The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-03-28
JOHN w. GATES
ON THE STAND
t
Dangerous Man" Tells Of the
Nashville Deal.
PROFITS MADE HIM LIE DOWN
A
INVESTIGATION OF INTERSTATE
COMMERCE COMMISSION.
PROFITS MADE HIM LIE DOWN

/ Jew YORK. March 27.-The inter-
/ N state commerce commission met
here today TO Investigate the turn
/ ing oveI Of The Louisville & Nashville
/ railroad control of the Atlantic Coast
line Edwin Hawley. an associate of
/ John w Gates. said he attended sew
eral conferences looking 10 the sale of
] the Louisville a. Nashville line 20 j. p.
Morgan. while j. S. Williams has Of
/ fered $50 90 lS5 FOR the controlling inter
est I'm the stock of the road George
/ VI. Perkins the witness said. repre-
scented Mr. Morgan al these conferences
/ while Mr. Gates was the principal on
/ the other side.
We had nothing to do with the re-
| lau0as % the various roads the Wit
ness said. we were discussing the
possibility Of obtaining the Louisville
/ stock, and We talked Of nothing else"
Made a Good Spec.
I John r. Harris of Harris. Gates e.
/ Co.. said that when the option was sold
/ TO j. p. Morgan g. Co his firm con-
trolled 206,OCS shares. and that the price
paid was <0S 90 10. I'VE got $50 for
100000 shares and $50 for the remaining
| 100000"
/ j. S. Williams of the Seaboard Air
line said he asked Mr. Perkins whether
4 Mr.. Morgan would sell the Louisville
/ d. Nashville and that Mr.. Perkins re-
piled that 10 was not likely that MT.
/ Morgan would sell to ana interests his
/ firm could not control and then asked
/ the price of the Seaboard Air line. He
| understood 1T was Mr.. MOrgan's idea TO
/ sell Louisville & Nashville to interests
/ that would not conflict with the South
/ ern railway
Had It Written Down.
Mr. Williams said he made a memoir
andum of the Interview just after IL oc-
/ CURED and could not be mistaken. The
memorandum was read. and contained
/ "a paragraph 90 the effect that Mr.. Per
I kins said j. p. Morgan & Co. might
+ consider am offer 90 buy the Louisville
/ q Nashville as an independent trausac-
4 ton. Nir Williams suggested the for
/ nation of "a voting trust to run the
/ Louisville &, Nashville, composed of the
/ Atlantic Coast line the Seaboard Air
/ line and j. p. Morgan & Co. Neither
the Atlantic Coast line nor the Sea-
/ board, me said. are really I'm cOmpeti-
! ton with the Louisville & Nashville.
/ Railroad men considered them as con-
Meeting links. Asked as to who con-
/ trOued the Atlantic Coast line. he said
/ he understood Mr.. Walters and his inn
mediate assistants. but there are al
+ ways rumurs tO be discounted
+ g.. O.. Gates son of John w. Gates,
said as a member OF the firm of Harris,
i Gates e Coz he gave orders 10 pur-
/ chase stock and bought some himself
/ on The exchange.
] 10 was he intention to sell at a profit
/ If possible. If not TO operate the road
/ I'D was not the intention TO corner the
stock The object was % obtain con-
/ troll of the road and not make any
. financial disturbance whatever.
Gates on the Stand.
John vs.. Gates was the next witness.
I He testified that besides the 206, 600
/ Louisville & Nashville shares held by
his syndicate. they controlled 100000
. shares held by Hawley & Davis. Asked
as 90 when he first conferred with j.
! T. Morgan a. Co. about selling the con-
troll Mr.. Gates said. well mr..
. SChWab came 20 me from j. p. Morgan
/ & Co. He called up at about o'clock
I'M the morning of April II and asked
what L was going 20 do. The market
had been nervous. I told him I would
see Mr. Perkins in the morning.
lie said he saw Mr.. Perkins next day
and Mr.. Perkins wanted third of the
stock at cost.
/ could not think of it, Mr.. Perkins then
/ asked for price for half the stock ana
. Mr. Gates said he would consult with
his colleagues. He saw Mr.. Perkins
next day and told him he understood
. the property WAS very valuable and
would pay TO hold.
Profit the Thing.
Asked as TO whether Mr.. Perkins said
: anything about witness being a danger
Gus man 90 handle such property. Mr..
Gates said. NO. we usually found
hackers where we saw profit" He had
"a number OF conferences with his ass
sociates and q two-hour talk with Mr..
. Perkins.
en- told him. said Mr.. Gates, "that I
would recommend my associates to ac-
cept l15 for 0ne-third, $50 for One-third
and $50 for the balance of the 206.000
shares we controlled. If all were taken.
7 Mr. Perkins said the price was too
higl.'
Mr. Gates said his examination of the
/ Louisville & Nashville accounts had
/ induced him 90 believe the property
more valuable than it was generally
held TO be- This was no reason he
said why ne could not manage the road
/ as well as the August Belmont bank,
but 30 seemed wise 20 take profits
/ Witness told Of making the contract
giving ]. p. Morgan & Co. an option on
the property. and said he was asked
{ for a siX months extension OF time
Something was said by Mr.. Morgan
about the formation OF a Southern Sc
HHH ID .HaH #.r
roads and Increase profits with the
/ Louisville & Nashville stock taken by
the securities company al 40. Tt was
argued. witness said. chat &c would be
90 our mutual interests and might be
/ done ~ the Northern Securities compa-
ny went through