The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-10-26

palEn, than that with which the rail-
road employees of the United States have
/ spurnsd these appeals. and rebuked this
'e!aten,er.of dlscord and tlissenslon. j.
thefe mas heeninuch criticism aimed
NJ inc determined opposition OF railroad
companies to the Chicago platform, and
us nominees. These companies, so far
as practlcable. have lent their aid and
S,torts IN bringing about the defeat OF
ane pr0Ject 10 change our monetary
sSstsHi. anu, especially tn prevent the
ShihSe OF our present standard OF value
Il ~ not the purpose OF these COMPANIES
10 engage In the usual political contro-
NerS!es. that always preceie our cleo
eons their purpose, their end. and their
ann Is TO facilitate transportation and
70 DC entirely divorced from political
controversies. or influencing In any
manner, the result OF our oft-recurrinr
elections. It is foreign to the purposes
or their organization to exercise the
functions OF government. but they are
essentially business aggrcgations, whose
property should have thrown around IL
me same protecting power OF the law as
mat or the individual. For theirs Is
oniY the Joint Property OF many indi-
Vianals. These corporations have be-
come necessities in our complex system
OF eoipmerce. Tor without the Instrument
taiity tot the corporation, few railroads
would be operated. and fewer still would
ever be built And their participation
IN the present political struggle, is due
to the measure which threatens TO de-
stroy the value Of their property, and
drive them into hopeless bankruptcy.
IN nearly every instance, railroads
are ilrst constructed and equipped upon
borrowed money. The building and
equipplng ora railroad. ready for the
transportation. OF freight and passen-
gers. viii cost on an average OF about
S25 900 per mile. And the completion of
line OF railway 400 miles long, Will cost
about $40 600, and the most important
question thatsconfronts the promoter OF
railwayE enterprises at the very TIRES
iioid OF his scheme, Is to raise sufficient
money with which to carry on his work
to Its final completion.
Rniiroa,l- in Bankruptcy.
The: sources from which this supply is
to come. are from banks. trust com
panies, savings banks, Wife insurance
companies, and, to some extent, lndi-
vidunls, and in order to induce these
various institutions to part with their.
money,it becomes necessary to throw
around the security OF their investment
every safeguard known to the law, as
| the funds in their hands are trust funds
in nearly yiinstancc they require the
railroad company 10 issue It's bonds
with interest coupons attached. These,
coupons are payable every six months as
the interest ma lures The principal of
the bonds, together with the interest Is
payable in gold OF the standard weight
and fiReness. The payment of the prin-
| cipal and Interest mentioned In the
bonds, Is secured by mortgage over the
railroad bed, all It's real estate, rolling
stock. and personal property of every
kind, end there IS always n provision in
| the mortgage, that II the interest cou-
pons are not paid as they fall due. then
the mortgage may be foreclosed, al
though the principal Is not due for many
years. These bonds usually draw five
or six per cent and ten million issue,
at a five per cent basis. 1t would require
the pa yInent OF $3.50, 900 every six months.
as interest to keep the mortgage from
being forcclosed, and the company's
properly all sold. This interest must be
| made by the earnings OF the road after
| paying the operating expenses, u and
| when q railroad company does not earn
enough money, after paying the wages
OF its employees, and other expenses, with
which to meet its interest charges, then
a foreclosure Is Inevitable, and bank
ruptcyE becomes. n necessity.
Those who have the preservation OF
money intrustetl to their care by the
wage earncrs and beneficlaries OF es-
tates, must view with alarm any at
tempt To depreclate the value OF that
| So trt,o MT or
guardians of orphans, and executors Of
estates beIueathed to widows and de-
pendent relatives. They are also the
| trustees named, In the mortgage given
| by the railway companies, and becomes
| at onces the financial representative and
agent Of both the railway company that
| borrows, and the individuals whose
money has been left with them for safe
| Investment. And II Is always matter
| OF the grayest importance to those whose
| means are invested In railway proper
| ties. 10 maintain the credit of the COM
pnny, and secure the just and full pay
ment OF Its obligations rs they mature;
and In dc5ense OF the trusts that have
! been committed 10 their hands, are NOR
ally bound to resist by all The forces Mt
their c>nrmand. }eyry attempt. whether
made by individual greed. or govern
menau policy, to wreck their enterprise,
and to destroy the solvency of their &C.
curltles. M
Silver 1IononhetplI,n,.
AS the interest on railway bonds
must be paid in gold. In order to save
tho company from insolvency, It Is cs-
scntial to thelr'welfarc, that gold should
not so 20 n. premium. or cease to circu-
Int" aS n moneyiin this country. II the
declarations Sof the Chicago platform
should become law, under existing con-
| dlti0Ds. the silver dollar would become
our only circulating medium. except
| such paper currency MS would be based
upon silver The gold would cease TO be
our money oil exchange, and would ut
once 20 TO such aprcnium, that It would
require two silver dollars to obtain one
| gold ore. The earnings OF railroads
would all be- paid In the cheaper silver
dollar, and from these earnings. suili-
ci-nt revenue must he obtained with
which to pay Its maturing interest
charges, and the obligation would be
upon every railroad company In the
countrytto take two Of the dollars earned
! by It, and buy ole with which to pay Its
interest! a large proportion OF the rail-
way companies have great difficulty,
even under our present financial System.
| 20 meet their Interest charges, and II
this burden Should be doubled by the
INCEPTION OF the policy outlined by the
Chicago convention, 1t would force mort
Oc oar railway systems into n bankrupt
| cy Tint would entail treat loss md suf-
| fGrlUG upon thodc wh03C interest Is In
ary manner connected with the building
or opsfnt inE of5rn lroadJ.
"ThcS are zone Of tho considerations.
| which, rgmyshuribiG Judgment, make 1t
| impcrst i've FOR eYlry railroad man in tho
| nlInirY 10 toppole the Nlectlnn Of Mr.