The record-union., 1892-04-25
At THE BANQUET TABLE.
Reception of Railroad Employees
at the Palace Hotel.
PRESIDENT HUNTINGTON FEASTS
HIS FELLoW-WoRKERS
Prominent Personages of the Central
and Southern Pacific Railroads Meet
In q Social Gathering = President
Huntington's Address-Story of His
Life-California's Past and Present.
to the REcoRD-uS1oS.

Iife-California's Past and Present.
Special to the REcoRD-UNIoN.
SAN FRANCISCO, April 24.-Collis p.
Huntington, President of the Southern
Pacific Company, entertained the princi-
pal employees with his usual annual ban
quet at the Palace Hotel last evening.
1t was the sixth dinner of its kind, and
it proved to be at least as successful as
any of its predecessors.
The tables were arranged in oblong
form, President Huntington occupying
seat at the center of one of them. On
his right was General A. n. Towne and
at the left sat William III. Mills. To the
right of General Towne were C. w.
Smith, G. L. Lansing, n. L. Smith and
+. III. Miller. To the left of Mr.. Mills
were seated J. c. Stubbs, III. L. Hunting
ton, r. p. Schwerin and c.. e. Mills. AT
the tables extending down from either
side of the horseshoe bend were C. E.
Brotherton, w. Mahl, w. q. Curtis, A.
Bonzano, A. Brown, f. l.. Craig, j. g.
Martin, A. A. Moore, j. NJ. Hanford, w.
Hood, j. Madden, j. Moss, C. E. Green,
n. Ill. Foster, j. A. Anthony, j. l.. Will
cutt, q. 9. Wright. w. J. Bryan, A. Cen
ter, E. b. Ryan, J. III. Wallace, j. w.
Dayan, j. T. Carothers, r. Derby, G. L.
Fabens, ID. II. Haskell, E. 4. Wade, E.
b. Holton, b. f. Tuttle, +. l.. Vanden-
burg, w. Moberry, w. Nick enzie, w. B.
Ludlow. +. n. Belleisle, B. Welch, l.. M.
Clement. ID. w. Horsburgh, +. S. Douty,
!; HorseburSh, Jr.,J L. Frazier, z. J.
Foster, G. L. Robinson, j. III. Sharpe, j.
L. Wilson, L. r. Anthony, w. Mckay,
c. 3. Browne, w. III. Whitley, G. f.
Richardson, j. p. Meehan, A. b. Shep-
ard, @. w. Fletcher, y. A. Fillmore, j.
y. Wright, w. V. Huntington, w. Nc
Allister, ii. S. Brown, J. ). Haley, A.
Lathrop, r. III. Pratt, n. X. Masten, A.
3. Ford, H. j. Small, G. H. Rice, A. d.
Wilder, E. f. Gerald. Henry A. Cum
mings, r. Stevenson, w. Sproule, w. E.
Neimeyer, K. A. Donaldson and G. +.
Smurr.
The general effect of the banquet hall
was very picturesque with its profusion
of floral decorations, dainty porcelain and
silverware. Bouquets of fragrant roses,
palms and three statuettes were features
OF the table decorations. The menu cards
were neatly designed, and the menu was
very choice. A string band was in attend
ance and diScoursed music throughout
the progress of the banquet.
After coffee, General Towne was intro
duced by Toastmaster w. II. Mills, and
made a characteristic speech. Mr.. Mills
then took the floor to introduce ''Our
Host" and held il for twenty minutes.
He sketched the career of Mr.. Hunting
ton, and told something of that gentle
mans peeuliarities.
MIR. HUNTINGToN's SPEECH.
Then Mr.. Huntington replied:
''My Friends and FeILOU- -lUOrkerS: We
meet here tonight as we have met before.
l believe none have dropped out of the
line of the living since our last reunion,
and may this, like the others, be joyful
meeting. May the song be sung and the
story told as at those other times. You
can tell them so as to bring JOY and
laughter, but my story is old. 1t COM
menced in the early part Of this century
amongst the hills of New England There
/ started in life and business with ad-
vantages over many OF the others who
started with me, for I had not a liberal
education and had no money, whilst many
of. my boy neighbors had both, which
prevented them from doing hard and
homely work which was nearest to them.
had no such obstacle between me and
useful work that needed to be done, so [
took the work that lay nearest to me with
an effort to do it better than it had ever
been done before, and from the stand
point of each days labor looking upward
and onward, ever anxious to spy out
something that was better than what had
preceded it, [ can say that / have been
fairly successful. as all will be, am con-
vinced, who work with the honesty OF
purpose that actuated me.
Il left the hills of Connecticut in 1886,
and all along the years from then until
now the road that l have travelled can be
easily traced, and | feol sure that any
one disposed to retrace these lines would
not find any places where l had profited
by the wrecks of others or caused the ruin
of any one man.
Upon my arrival in California I found
country where nature had done more
and man think less than in any other
country that l had ever seen. II was
long time before this was changed, for
nearly every one who came, came to dig
| the gold out of the mountains. to make a
| fortune quickly, and then to return to the
| loved ones he had left behind. Oh! how
| many were disappointed, and, becoming
reckless, We're willing TO trust their for
tunes, their honor, and even their lives
| upon the turn OF a card. They wanted sc
much TO return to their friends with gold
that they were ready to sacrifice all else
Tor that. 1t was only the few who knew
| that fortunes were not made by chance
that they rarely came except after years
of careful work and continuing thought
1t was years after the discovery of gold in
valleys became known, and then those
| who came down from the mountains
brought so much OF the old restless spirit
of the miner with them that it cost all
they could make to buy that myth with
| its gilded wings called mining stock.
\ That ate out the profits of their farms. but
/ brought no gold from the mountains II
will be a happy day for California when
the miner Will stay by his mine and the
husbandman by his farm, each one en-
! deavoring to build up his own without
/ injury 10 the other.
There is some complaint from the mer-
! chants, and il is hard for some OF them
when we remember that in those early
days goods sold at from 80 per cent to
leo per cent. profit, and people had to
come to them TO buy, while now the
profits are only y per cent. to 10 per cent.
| and they have to be assiduous and polite
to their customers to have them come AT
| all. An effort was made by few to cast
the blame upon the builders OF the rail-
roads for their loss of profits. and they
said so much to the farmers; but the lat
ter saw that the building of the road had
! increased the value of their holdings in
many parts of the State to twenty times
what it was before the improvements
| were made, and that the effect of those
| improvements had constantly been "a
move further and further forward the
lines Deyoilu WHICH, pIouuce, without the
road, could not hope to be brought to a
profitable market. So the great mass OF
| the farmers saw their advantage. and ONLY
| few laid the blame on the carrying COM
panies, and some few of the tradespeople
made efforts To sustain their high prices.
| by giving as the reason for them the ex-
/ orbitant freight charges to which they
| were subjected An instance illustrative
of these really unreasonable and fictitious
claims, which tended to injure the carry
ing companies with the public, was the
J case of dealer in millinery goods, who