The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-11-01
The Main Line of the Union
Pacific Railway
Passed Into the Hands of the
Reorganization Committee
AT OMAHA, NEB., TODAY
Price Paid for the Property is
S57,564,932.76.
No Competing Bidders Appeared
at the Sale.

Omaha. Nov. 1.-The Union Pacific
road proper including the buildings and
all that goes to operate the system, was
this morning sold to the reorganization
committee for the sum OF 528.5324 TO-
This amount does not include the sink
ing fund in the hands of the govern
ment and taking this to be s4O5o'4OV'
the amount stated in the government
decree covering the sale OF the IOe1u'
the total paid for the property was $o''-
564, ,932. IS.
There were no other bidders and the
road went to the reorganization COM
mittee without any opposition
The sale of the road was in ltseH one
of the most tame and unlntereSIlHS
performances possible to imagine. II
was advertised to take place IN front
of the Union Pacific freight house at
the junction of Ninth and Jones streets
at II o'clock and it was just one min
ute after that time when Master III
Chancery Cornish who was to act as
auctiOneer took his place on the low
stone step in front of the Ninth street
entrance to begin the sale For over
half an hour, a crowd had been gather
ing to witness the sale, and 1t was only
with great difficulty that Mr.. Cornish
was able to get sufficient room to en-
able him to work. He finally jammed
himself back into the corner Of the
doorway, with one shoulder against the
door and the other against the brick
wall and prepared for business.
The crowd. which was not over 500 all
told was packed so closely around the
doorway and up in front of the center
of the building, that the members of
the reorganization committee, the men
who came out to buy the road, were
unable to see anything or hear a word
of what was going on. They were com
PEELED to stand back in the hallway,
from which one of them would Occa-
sionally poke out his face, just to see
that all was well. Packed into the hall
leaning against the bannisters, squat
f1f crfa n limo
lily in the center of the floor, were all
the members Of the committee.
Receiver Mink hied him to an upper
window out of which he leaned to
watch the proceedings below. Those of
the committee and connected with it,
who were present, were Receivers John
W. DOane. E. Ellery Anderson, General
Louis Fitzgerald, of the reorganization
committee and WinslOw S. Pierce, the
attorney of the reorganization commit
tee and the wizard who envolved the
scheme of reorganization; Alexander
Millar of Boston, secretary and assist
ant comptroller of the company; John
Sheridan of Maryland, a government
director of the railway. General SOlici-
tor Kelly and General CoWen, the gov
ernment's representatives.; Jacob F.
Schiff of Boston, Marvin Hughitt of
Chicago, T. Jefferson Coolidge, Jr., of
Boston, and Lawrence Greer, his as
sistant.
Mr.. Cornish carried under his arm, a
large portfolio bound with the regula-
gave him room to extend his arms, he
united the strings and drew forth
number Of papers. Selecting one of these
he replaced the others and holding it
out, he said:
Gentlemen am here to sell certain
railroad properties in pursuance of a
decree of the United States circuit
court / viii now read the description
of the property to be sold and when I
have finished the reading, I will be pre-
pared to receive bids
He then unfOlded the notice of sale
which was very long, being about four
columns of agate type.
This notice is so long. gentlemen"
said Mr.. Cornish, that I will not at
tempt to read it, so that all of you can
hear it. 1 Will endeavOr to get through
with it as rapidly as possible
He then began the reading af the no
tice and as he had said, did not read it
so that many people could hear it. His
voice grew weaker as he read and
finally it became nothing but an unin-
telhgible humble that was not distin-
guishable three feet distant
Close to his left hand stood Lawrence
greer, with a copy of the notice in his
hand and followed the reading of the
overwhelmingly very closely. He
was the only member of the reOrgani-
zatlOn committee, or of those connected
with it, who saw the proceedings from
first to last. From time to time At
torney Pierce, who was in the hall
just behind that portion of the door
IN front Of which the auctiOneer was
standing, looked out and receiving a
glance from Mr.. Greer, Withdrew into
the nail once more. The reading of the
notice took just an even forty minutes
and when it was evident that Mr. Cor
ntsh was well through with the last
column OF the notice, Gen. Louis Fitz-
gerald. who was to make the bids.
pushed through the door and stood
close by the side of the reader As he
finished his reading, Mr.. Cornish folded
it up and placed it deliberately in his
portfolio. He then drew forth a small
type written document and without
announcing its nature began to read
1t was a protest from Managing Re
ceiver Trumbuu of the Union Pacific
Denver & Gulf road. against the sale
with the other Union Pacific properties
OF the Cheyenne & Northern road, the
line that is claimed by both the Denver,
& Gulf and the Union Pacific.
After reading this notice Mr. Cornish
paced 1t in the portfolio and said: I
am now ready to receive bids for the
IdI!roaq property the description of
which L have just read"
mere was a moments silence and
then, Gen. Fitzgerald said:
L Did thirty nine million eight hun
Qfed elghty-three thousand two hrn-
ofeo ana elght-One dollars and eighty
seven cents in the name of Louis Fit
trustees" !"
There was another pause and Mr.
Cornish said: Are there anv more
BIDS -4OAS
There were none and the master con-
tlnued: L viii now receive bids fo1. +I7a
bonds of the description which I have
read" "a 'S
Gen, Fitzgerald replied: ''I bid on he
half Of Louis Fitzgerald and A W
Krech, purchasing trustees the s11D7 of
thirteen million six hundred forty-five
thousand two hundred and fifty dol
lars and efghtV-nine cents