The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1901-12-24

t." Nv
late this afternoon gave out a lengthy
statement giving the history
Of the so-called railroad merger,
which he declared was forced as a
defensive act by efforts of the Union
Pacific to secure control OF the North
ern Pacific and Burlington, thus CIV
ing # practically a monopoly Of trans
continental traffic. He gives a detail
ed history Of the great financial panic
which eliminated in the stock corner
of the Northern Pacific, relates the
formation OF the Northern Securities
whose object, he says, is
simply to act in fiduciary capacity IN
holding together various interests op"
posed to Union Pacific control. or
this company he says:
'The Northern Securities company
is organized to deal in high class Sc
curities to hold the same for the bene-
fit of it's shareholders, and to dvanc
the interests of the corporation whose
securities it owns. Its powers do not
include the operation Of railroads,
banking, mining or the buying or sell
ing of securities or properties Tor
Others on commissions, it is purely an
investment company and the object OF
it's creation IS simply to enable those
who hold stock to continue their re-
:spective interests together and to pre-
vent such interests from being scat
tered by death or otherwise, to pro-
vide against such attacks as has been
made upon the Northern Pacific by
a rival and competing interest,
whose main investment was hundreds
of miles from the northwest, and
whose only object in buying control
of the Northern Pacific was to bene-
fit their southern properties by re-
stricting the growth Of the country
between Lake Superior and Puget
Sound and by turning away from the
northern lines the Oriental
traffic which must follow the plac-
ing on the Pacific ocean Of the largest
ships in the world"
In conclusion he says: "Now as to
the effect of what has been done, upon
the public interests, let me ask a few
questions which I want every candid
and honest man to answer for himself
did the Union Pacific people, with
their railway lines extending from
Omaha and New Orleans to California
and Oregon through the several state:
in the middle west and south, pur
chase a majority of the stock of thu
Northern Pacific company for tn
purpose of aiding that company ant
increasing the growth and %prosperit,
of the northern country, or was i
for the purpose of restricting suc]
growth and aiding the development Q
their enormous interests hundreds Q
miles to the southwark?
did they purchase the Norther
Pacific and it's interests in the Bul
lington for the purpose of building u
the Asiatic trade in the northern zon
lying from st. Paul and Minneapoli
to the Pacific coast; or in order t
control the Oriental trade for the
own southern railway lines throug
their own %seaports and their ow
ships? ..
"In defeating their control Of til
Northern Pacific and retaining it
the hands Of those who had built
up and with it the entire northwe
did we injure or benefit the people
the northwest?
"Did I, by inducing ,M3E-friends n,
to sell their Northern Pacific, and
act with Messrs. Morgan & Co., joi1
ly, when this stock was selling
$500 and $1,000, thus preventing tt
Union Pacific from controlling tt
northwest, injure or benefit every
terest, agricultural, business al
otherwise, of the entire country
tween Lake Superior and the Paci
ocean?
sHad we sold our $20,000,000
Northern Pacific even at $500 a shal
amounting to $50, OOO, 900 or neal
$4,000, 900 more than it's. present v
ue, and transferred to Union Paci
control the entire country from. CT
ada to Mexico, what law of Minnesc
would we have violated? Could
not legally have put the money
our pockets and let the country lea
what it was to be dominated by
parallel and competing railroad?
tsWhv did Governor Van SAINT
still from May until November, VIII
"a majority of the Northern Pac