The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1896-09-17

course would prove oppressive to the
existing boat lines and destructive to
their revenues to be derived therefrom
and was wholly unnecessary to promote
competition, you persisted in putting on
third and useless and expensive boat
line: that your only othef proposition
involved creation of u company with
q capital equal to the investment i'm
both of the boat lines, when the BUSH
ness was not sufficient to more than pay
the Interest upon one such investment;
that YOU did not make your ship in
Vestment prior to this protect, but per-
sisted in making 1t after your attention
had been called thereto. After having
thus disturbed the situation oppressed
the existing boat lines by an unprofita-
bic act. whose only result could be to
cripple them and cause loss To the own
ers of the investment therein. you now
claim that the disturbance which fol-
lowed your action and was produced
thereby. was inaugurated by the Sea-
hoard Air Line and not by the South
ern railway.
This was not a case where tho Sea-
board Air Line sought to throttle COM
petition. to exclude you from existing
facilities and to lnonopolize those facili-
ties to itself. but It was n case where
an abundant competition existed where
you were offered a choice of the COM
petGive lines and equal facilities with
all competitors, and where it was pre-
scented to you, and cannot be success
fully controverted. that your course
would destroy existing Investments and
by such destruction tend To drive out
Facilities now in existence and to pro-
duce a monopoly of transportation be-
tween Norfolk and Baltimore on the
waters of the Chesapeake Bay. and that
despite all OF the foregoing you persisted
In your course, made the aggressive
movement, and are now claiming that
the results produced by your own wrong
were inaugurated by another.
Verify the fable OF the wolf and the
lamb at the stream has many modern
imitatOrS.
l note what you say concerning the
controlling portion of the capital stock
OF the Seaboard Air Line having been
offered TO you for sale. Permit me 10
say to you that whatever offer may have
been made and declined by you. you
were mLsled into believing that Il was
an offer of the majority Of such capital
stock. No person controlling or able 10
deliver majority of such capital stock
has ever made you any such offer. II
you believed that the person from whom
the offer came was able 10 make the de-
livery. the purchase would have b en-
far more desirable than some of the
other purchases of competitive lines
which have been made by the Southern
Railway, and not a whit more violate
the law or public policy.
You have seen fit 10 controvert my
statement that the Seaboard Air Line
was making more net per mile than the
Southern Railway. and for purposes
which do not care to discuss but which
must he manifest. You have seen tit to
publish q comparison between the fig
ureS of your annual report FOR 1898 and
certain figures claimed to show the
earnings of the Seahoard Air Line. The
correctness of these rattcr figures / have
not had time to investigate. You also
nc" III to attack the earning capacity of
the Georgia, Carolina and Northern
Railroad. 1t should be well known to
you as a railroad man that no new rail-
road running through such territory as
exists in the South without unusual
conditions could realize its natural earn
ing capacity until efter some years of
operation. The Georgia, Carolina and
Northern Railroad has not been oper-
ating more than four years. Its earn
ings have been increasing regularly
and satisfactorily during every year OF
It's operation. Its expenses have been
decreasing as the road becomes older
and more settled. 1t has now arrived nj
point where Il can properly be classed
as self-supporting road. lis capacity
for increas- and development is such
that it promises 10 he one of the best
railroads in the Seaboard system. and
no critical observer of its opera lions
would have classed IL as a dead road"
But come to the pres time. Since
You challenged figures let us take the
earnings of The Southern Railway and
of the Seaboard Air Line system for the
year ending Jun" 20. 1896. Turning to
your report and accepting your basis
Of net profits as the true result, ] find
that youg system has during IN. year
OH mileage Of AG5,A without paying
any dividends whatever upon any OF
the preferred stock; $555 ijS.19 The SEES
board Air Line, with $50 miles. $lS2 i3S o.
which is over and above all fixed
charges. interest. rentals and other like
deductions OF this amount It has paid
out s24SiG.50 as dividends upon stock.
and has carried 10 surplus account SI5S.-
O76.52. The II earnings of your system
per mile has been Sll9.56: the net earn
incs OF the SpihOard Air Line. excluding
dividends. S19iA5. Deducting the amount
paid for dividends. 1868 per mile. from
July TO : pt. T. your statements show
that your earnings have decreased upon
the Southern Railway alone sl92 $50 be-
low the corresponding period for 1896
while the net earnings Of the Sea board
Air Line increased for the month Of July.
1876. over those Of July. 1895, 81 1851
have not the reports for August at
hand. but there has been :; correspond
ing increase for August and the frs.
week Of September. These figures speak
for themselves notice thar you do not
challenge my statements rs 10 the far
greater capitalization Of the Southern
Railway over the Seaboard Air line.
II is perhaps wise that You do not. as
this comparison would be quite as s.r;k-
ing. Your attempt TO divert attention
from the real merits OF the matter pre-
scented by insisting that The Seaboard
Air Line, in its protest against ply
steal pools in business and boycotts was