Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-05-23

the Pacific coast and In Asia fed by the
Northern Pacific and Great Northern
and the immense traffic in timber from
| the far western forests TO the treeless
/ country fed by the Burlington-these
| facts brought about the deal between
the Burlington and the Northern Pa
cifie and Great Northern.
\ with the burlington road Joined to
the Northern Pacific the Union Pacific
found itself paralleled by n vigorous
and growing competitor. That brought
on the raid. The Union Pacific men
waited until Mr.. Morgan had gone
abroad. They did not dare to attack
the road he had reorganiZed and
brought to prosperity while he was
here. They knew that he would de-
fend it. They knew him as the head of
Il great and honored house, as a man
whose life has been spent in saving
properties and putting them upon hon
est footings; they knew that he would
protect every man who had invested a
dollar in Northern Pacific stock on the
strength of his reputation. The road
had just emerged from his hands. It's
stockholders had barely resumed the
power of voting on their stock. The
property was still under Mr.. Morgan's
protection-under the protection of his
reputation and under the protection of
his brains and influence.
'Now, what happened? The Union
Pacific interests-led by Mr.. Hartman,
Mr.. Stillman, Kuhn. Loeb & Co. and
others-made an attempt TO buy con-
troll of the Northern Pacific. If l and
my friends had sold our stock, they
would have succeeded. But how could
we sell? How could we sell at any
price? We were investors. We were
not spectators.
"Did the Union Pacific management
want to get the Northern Pacific to i'm
pair it or to improve il? Did the man
who tried to buy control of 4 competi-
tive system, whose main lines were 500
miles apart from theirs. want il so as
to give better service to the country
or for the benefit OF the minority stock
holders? Or did they want TO get that
splendid property for the purpose of re-
straining and restricting n rival?
1--WE acted in self defense. We re-
fused to sell. Even if we had been
willing to sell il would be n plain vio-
lation of the law for the Union Pacific
TO acquire control of a parallel and
competing line. When the Northern
Pacific was offered TO the Great North
ern, the supreme court of the United
States decided that point. But not one
of my friends showed the slightest de-
sire to sell, no matter what the price
might be. When Northern Pacific was
selling at $1,000 n share. n friend of
mine, n director in the Northern Pa
cific road. who owned 4 million dollars
worth of stock, came to my office and
said, 4 am n very rich man according
to the market prices. but haven't the
slightest idea of selling n share
81 am very, very sorry for the unfor-
tunate spectators who have been ruin
ed. The attempts of the Union Pacific
people to seize their competitor drove
the prices higher and higher. Men lost
their heads and rushed in TO sell stocks
they did not own. That is how the
crush came. i have letters from wom-
en- whose husbands have been ruined.
1 see what ruin and misery have been
wrought. But 1 never bought or sold
n share of stock for gambling purposes
in my life, and l don't want to own
money wrung from people by a corner.
been unsuccessful 1t seemed to be
based on the theory that there is no
limit to the power of money. That is
mere modern feudalism. l am opposed
to 1t. If IL is necessary to limit the
power of money to do such things as
were attempted this week. 1 stand
ready to accept the limit. No man
should have such power. No money
should have such power.
81 do not believe in trusts. but do
believe that the growth of this country
calls for large combinations of wealth.
/ could not have built the Great North
ern road myself. but could get 5000
or 1000 persons to furnish capital
enough to build it. Such combinations
are proper. But combinations to wreck
and destroy competitors should be made
impossible."