The Louisiana populist., 1897-04-02

OF recent date we' clip the following
interview which throws much light,
from a high authority, on the railroad
question:
Judge Seymour D. Thompson, who Is
considered by the legal profession one
Oh the ablest attorneys on corporation
law in this country, kindly consented
10 be interviewed by Journal report
er on that vital question, The gov
ernment ownership of railroads"
Judge Thompson's associations in
California give him an opportunity OF
fully appreciating the inner situations
OF the funding bill
The judge, though very busy man,
informed the reporter that his time
was at the disposal of the public press
on such important matters as govern
ment ownership. Following is the in-
terVleW reported by stenography:
Judge, if the senate sustains the ac-
ton OF the house of representatives in
defeating the Pacific railroad bill, what,
in your opinion, will be the ultimate
disposition of this veXed question:
asked the reporter
/ think that the natural, if not in
evltable result will be the foreclosure
of the governments mortgages.
In the event Of the foreclosure of
the mortgages, what disposition could
be made Of the roads? Would it not
result in the ownership of the govern
ment Of the roads-perhaps their oper-
alton by the government"
No; at least not necessarily. II
you have mortgage on my farm, and
can not pay it when due, you fore
close the mortgage and the farm is sold
under the order of foreclosure. If there
is anything left after satisfying your
| claim, 1t comes to me. The govern
ment's position in this matter is pre-
cisely what yours would be in the
above supposed case. 1t will proceed
in the same way to sell the tnortgaged
property. Doubtless if the road were
put up at auction under an order OF
foreclosure there would be combina-
tion formed to buy it in. AS the gov
ernment's mortgage is only second
mortgage, and as the first mortgage
bonds amount to an enormous incum-
brance, it is quite unlikely that any
syndicate will bid enough to pay the
governments claim. That, of course,
is a risk the government must take,
and one which should have been
thought of when the government al
lowed the Pacific roads to postpone it to
the first mortgage bondholders. You
are no doubt aware that the govern
ment originally had first mortgages for
all the money it advanced to build these
roads. When they found that they
wanted more money-either to COM
| plete the road or to fill their own pock-
cts, they persuaded congress, by sup
Elementary act, to allow them to put
a mortgage on the properties which
should take precedence OF the govern
ment's mortgage. This first mortgage
which is ahead of the governments
mortgage, is immense in amount--per.
| haps II exceeds what the whole prop.
erty is worth. The Union Pacific is,
believe, in the hands of receiver, sc
that it does not seem to be able to pay
the interest on its first mortgage bond:
and Its running expenses. The Cen
trail Pacific is leased to the Southern
| Pacific Company the Southern Pa
cific railroad, but Kentucky corpora
tion, which controls the latter ant
many other roads comprising what i:
known as the Southern Pacific system
1t has always been thought by the out
side public that the earning power o
this end of the line-the Central Pa
cific-was far less than 1t ought. to be
/ from the fact of it's being under tn,
control of the Southern Pacific com
pany, possessing a rival line, all it:
own, whose revenues it did not have t,
divide with any one else, as it hat
to do in the case of the revenues Of tn,
northern route. The malign influenc,
of such control is apparent to tn,
humblest intelligence. 1t not only LEI
to the starving Of the Central Pacific
but of the Union Pacific, which had M
other outlet to the coast"
do you think it best for the gov
ernment to foreclose the mortgage o
allow the companies to continue in tn
4 ownership of the reads. as contem
plated by this bill?"
"The men who compose the Centra
Pacific Railroad company and tn
Southern Pacific company are gan
Of public criminals, and the govern
ment ought not to treat with then
The four original conspirators hav
been succeeded in part by men OF tn
same flexible morals.
'You perhaps know how they starte
this vast enterprise. Huntington an
| the rent had, at the outside, $4OO, 900
some Nay only s10O, O,O0(-of their owl
Everything else was furnished by tn
government, or by the first mortgag
bondh0lders. They are all enormousl
rich. Dir have died rich--Huntingtor
Stanford, Crocker and Hopkins. Flop
kins is sail to have left 100000, ,0Ot
Crocker is sad to have left $4,000, ,0O(