The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-09-25
A WEAK DENIAL.
Huntington Interviewed at Omaha
By u Herald REPRESENTING.

by u herald hSDreSenIlTlEes
OMAHA, Sept. &c. P. Huntington.
| president of the Southern Pacific, is
in Omaha tonight, en- route to the
Pacific coast. The rumors that the
Southern Pacific contemplates aban-
doning one of its two daily trains on
the Central Pacific to antagonize the
Union Pacific appear to trouble Mr..
Huntington materially. To a re-
porter he stated tonight that there
was not shadow of foundation for
the threatened reduction of the train
service on the Central Pacific. He was
tired of the statement and wanted it
understood that there was no occasion
for any such report. Mr.. Hunting
toms statement puzzles the local rail-
way officials not a little.
They have been given to understand
that the order reducing the train SER
vice was positive and are simply wait
ing now to get some official declara-
ton from the officers of the Southern
Pacific, after having had their inter
view with President Huntington.
Mr.. Huntington, being asked about
the rumor that the Southern Pacific
contemplated taking off this through
connecting train with the Union Pa
cific a. Ogden said:
ut is doubtful if anything of this
kind will be done. 1t was news to
me when l read it in the papers and
at once communicated with the
traffic department. The facts in the
case and the foundation for the rumor
are that there was a council held and
the advisability Of taking off the
local trains between Ogden and Reno
was discussed. The trains do not pay,
in fact they lose money, and for this
reason it was thought best perhaps
to discontinue them. But it is doubtful
If this has been done. The relations
between the Union Pacific and the
Southern Pacific are very friendly and
there will be nothing done, so far as
the Southern Pacific is concerned, to
mar them.
Il presume that Congress will take
some action in the matter of the
Pacific roads, that is the Southern and
Union Pacific, at the next session. The
settlement of the debt to the govern
ment is a comparatively easy thing
20 DO. 1t was never expected that the
roads would pay the debt. except nv
percentage Of the earnings and service
for the government. The government
oullt botn north and south of the Pa
clflc roads. [ mean now, by the Pacific
roads the Union Pacific and the Cen
trail Pacific, the latter now a. part of
the Southern Pacific extending from
Ogden to San Francisco, and it gran
ted to the Northern Pacific vast tracts
of land. These lands are of great
value and have been of inestimable
help to the Northern Pacific. The gov
eminent must have known that by
building both north and south of the
Union and Central Pacific roads. bust
ness would be drawn away from them
and their earning capacity would be
OPPraa cP6 r1bo
eminent must have known that it was
almost destroying it's own securities in
the Union and Central Pacific. This
was apparent But this was bust
ness arrangement; it was the proper
thing for the government to do. If il
had been done by any business man
of sound judgment and sagacity he
would have congratulated himself
upon his bargain; and we'll he might.
The granting of these vast tracts of
land to the Northern Pacific and its
construction, and the same can be said
OF the southern route, of the Southern
Pacific, which has had the effect of
opening the country and populating it,
and the value of the land has in
creased from nothing to, fabulous
sums. The government has prospered
by this and profited by it. There are
no more deserts; the wealth of the
country has been increased beyond
computation. 1t has saved the govern
ment three times the value of the Sc
curities of the Central and Union Pa
cific. There would be no trouble in SET
ting the differences between the gov
eminent and the Pacific roads and the
payment of the debt were it not for the
demagogues. 1t is those men who do
not work who have caused the cues
ton to assume it's present magnitude.
l look for a speedy settlement, how
ever, and it will be welcomed more by
the roads involved than by the self
same demagogues.