Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1907-07-18
INTERESTING DISCLOSURES BY
COMMISSION
A ONE MAN DOMINATION
Millions Made by Manipulation
Function of Railroad Corporation
Should Be Confined to the Fur
nishing of Transportation-con-
Meeting Lines Wisely Consolidate.

hdIiiindn inquiry mSututed by the
interstate commerce commission made
public its report yesterday. The
facts disclosed have been carefully
considered and are made the basis of
the report.
The report says that within three
years after the reorganization of the
Union Pacific Railroad company in
1897 Edward H. Hartman became the
dominating spirit in that corporation.
As chairman of the executive commit
tee he exercises powers that are we'll
nigh absolute. The directors have
delegated their power to manage and
direct all the business and affairs of
the company to an executive commit
tee of five members, who shall act in
such manner as such committee shall
deem best for the company's interest
in all cases in which SPECIFIC direc-
lions shall not have been given by the
board, and in turn the chairman of
the executive committee is authorized
to represent that body when it is not
in 1902 Mr.. Hartman was authorized
to borrow such sums of money as may
be required for the uses of this com
pany, and to execute in the name and
on behalf of this company a note or
notes for the amount so borrowed
The investigation showed that in prac-
tically all the great transactions of
this company Mr. Hartman, as chair
man of the executive committee, acted
upon his own initiative, and his acts
were subsequently ratified and ap-
proved by the executive committee. 1t
may fairly be said, therefore, that the
policies and purposes of the Union
Pacific have been those of Mr.. Harri-
man.
With the Union Pacific properties as
a nucleus and with credit based on
these assets the system has in the
past six years so grown in power and
influence that at this time it controls
every line of railroad reaching the
Pacific coast between Portland on the
north and the Mexican border on the
south-a distance as great as that
from Maine to Florida-excepting
alone the Santa Fe line, in which it
has large stock interest; and of his
ability to take" this road at any time
the law will permit Mr.. Hartman
expresses no doubt.
Mr.. Hartman may journey by
steamship from New York to New
Orleans, thence by rail to San Fran
cisco, across the Pacific ocean to
China, and, returning by another
route to the United States, may go to
Ogden by any one of three rail lines,
and thence to Kansas City or Omaha,
without leaving the deck or platform
of a carrier which he controls, and
without duplicating any part of his
journey.
The Alton Exploitation.
The report goes fully into the
methods pursued by Mr.. Hartmann
and his fellow operators in exploiting
railway securities AMI properties.
Having acquired the stock of the
Chicago & Alton railroad company,
this syndicate organized the Chicago
& Alton railway" company under the
laws of Illinois. They transferred
their stock Of the railroad company
to an intermediary, Louis l.. Stanton,
who had no interest therein. Stanton
entered into a pretended contract with
the new railway company whereby the
new company was to buy from him
their stock of the old railroad COM
pany for the following sums:
For their 34,722 shares of preferred
stock. which had cost them s6,944, 400,
and on which they had received a
special dividend of s1,041 $780, accord
ing to this contract they obtained, In
cash. $10,000,000.
For their 1873 ,224 shares of common
stock, transferred to the railway com
pany. which had cost them s32,064, 200
and on which they had received a
special dividend of s5,496,720, they re-
ceived 194,s90 shares of preferred and
l95.42S shares of common stock, a
total of 39o,31S shares of the new
company.
1t does not appear what they sold
this stock for, but it does appear that
tue U,.on Pacific company bought
in 1904. 1O3.431 shares of the prefer
red at $3.50 a share.
II appears that Hartman, semi
Gould and SuIlman also owned line
of railroad IS miles long. which there
is some evidence to show had cost
them very much less than $4,000, 600
This railroad was also transferred to
the intermediary, Stanton. who sold
il 10 the new company for sS.oov-OoC
cash. So that by this transaction
the syndicate were to receive in cash
s1s.OO0,0 900 and all Of the stock OF tne
new company in exchange Tor about