The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-01-30
The Proceedings.

Washington, Jan. 29.-In the house
up the report of the conferees on the
bill constituting a new corporation o.
the purchase of the Atlantic & Pa
cific railroad and explained the pro-
visions of the agreement. Mr.. Powers
used the statement prepared by the
conferees of the effects of the conclu-
sions reached by them, as the basis
of his remarks.
Mr.. Terry (Dem. Ark.), said the re-
port of the conferees should not be
adopted, for the reason that it did not
sufficiently protect the creditors of the
old corporation.
Mr.. Lacey (Rep. Iowa.. condemned
the report, saying it yielded every
point made by the house amendments.
The adoption of the report was advo-
Gated by Mr.. Harrison (Dem. Ala.),
one of the conferees.
Mr. Powers asked the previous ques-
ton on the adoption of the report. This
was antagonized by Mr.. Barrett, and
the motion failed. Mr.. Barrett then
got the floor. He said that no railroad
had ever been built whose history was
so black with fraud and dishonor as
the Atlantic & Pacific railroad. The
conferees' report would enable the man
ayers in the proposed reorganization
y
in the future. Sixteen millions of first
mortgage bonds of the Atlantic & Pa
cific had already been pledged by the
reorganization committee in the
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad
company for a payment of $4,000. 00G
That corporation was already the
practical owner of the Atlantic & Pa
cific, and by the terms of the pending
report the directors of that corpora
tion,'' who have cheated the con-
stituents of the gentleman of Vermont
and my own, out of millions of Eilars
are to be authorized to issue $50, 900, 900
of stock upon a property that cost
them but s10,600,000. How can the
legislative power consistently provide
for the punishment of men who indulge
in check-kiting or other such schemes
for defrauding their fellow citizens,
when it APPROVES legislation which en-
ables such vast stock watering transac-
tions as this?"
Mr. Cooke Rep. Ill), spoke against
the adoption of the report, as did also
Mr.. McRae Dem. Ark. Mr.. Grout
(Rep. Vt.), and Mr.. Blue Rep. Kan.),
favored it.
Mr. Flynn, (Rep., Oklahoma), said he
felt the necessity of congress granting
a federal charter to this corporation
in order that it might operate the road
through his territory and the Indian
Territory. The people living along the
line of the road were not responsible
for the immense capitalization of which
the gentleman from Massachusetts
(Mr Barrett complained. That was
done by residents of Massachusetts
who had sold the stock to servant girls
of New England, who were bankrupted
by the management of these gentle
men.
Mr.. Grout, Rep: vt). referring to
Mr.. Barrett's statement that the road
had been practically sold to the Santa
Fe company for so, 900, said the /
transaction involved only one division /
OF the road, not the entire line
The discussion for the adoption of the |
report was closed by Mr.. Powers
Mr.. Barrett, also responding to Judge !
Powers. denied having any interest in |
the bill save that which arose from |
his connection with legislation while !
a member of the Massachusetts gem |
eral court which would have made the |
contained in the conference |
report illegal and in his opinion sub |
jected them to suspicion everywhere.
Referring to Mr.. Powers remarks
himself, Mr.. Barrett re- /
viewed that gentleman's career as
chairman of the committee on Pacific |
railroads since he (Mr. Barrett) had
been a. member of the house. I'm that |
time" said he, mo proposition, how
ever dangerous to the nation advan-
.ageous to the corporations, had
failed to receive his support"
In support of this, he cited the recent
decision of the Pacific railroad funding
dill. Replying to the assertion by Mr.
Powers that railroad wreoking had
been practiced by the people of Boston
Ind vicinity, Mr.. Barrett repealed the
charges, saying that in no state of the
Union were the rights of property so
veil and thoroughly respected as in
Massachusetts. 1.-The gentleman" he
continued, comes here with the record
md reputation of a long period of ser
ice on the supreme court of that state.
Talk of railroad wrecking, where can
lnything in that line be found equal