trustees fully believed that
the earnings would be sufficient TO NEST this
interest, but when the accounts for the year
were closed the situation was changed. The
coal and iron company has forty-one col
lieries and the system Is so large
and the accounts are so complicated
that the most farseelng might fail
to form an exact estimate of the probable
final result, 1t was found that the improve
ments made during the year could not be
fairly carried into next years accounts.
Everything was fully discussed and Drexel
& Morgan and the trustees all decided that
there was but one course to be pursued
not to pay the interest where none had been
earned-and none OF the directors or trustees
would consent to borrow money for such a
purpose. The annual report will demonstrate
that in spite of the warm weather, floods and
exceptionally heavy expense, a great earning
power has been shown, and in due
time, when the road equipment and
collieries are in proper condition and
with a good coal trade, all of the owners may
expect to receive a good revenue. No i'm.
partial mind investigating the affairs of the
Reading can fail to come to the conclusion
that the present management is able, eco
nomlcal and honest, having no other end in
view than to do their best for the property
and its owners. Any change in the man
agement can not better things and can only
do harm. Pierpont Morgan ia far too able
and far too independent to have approved
Corbin's course if he did not believe it to be
best, and as he or his firm are probably the
largest holders of the income bonds, his
judgment should be taken as conclusive"