The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1894-08-02
JUDGE RUSSELL'S REPLY.

Wilmington, y. c., Jul Y 24, '94.
EDITOR TIE CAUCASIAN, Colds
boro, n. C.:-1ours of July goth
received and duly considered. At
the risk of being boycotted and out
Iawed by corporate capital and its
myrmidons | will give to the people
through your paper a8 you request
brief statement of the enormous
fraud which the last Legislature IN
hicted upon the taxpayers of this
State by the so-called COMPROMISE
If the taxes due by the Wilmington
4 Weldon Railroad Company to the
State aud to the counties and towns
along the line of its Main and of its
Branch Roads.
This railroad Company is almost
entirely owned by d lot of non-resi-
dent Northern capitalists who are
the originals or the successors of d
crowd whose capaciOuS fingers
stretched out to GRAB it during that
carnival of corruption which follow
ed closely the end of the war and in
which both political parties were
more or less implicated. The Rail
road then belonged to the State of
| North Carolina, to the city of Will
mington and to various individual
citizens of the State.
These enterprising aliens, looking
Southward across the Patomac fol
any thing laying around which Sher,
man might have left, discovered this
valuable property; obtained for 3
small sum THE CONTROL of it, anC
then by the perfectly legitimate anc
highly honorable methods so wei
known to railroad wreckers and law
yers proceeded to "RCN DOWN. The
property until they got the minorlt.
shares from citizens of the State fo
little or nothing.
The railroad company was charter
ed in 1884. For nearly sixty year
it paid no taxes under the claim tha
by It's charter 1t was exempt from
taxation. During all this time i
was legally liable for taxation upol
all property owned by it such a
stocks or bonds of other companies
cash on hand, investments of al
kinds-indeed it was liable for take
on all its property except the mai
line from Wilmington to Hallfa
and such rolling stock. material an
equipments and station houses a
, were necessary for the proper opera
ton of the road. And as to tn
claim there was serious doubt whetE
er it was entitled to any exemptlo
in excess of $500, 200, sum laTgel
less than its value at any time. |
1893 when it ordered its striker
who were holding seats IN a Leglsl'
ture to which they were not elected
4 to give it "compromise," 1t W;
e ia arrear and in default for tax
= and penalties to an amount so lars
9 that nobody has even undertook
compute it. Upon the best availab
evidence without going back mo
than fifteen years aud wltho'
9 charging them with penalties, it w
made to appear that the just CLAIM
of the State and counties and tow
against this railroad were not lie
than 100000. Treating them
common folks are treated and tn
enforcing penalties and interest t
sum would run up into million
a equal perhaps to the value OF t
property. Instead of collecting tt
ce debt so justly due to the people al
t. out of winch they had been cheate
a the Legislature compromised" it I
ly sixty or seventy thousand dollars.
ne The counties of Robson, Cumb
y, land, Harnett, Johnson, Wilson a
od others on the branch lines got abe
$4,000, while they were entitled
ek more than $4,000, to say nothing
&C. the penalties and interest. L
State got about $4,000, while 1t
entitled to about 100000. The C
hv of Wilmington, according to the b
~ estimates, was entitled 10 $1,000
h. 1t got $3.50.
of Now for the defense, or rather
of cuse for this plumber of the peo
to and spoiliation of the State: ]
di- Wilmington & Weldon Railroad G,
pany in consideration of recelv
this royal bounty, some S63O,t