Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1897-09-03
NEW OWNERS FOR A DAM.
The st. Cloud Dam Passes
Into the Hands Of the
Bondholders.

DOJ1OnOlOoTS
Several st. Cloud corporate in.
terests are undergoing changes, and
there will be a separation Of inter-
ests that were consolidated a few
years ago. In 1893 the water works,
gas plant, electric light works and
water power Improvements at st.
Cloud were consolidated in one cor
poration. On Jan. l. 1896, the cor
poration defaUlted in it's payment
on bonds, and for several months
the enterprises have been in the
hands Of the receivers appointed by
the courts. There is now an effort
to adjust the matters and get the
properties on business basis. The
bondholders q the water power i'm
prOvements will probably take the
dam and other improvement prop
erty for their $10o.OOO Ut bonds
secured by it, aud will hereafter be
independent Of the water works, gas
and electric plants. ThebOndholders
have employed an engineer who re-
! ports the water power improve
ments Of $60.O00 value, and in need
of many repairs. For some time
the water power bon holde1s
have receiv. d no income from their
investment. and will probably he
convinced that the best thing they
can do is to obtain the property
upon which they have security.
The other plants gas, water and
e]ectric) will probably he operated
together In the future, and a meet
ing of the stockholders will soon be
held at which il is proposed to issue
SIS. 900 bonds on the gas and electric
plant to take care OF present indeht-
edness, and $2O.OOO bonds to pro-
vide for extensions; to issue $3.50, 900
water works bonds to take care Of
present ind. btedness ana $2O,0OO to
provide for future extentions; and
$1OO. MN bonds to cover both plants
to take care of other joint indebted
ness. This will place a bonded In
debtedness OF over $500. 600 OH their
plants, without that provided for
future extensions.
1t liz beliyed that the completion
of all these arrangements will take
the enterprises out Of the hands Of
the courts, and place them in the
hands of owners, greatly to the
advantage Of the community.
The Brainerd dam has also been in
the control OF bondholders for sew
eral years, ..and new trustees have
just been appointed. The new men
are w. w. McClench and Josiah l..
Bennett, of Boston. They learn that
the property has not only paid the
Eowners nothing for years, but has
defaulted the payment Of taxes to
the amount of $4,000. The new
representatives of the owners are
anxious to get the property in shape
to earn something. and there is talk
in Brainerd of reviving the old
Parker proposition, by which the
electric light plant was to be sold
by the city, and combined with the
water power property, street rail-
way and telephone systems.
| In both of the above cases the
water power companies had retained
the benefits of the local bonuses
voted. st. Cloud gave the water
power company 100000 of bonds,
and their validity has never been
questioned. and the company re-
ceived their face value. In Brainerd
substantial public aid was given In
the shape Of large payment Tor a
very cheap bridge, and the water
power people received the benefit.
| Yet neither OF the above properties
have been able to become selfsusta1n-
ing.
+ Little Falls has beelN much more
fortunate in this respect. The local
company expended much more than
the neighboring ones in making the
river improvements, and largely
through .natural advantages was
able to construct works Of a per-
manent character, and such as in
vited the location of mills and
Industries. The 100000 local aid
that was voted to the Little Falls
Improvement was never obtained
by the company, notwithstanding
which loss the company has been
able to meet it's obligations, and re-
main in the control OF the builders.
The earning capacity of the Little
Falls company is now greater than
ever before, and the improvements
have always been kept In the best Of
!! condition, and are now the most
substantial that are on the Missis-
sippi river. With the new growth
| oeo,,voA a - q ~, II n.