The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1893-12-01
IN RAILROAD RINGS.
Many Matters of Interest Agi-l
tating the Public
Pulse.

The people of Benton county and Of the
other counties traversed by the Oregon Pa.
chic railway appear hardly to appreciate
the Importance of the issues of the sale on
the 18th of December. The order of sale ia
stated to take effect if only $500, 600 is bid
for the road. But there is an accumulation
of upwards of 81, 900, 600. of the indebted.
ness OF the two receivers, T. E. Hogg and
E. w. Hadley, the lions share of this large
amount being the issues. under the, former
receiver Mr.. T. E. Hogg. If so small an
amount as 100000, or anything like it. is
bid for the road and it is knocked down at
such figure, there will he much weepinp
and wailing among the creditors who can
but badly afford to make any loss on snms
they had right to believe were absolutely
secured. But even this loss, grieyous as it
would be, appears dwarfed in comparison
with the consequences impending over the
whole state, if the Southern Pacific were
to take advantage of this golden opportu-
nifty to secure the means of getting even
with the farmers and business men of West.
ern Oregon who have been making use of
the competitive road during the last six or
seven years. The boast of Corvallis th&
the wheat finding market here was worth
at least five cents bushel more than that
marketed at rival points would be blown
into the air at once. Competition would
disappear, rates would take a sudden rise
and stay there, and the only refuge would
be the railroad commissioners of Or.
egon-rather weakly hold, if the expert.
ences OF the last year or SO are taken into
account, especially SO in the case OF Eugene.
Another contingency is that one or the
other OF the two factions, which rumor saws
has been struggling for the control of the O.
T. 1or the last two years or more, should buy
at the sale in the hope of freezing out the
other faction. While this would probably
be one degree better for the farmers and
traders OF this county than the sale to the
.. f., yet that result would, in all proba.
plllty, lead only to a continuation of the
litigation which has if we may use the term.
disgraced the name of the OREGON pac;f;s
Tor SO long SO far as we can judge, the
only people who have profited by all this
contention have been the lawyers If they
go on much longer the value of the proper.
ty will have so far run down that there will
be, toquote familiar story, Charley enough
to 90 round"
The solution devoutly to be desired by
all except these lawyers and officials would
be that the independent and quiet bond.
holders, and certificate holders should take
the matter into their own hands and at
this eleventh hour step in to save the prop.
erty from the harpies of all sorts and condi.
tions
Whether these certificate holders who.
after all are the chief in interest at this time
1.-THE bondholders being practically out in
the cold so far as the bonds are concerned,
will have sufficient courage to take this
active step, in the face of all the threats of
attacking their securities which have been
heard from time to time from one section of
their bondholders and their lawyers, re.
mains to be seen. If they have the grit
and energy to bear all difficulties and put
their forces together to save their property
all may yet be well with Benton county and
the certificate holders and other creditors
of the receivers. If they have not, and
make up their minds to let things take their
course the day of the sale will, in our opin.
ion, be black one for Benton county. The
results of the sale are.of much moment to
all our people.