The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-15
THE BATTLE OF Tit ROADS.
SPENCER OF THE SOUTHERN AN
sWERS ST. JOHN OF THE
SEABOARD.

The Central Not Owned by the
conference.-the Southern Has Only
an Interest In the Central. Earn
ings of the Southern COnpared
with Those of the sesbOard.
other Interesting Facts.
President Samuel Spencer of the S,uth-
ern Railway Company has written I'M
der date of Sept. u, to Hon. L. N. Ram
r,eu chairman of the state railroad COM
mission. strong letter in reply o the
letters of Vice President ST. John Of the
seaboard Air Line, in which there is no
mincing of words. and the questions at
issue are discussed in spicy and inter-
estng manner.
President Spencer's letter also discusses
the railroad situation in Georgia to GER
tain extent, stating emphatlcally that the
Southern does not conrol the Central, and
that i. does not control other lines which
# has been charged with operating in its
own interests. The letter, however, speaks
for itself. It was received IN Atlanta yes
terday by Chairman Trammell, and is pub
lished with his consent:
New York, Sept. 12.-HonI L. M. Tram
nell. Chairman Georgia Railroad Commits
sion: My attention has been directed to
tbe letters addressed to you by Mr.. St.
John. vice president Of the Seaboard Air
Line. under dates of July % and q last,
and as 1 appreciate thoroughly the appro-
pirate rebuke which you administered to
him in the first sentence of your reply of
July q, I shall not inlict upon you dis
cusson of the merits or dement's of the
ponts at issue between the Southern Rail
way Company and the Seaboard Air Line;
but Mr.. st. John has injected into his cor
respondence with you so many untrue and
incendiary statements, regarding the
Southern Railway Company and its pur-
poses, and has so endeavored to use that
correspondence to mislead and to inflame
the public mind against this company,
that some authoritative denial and refuta-
ton of his statements should be made of
record through the same medium Of publi-
cation that was adopted by him.
Until now I have forborn to take public
notice Of these and other statements equal
side parties injured by the action of Mir. st.
John and his associates recently brought
the entire subject matter of the contro-
versy before the court for judicial inves-
tigation and for its decision, which only
recently has been rendered, and until af-
ter the decision any discussion would have
been manifestly improper.
Mr.. St. Johns statement that the South
ern, "as is we'll known, owns every share
of the capital stock of the Central of
Georgia Railway" is impossible of accept
ance in the sense intended by him, and re-
quires distinct qualification.
The Southern has a contingent beneh-
cial interest in either that stock or its
proceeds, but the stock is lawfully held
by others under court decisions with which
your commission is familiar, and the
Southern Railway Company has never ex-
ercised any control over the stock or eth
er directly or indirectly over the opera
tions of the property of that company, and
it will not even seek to do so except in full
compliance with law. The exact relations
of the Southern to the Central of Georgia
Company, is now under consideration by
your commission, and the Southern is
ready to give to you all facts and knowl-
edge in its possession in respect to it.
II the Central railway is not controlled
by the Southern Railway Company then
it follows that the latter has no interest
IN the Georgia railroad, the Atlanta and
west Point, or the Western Railway of
Alabama.
Mr.. St. John charges that the Southern
"compes the Atlanta and West Point
ana the Western of Alabama to refuse
those through car arrangements to the
seahoard Air Line which they accord to
the Southern"
The fact is the Southern has no power
ana has never attempted to
compel or to influence the At
lanta and West Point or the
western of Alabama to refuse such facll-
Illes or to do or not to do any other thing.
II me management of those properties
should see fit to haul two lines of cars to
90 the same volume of business now done
IN one, the Southern would have no right
" OBJECT and no power to prevent it. but
uouoleSs all the stockholders of those
plant -'4 N0iii-
MI st. John says:
The southern owns the route IN Naw
orleans, via Birmingham.
me Southern neither owns nor controls
nSr mas It any interest in, that line south !
VI Meridian, Mississippi
Mr.. St. John saws:
w. tue nneS centering at Atlanta only |
a. az 9Tdooard Air Line, towards the east. |
an, anu the Western and Atlantic. towards |
tb me west are free from the domination OF |
r. pne southern) corporation.
No. zen II the Southern controls. as IL does
tro1 tne central. the Central does not con- |
gl o', nor has it ever controlled the Geor- |
Poii taiiIoad The Louisville and Nashville |
boIt ga, oau Company owns an undivided one |
apd interest in the lease of that property.
ca GU, IN Iull protection of that interest. the
ero, sla Is and has at all times been. op- |
snro oeu as an Independent line. This in |
da,' DIS II being at all times, and it is to- |
So an active competitor of both the /
tn ,He I'm and the Central to the east.
drs ne Georgia railroad has recently with |
Avn Avn from the Southern States Freight |
S99oglalon without consultation with the /
w, neIh or Central
ro ne south Carolina and Georgia rail-
actti ana the Clyde Line of steamers. all |
lart,ae competitors to the east, reach At |
TSl by the Georgia railroad.
ro a5e general manager of the Georgia rail-
viii VI any one of its officers or directors,
cor,,,. 1 am sure, state to your honorable
sHrh. Sslon that no attempt, however
er5 ~" ~ mas ever been made by the South
,iye- galway Company or its representa-
een,..o control or in any way to direct or
h.