The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1906-06-01
Rail President
MAY Be DEPOSED
DIRECTORS OF PENNSYLVANIA
TO PROBE CHARGES OF GRAFT
AND FAvoRITIsM.
Charge That Business of Independent
Coal Company Was Killed by Or
der of Latter Causes Astonishment
in Financial Circles.

Philadelphia, May 2S.-"Our investi-
CATION will be most thorough and ex-
haustive. If we find during our in
quiry that officials of this company
have been guilty of the charges
brought out at the interstate COM
merce commission investigation they
will be removed from the service of
the company"
This statement, made in response to
an inquiry as to the scope of the probe
now under way by the directors of the
Pennsylvania railroad as a result of
the disclosures of graft, discrimina-
ton and favoritism among officials of
that company, embodies the tenor and
temper of the Observation-Disclosures
Ruin Charged to Cassatt.
Nothing has astonished railroad and
financial circles and the public more
than has the direct charge made on
the witness stand by F. Albert Won
| Boyenburk, general manager of the
Reakirk Brothers Coal company, an
Independent concern of this city, that
he believes President A. j. Cassatt, of
the Pennsylvania, issued the orders
that ruined him financially and killed
his business.
This is the first time the president
of the biggest railroad system in the
country, which is now undergoing an
inquisition at the hands of the federal
government, has been assailed.
In the high and low places of finance
the question now comes: What will
happen to Cassatt? Will the COM
pany's probe committee stand him up
if these charges are true?''
The five members of this committee
are G. Stuart Patterson, chairman;
William H. Barnes, James McCrea, T.
! De Witt Cuyler and Effingham B. Nor
| riS.
Question of Veracity.
Morris referred to the committees
statement above when asked If Cassatt
was to be included in this probing
| Won Boyenburk is man of unques-
, toned veracity in the business world,
and 1t is this fact that gives his
charges stamina in the public mind
February IA, when the probe was in
| it's infancy Cassatt gave out this
statement:
There is no discrimination either
in the rates or car distribution, or in
| the use of any other facilities of the
railroad, between miners and shippers
over the Pennsylvania lines"
Vice President John B. Thayer,
| May 5, said: There is, so far as I
know, no discrimination of any kind on
the Pennsylvania railroad; the COM
pany has absolutely nothing to con-
| ceal"
Stories Are Contradicted.
In direct contradiction 20 both these
disclaimers have come the testimony
of reliable witnesses. General Super
intendent G.. w. Creighton, of the
Pennsylvania, testified: "At confer
ence in January, 1908, between Gen
era1 Manager Atterbury, General SUI
perintendent of Transportation Trump
and myself it was decided to. select 30
or 40 coal shippers on the railroad
who alone should be given cars for
the following six weeks"
George w. Clark, car distributor.
testified: "Some days those special
car orders might be only Is per cent.
of the cars, but sometimes they were
very heavy. In February, 1905, the
special consignment to one concern
equaled 500 cars of 25 tons capacity a
day, including their private cars