The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-10-16
RUSSIA HAS A RIVAL
AN AMERICAN SYNDICATE TO
BUILD A RAILWAY IN
CHINA
1T WILL COST s4o,o0O,o00

Standard Oil, American Sugar, Car
negie Steel and IA Score of En-
inent Capitalists and Bankers ia
the Great OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Price at the Head of It-HOw to
Make Business.
From the New York Herald.
Deep interest has been awakened by
the Herald's recent announcement that
Americans are to construct for China
the biggest railroad in Asia, excepting
the Trans-Siberian line across Russia
and Siberia TO the seacoast.
On the 10th of next month Gen. Will
liam Barclay Parsons of New York, is
to sail from San Francisco for China
to begin the construction of the great
trunk line. He goes as a representa-
tive of the Chinese railway syndicate
and the American-China Development
company, of which former Senator Cal
win S. Brice is the chief. The railroad
concession was granted to the company,
but all the cOmpany's stock is owned
by the syndicate.
While Gen. Parsons sails Oct. 10, q
party of engineers acting under his di-
rection will leave San Francisco two
days earlier.
The cost of constructing this great
road will be $40 900, 900. The men en-
cheering it are Americans. The ma
terial and all the rolling stock will be
OF American make. This railroad will
make Americans the great competitors
of Russia's Trans Siberian road-in
fact, its only competitor worthy Of the
name.
CALVIN BRICE AT THE HEAD.
Former Senator Brice has quietly
financed the gigantic enterprise. Among
those who have taken shares in the
syndicate are the Standard Oil people,
the American Sugar Refining company,
the Arbuckle Coffee company and the
Carnegie Steel and Iron company, lin
tied; also the presidents of a number
of prominent national banks, includ-
ing George F. Baker, Of the First Ma
tiOnal; Henry w. Cannon, of the Chase
National; James Stillman, City Nation
al; presidents of leading trust COM
panies. including F. p. OlcOtt, of the
Central Trust company, and j. l. Wa
terbury, of the Manhattan Trust COM
pany. Among the members of leading
banking houses are Morton, Bliss &
Co, J. P Morgan & Co., Vermilye &
Co, Sheldon & Co., Maitland, COppen
& Co., Kuhn, Loeb & Co.; prominent
fnanciers and railway shipping men,
such as z. r. Hartman, of the Union
Pacific; Edward D. Adams, John G.
Moore, Grant B. Schley, c. A Girls
com, Of the American Line Steamship
company, and Arthur SeWau, of Bath,
Me
MR.. BARNES CONCESSION.
The concession was negotiated by
Thurlow Weed Barnes, for the Amer
lean syndicate, and WI Ting-Fang,
Chinese minister at Washington, for
the emperor of China The negotiations
occurred at Washington, and it is
strong tribute to Mr.. Barnes diplo
matte skill that he was able to COM
plete unaided a contract which met
the unqualified approval Of fifty of
the best ffnanciers in the United States.
In fact, the contract is said to be more
favorable in its terms than that made
by the Belgian government for the
construction of the railroad from Pc
kin to Han Kow.
When I asked Mr.. Brice about the
concession, he explained briefly the
complication in which England and
Russia have been involved: indicated
on the map Port Arthur and Ta-Lien-
Wan, where the terminus of the Rus
sian railway is to be; the fortress of
Wei-Hai-WCi. which the British have
seized; the route of the railroad to
Nieuchwang, over which the. Tsung-
n-Yamen, or foreign office, FACILITATED
till Ii Hung Chang lost his official
head: the port of Kiao Chou and the
district which Germany is said to in
fluence or control, south of Kiao Chou
lies the broad valley of the Yang tse-
Kiang.
It is in the heart of this valley, at
Han KOW, that Mr.. Brice'S company
will begin the construction of a rail
way to run almost directly south TO
Canton, and thence to the seacOast OBJ
pOsite Hong Kong.
There will be 900 miles Of road, with
such branches as trade may demand.
Tributary to it is a country having q
population Of 10000, coo. Two of the
provinces through which it runs con-
tain 80,C00,000 people, more than the
entire population Of the United States.
MADE CAREFUL INVESTIGATION.
I'VE have spent 100000 investigating
the conditions in China" said Mr..
Brice, land deposited with the imperial
government a forfeit of 100000 Our
agreement with China is that we shall
construct 900 miles Of road at from
$50, 000, 900 to $40,000,O00, the government
to issue bonds covering, the cost OF
building and equipping the road These
bends we have to place When the
road is completed we will operate il
in connection with the Chinese govern
n-ent-that is, according to Just and
reasonable requirements, which is nc
more than is expected of a company
building railroad in America"
Mr.. Brice could not say how much OF
the capital to be expended in the con
struction of the road would come tC
this country for supplies He said that
the fact that English interests were
combined with American in the en-
terprise made that question uncertain
The labor, he said, would be Chinese
nrst because the Chinese labor was
the cheapest to be had, and, second
because the employment of natives
would incline the Chinese people favor.
ably toward the road. "As TO it's pa
trCnage,' he said, that is not a mat.
ter of doubt. Where railroads hav,
been constructed in China, they hav,
found that the demands on both freigh
and passenger equipment have beer
greater than they could meet
China wants railroads." said Mr.
Brice. 1t wants both railroads anC
telegraph, because it knows that b,
their aid revolution can be prevented
or supdued. President Diaz has main.
tanned himself as president of Mexico
all these years because the country Is
covered with railroads and telegram
lines. 1t used to be that if a reyolu.
ton started in a remote part Of the
country it was two or three weeks Der.
haps before the government heard o.
II, ana as much longer before trOops
could be sent to put down the uprising
Now If revolution is planned the
government knows it within an houl
and in a day it can have troops hand
TO SnDnreSS IT.