Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-14
SCATTERING OF STOCK
Increase in Number of Rail-
way Shareholders.
VIEWS OF JAMES J.. HILL
Would Have Public Interested in
Transportation Lines.
RESTRICTIONS ON DIVIDENDS
The Only Business Whose Profits
Are Limited-Rates and Wages
Compared With Those Abroad.
RESTRICTIONS ON DIVIDENDS
BY WILLIAM Z. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM f.. CURTIS.
Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
Herald.
Now that the ghost dance is over"
said Mr.. James j. Hill of the Great
Northern Railway, last night, lit is time
for the whole country to sober down and
think out the problems before it, which
are serious enough to call for its most
earnest efforts, and vital enough to in
volve the most generous patriotism. This
country hae become the most prosperous
in the wor6 by the cooperation of all
its people and all its forces in our
tional development. and that cooperation
will be even closer hereafter than it has
been before. 1t is an old adage that there
is no loss without some gain. and the
most important result of the recent ghost
dance is to bring into the lists of stock
holders in our great national highways
and our great national industries hun
dreds of thousands of people of small
means who have taken advantage of the
low prices to buy a few shares of gilt
edge stocks which will give them a per-
manent and profitable return upon their
money.
There were, in round numbers. $500
stockholders in the Great Northern rail-
way a year ago. In other words, that
property was then owned by about $500
people. Today the number of it's owners
exceeds 10000 and is still increasing very
rapidly. Applications for as many as 600
certificates for small blocks of stock have
been received at our transfer office in
single day. The new investors are largely
people who live along the line of the road
people who know by personal observation
the value of the property and the amount
of business it is doing. They see the
traffic go by their own doors. The farm
ers of the northwest are full of money
and are not afraid to buy railroad stock.
know of one little town on Our line of
$500 inhabitants where 100000 has been
invested in railroad stocks during the
last few weeks. and the demand for the
stock of the Great Northern railroad in
other towns along it's line is so great
that we are helping them to get it.
Stock Acquired by Employees.
Seven years ago the Great Northern
Railway Company organized the Great
Northern Employees Investment Company,
and by consent of its stockholders, as
par to be held in trust for it's employees.
Against this stock trust certificates were
issued in denominations of SO up to a
limit of $1,000. which were sold to the
ings in any amount Invisible by ten. On
these certificates the holders have re-
ceived Z per cent dividends. the same as
have been paid on the regular railway
StoCh~ anu nave also participated IN the
division of the proceeds of the lease of the
ore lands on the Mesaba range. Each
person who held a certificate for a hun
dred dollars in the investment company
got an ore certificate as a sort of stock
dividend. The million dollars of stock as
signed to the investment company was
taken up long ago by the employees of the
road in small amounts, and we have since
sold them more than 100000 of regular
stock at par, by which means the men
N have fhrnnOh
the company. an ownership in the road to
the amount of S1300,0OO.
"Since the financial furry and the low
prices following it, many of our en-
ployes and people living in the villages
and towns along the line, who have had
no experience in buying stocks. and do
not have access to stock brokers, have APP
piled to the officials of the company for
information and assistance in making
small investments Recognizing the i'm
pany and of bringing out the money that
has been boarded in small amounts, and
of giving a safe investment, and a fair
return to people of small means, the
company has recently issued a circular Of
fering to assist its employees and others
residing along it's line to make invest
ments in it's capital stock. 1t has offered
to act as agent for purchases at the cur
rent market prices, of lots of 100 shares
and less. We will not take subscription
for more than 100 shares because we are
acting for people of small means, and the
investor pays no commission or other eX-
penses in the transaction. The money
must accompany the application, and the
stock is purchased the same hour that
the subscription is received Very many
of our employees and the patrons OF our
road are taking advantage of this oppor-
tunity to invest their savings, and the
farmers are buying Great Northern stock
with the proceeds of. the sale of their
crops.