The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-06-07
Plan to Borrow Money on Rock
Island.
Stockholders Give Directors
Authority to Double Debts.
SIGN OF EXPANSION.
Moore Leeds Syndicate to Have
Largest Railroad System.
Rock Island Surveying q Little
Rock, Ark, Line.

The action of the stockholders of the
Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific railway
at the regular annual meeting in Chi
cagO this week would indicate that u
was the intention Of the MoOre-1eeu
syndicate to make the Rock Island sys-
TEN the largest in the country. At the
meeting amendments were made to the
articles of incorporation that viii per
init the road to have a bonded indebted
ness Of 5000. 600, 000 The text of the
amendment is as follows:
THE highest amount Of Indebtedness
to which said consolidated company may
at any time subject itself shall not ex-
coed the sum of $500, 000, 900, exclusive OF
bonds issued for the acquisition of add
tional railways or property and secured
by the mortgage or pledge OF such ad-
ditional railways or property.
ITO build, construct, purchase, lease.
or otherwise acquire; to own, use, main
tain and operate; to sell, lease, mort
gage or otherwise convey lines Of rail-
way and railway property in any Of the
states or territories Of the United
States
In addition to these it was decided to
increase the capital stock Of the COM
pany from $50, OO0, 600 to $4,000, 000- The
capital stock and bonded Indebtedness
Of the company at the present time IS
as follows:
Capital stock issued ...............$5 $50 g55. 500
Fractional scrip, convertible into. ..oo
Six per cent MORTGAGE bonds. II 500 900
-Four per cent general gold mort -,
gage bonds ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 81, 81, OOO
The action of the stockholders prac-
tica&ly authorizes the directors to double
the bonded indebtedness of the company.
President Leeds and other officers VIII
not admit that the adoption Of the
amendments has any special Signlfl-
canoe, but they say it merely provides
the means and gives them the power
to acquire new properties If they should
deem it advisable.
New bonds will undoubtedly have to
he iEGIIRd roads h11liE
and acquired during the past year,
among which are the St Louis, Kansas
City & Colorado, Choctaw, Colorado &
GulT and the new extension from LID
eral, Kan, to Ell Paso. But if the com
pany desires to build or acquire other
extensions it has the power and the
means to do So The action taken Is
broad enough to enable the company to
acquire enough new lines to give it the
largest railroad system in the country.
There are many who believe that the
Moores are getting ready to acquire con-
troll of the Chicago and Northwestern.
and it is a fact today that they have a
large minority interest in that road.
But those well posted in such matters
do not believe that it will be possible
Tor the Moores to Wrest control of the
Northwestern from the Vanderbilts
The fact that the Vanderbilts have in
duced the Moore syndicate to be salts
he'd with one representative on the board
OF directors shows that they have the
control of the road we'll in hand.
A plausible report is that the lAIoores
are trying to secure control of the St.
Louis and San Francisco. This system
would be of far greater value to the
Rock Island than the Northwestern.
The latter IS practically a parallel line.
while the former would extend the Rock
Island system from ST. Louis and Kan
sas City all through the southeast and
southwest. The Frisco company today
operates 1892 miles of road, as follows;
Miles
Kansas City, Memphis & Birmingham 274
Fort Worth & Rio Grande- ............. IA
Red River, IeXas < southern ----.-.-- 80
The Rock Island today operates 1909
miles of road, which if added to the St
Louis and San Francisco mileage would
give it a system of 7,241 miles.
DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS RE
ELECTED.
All the outgoing directors were re-
elected at the Stockholders meeting as
follows: W. B. Leeds, D. G. Reid, Mar
shall Field and F. S. Wheeler. The hold
overs are: W. II. Moore. J. H Moore,
r. R Cable A R Flower, Alexander
ter. George w. McMurtry, and F. l.
Hine.
The new board subsequently re-elect-
ed all the old officers as follows:
Chairman of the bOard-R. r. Gable.
President-W. B. Leeds.
First vice president-H. A. Parker.
Second vice president-RobertR Gather
Third vice PRESIDENT. NJ. johnson.
Treasurer. E. Hayne.
Secretary-George H Crosby
The regular quarterly dividend of IL
per cent was declared payable on Au-
gust 1.
The. annual report for the fiscal year
ended on March 81 shows earnings, ex-
penses, etc. to have been as follows:
Gross earnings
=