The herald., 1898-12-06
BON ND-AIDED RAILROADS
Some Debts Are Paid and Others
Will Be
Y last annual message | stated:

some Debts Are Paid and Others
Will Be
In my last annual message stated:
The Union Pacific Railroad main line
was sold under the decree of the United
States court for the District of Nebraska
the first and second of November of this
year"
The amount due the government consisted
Of the principal of the subsidy bonds, S27,.
23s,5l2, and the accrued interest thereon
SSl,2ll,5ll.07 making the total Indebtedness
$5o,44S, ,223.75 The bid at the sale covered
the hrst mortgage lien and the entire mort
gage claim of the government, principal and
interest.
This left the Kansas Pacific case uncon.
GUIDED by decree of the court in that case
an upset price for the property was fixed at
sum which would yield to the government
onl y $4,000, 900 upon its lien. The sale at the
instance of the government was postponed
iirst to December 10, 1897, and later, upon
the application of the United States, was
postponed to February l6, 1893.
Having satisfied myself that the interests
OF the government required that an effort
should be made to obtain a larger sum.
directed the Secretary of the Treasury, un
der the act passed March g. 1897, to paw out
OF the treasury to the persons entitled TO re.
ceive the same the amounts due on all prior
mortgages upon the middle and eastern di-
visions OF said railroad, out of any money
Iii N the treasury not otherwise appropriated.
pared petition to be presented to the court
offering to redeem said prior liens in such
manner as the court might direct and pray
ing. that thereupon the United States might
be held to be subrogated to all rights of said
prior lien holders, and that receiver might
be appointed to take possession of the mort
gagged premises and maintain and operate
the same until the court of Congress other
wise directed Thereupon the Reorganiza-
tion Committee agreed that if said petition
was withdrawn and the sale allowed to pro-
ceed on February 10Th, they would bid a
sum at the sale which would realize to the
government the entire principal of this debt,
SG,3O3,GO Believing that no better price
could be obtained, and approaching the diff.
fcuties under which the government would
labor if it should become the purchaser of the
road at a sale in the absence of anv author.
ity by Congress to take charge of and ope.
rate the road, directed that upon the guar
anty OF minimum bid, which should give
the government the principal of its debt,
the sale should proceed. BY this transaction
the government secured an advance of 49,.
100000 over and above the sum which the
court had fixed AS the upset price, and which
the Reorganization Committee had declared
was the maximum which they would pay
| for the property. 1t is gratifying to know
that the result OF this proceeding against the
Union Pacific system and the Kansas Pa
cifc line is that the government has received
on account of its subsidy claim the sum
of S64, 75l ,22375, an increase of SIS 997 1853 IS
over the sum which the Reorganization
Committee originally agreed to bid for the
Joint property, the government receiving it's
whole claim, principal and interest in Union
Pacific and the principal of its debt on the
Kansas Pacific Railroad
THE CENTRAL PACIFIC
Steps had been taken to foreclose the gov
ernments lien upon the Central Pacific Rail
road Company, but before action was COM
menced Congress passed an act, approved
July Z, 1893, creating commission consist
ing OF the Secretary of the Treasury, the
Attorney-Gener and the Secretary of the
Interior, and their successors in office, with
full power to settle the Indebtedness to the
government growing out of the issue of bonds
in aid OF construction of the Central Pacific
and Western Pacific bond-aided railroads,
subject to the approval of the President No
report has yet been made to me by the COM
mittee thus created. Whatever action is had
looking to a settlement of the indebtedness
IN accordance with the recommendation re-
teired to will be duly submitted to Con-
gress.
PUBLIC BUILDINGS
l deem it my duty to call the attention
Of Congress to the condition of the present
building occupied by the Department of Jus
tice. The business of that department has
increased greatly since it was established
III its present quarters. The building now
occupied by it is neither large enough nor of
suitable arrangement for the proper accom-
mediation of the business of the department.
The supervising architect has pronounced
1t unsafe and unsuited for the use to which
1t is put. The Attorney-General in his report
states that the library of the department is
on the fourth floor, and that all the space
allotted to it is so overcrowded with books
as to dangerously overload the structure. The
first floor is occupied by the Court of Claims.
The building is of an old and dilapidated
appearance, unsuited to the dignity which
should attach to this important department
A proper regard for the safety, comfort
and convenience of the officers and en-
ployes would justify the expenditure Of
liberal sum OF money in the erection of
new building OF commodious proportions and
handsome appearance on the very advan-
tageous site already secured for that pur-
pose, including the ground occupied by the
present structure and vacant ground adioin-
ing to that, comprising in all frontage of
20l feet on Pennsylvania avenue and depth
Of 1876 feet. In this conclusion. It NAV he
wise to refer to the inadequate accommoda.
tons provided for the Supreme Court in the
Capitol, and suggest the wisdom of making
provision for the erection of separate build
ing for the court and its officers and library
upon available ground near the Capitol.
THE POSTAL SERVICE
The postal service of the country advances
with extraordinary growth. Within twenty
years both the revenues and the expend,
lures OF the Postoffice Department have mul.
tiplied three-fold. In the last ten wears thew
have nearly doubled. Our postal business
grows much more rapidly than our popula-
tion. 1t now involves an expenditure Of slOO,-
0O0,000 a year, numbers $4,000 postoffices
and enrolls 100000 employees. This remark.
able extension of a service which in an ac-
curate index of the public conditions pre-.
sents gratifying evidence of the advancement
of education, of the increase of communica-
tion and business activity, and of the i'm
provement of mail facilities, leading to their
constantly augmenting use.
The war with Spain laid new and excep.
tional labors on the Postoffice Department.
The mastering of the military and naval
forces Of the United States required spe.
cial mail arrangements for every camp and
every campaign. The communication be-
tween home and camp was naturally eager
and cxpectant. In some of the larger places