The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-10-05
MAY HAVE LOST THE GEORGIA.
LOUISVILLE AND NASHVILLE RU-
MORED TO HAVE SCOOPED
THE LEASE.


Said to Have Taken Advantage of
the Centrars Default on the An
nuaI Rental During the Receiver
ship to Get Entire COntrOl-Presi-
dent Conner Declines to Discuss
the Matter-He Has Seen Presi-
dent Smith of the Louisville and
NashviIIe-ReasOns for Believing
That the Future Control of the
Georgia Is Undetermined.
Has the Louisville and Nashville rail-
road scooped the Georgia railroad out of
the hands of the Georgia Central? There
is a very interesting rumor to this effect
that comes from Augusta.
The rumor is that the attorneys for the
Central, Messrs, Cunningham & Lawton,
were in Augusta last week for the pur-
pose of making a payment of 100000 on
the Centrals part of the lease of the Geor-
gia railroad and that the payment was
declined, having already been made from
another source. This source is naturally
supposed to be the Louisville and Nash
Vile railroad, which is jointly interested
with the Central in the lease of the Geor-
gia.
President Conner, who has just return
ed to the city from New York, was seen
yesterday by a Morning News reporter,
but he declined positively to say anything
whatever about the matter Mr.. Conner
was asked If he met President Smith of
the Louisville and Nashville while in New
York and he acknowledged that he did,
but declined to say anything further.
Messrs. Lawton g. Cunningham are
also back in the city. There are other
matters which might have required their
presence in Augusta, however. the con-
solidation of the Port Royal and Western
Carolina, and the Port Royal and Angus
ia railways under the name of the Char
lesion and Western Carolina having taken
place last week. Both of these properties
were controlled by the Central railroad
up to the time of the receivership, but
were taken away from it by means of re-
ceiverships obtained in South Carolina
courts.
The new company is controlled by
Messrs. Thomas and Ryan, however,
who also own the stock of the Central
railroad.
That there is cause for disquietude on
the part of the Central railroad people
because of the Georgia railroad lease can
hardly be doubted. During the CentraIs
receivership one or more of the payments
on the lease were allowed to lapse The
Louisville and Nashville is supposed 10
have paid these, and may now claim the
entire control. but those most interested
and in position to know have studiously
avoided discussing this subject, and it is
not known what position the Georgia rail-
road occupies at present.
The Georgia railroad lease has been for
many years one of the heaviest burdens
the Central has had to carry, and at the
same time one that it was not willing 10
drop. The annual rental is about $780,
coo, equally divided between the Central
and the Louisville and Nashville, and
there have been few years when
the road although one of the
finest pieces of railroad property
in the state, has earned this much over
its running expenses. The Georgia being
owned jointly by the Central and the
Louisville and Nashville, and neither being
willing for the other to exercise any con-
troll over it, the property has been oper-
ated independently and has been at all
times a competitor of the Central ran-
road. 1t has never been in any sense an
ally. The Louisville and Nashville has
been anxious to gain exclusive control
of the Georgia for many years, but the
Central would never permit it to do so.
1t could not afford it, for the simple rea-
son that it would convert it's old ally, the
Louisville and Nashville, into dangerous
competitor in this section.
Should the Louisville and Nashville
gain exclusive control of the Georgia it
would naturally seek an outlet on the
southeastern Atlantic at one of the near
by ports. If Savannah should be the
lucky port there would be nothing lost
bat if Charleston, which is believed to be
more likely, the result would be very ben
eficial to that city. AS a matter of fact,
however, most of the Georgia railroads
traffic has always gone to Charleston, the
Central never having been able to infu-
ence any considerable part of it in this di-
rcction. This has always been one of the
queer things about the CentraPs Joint
ownership of the Georgia railroad lease.
Whether President Smith and President
Conner have been discussing these mat
ters is something that the rest of the
country is not likely to know until they
either finally agree or disagree, as both
gentlemen have way of keeping their
own council in such matters.