The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1907-10-17
OPEN LETTER.

10 ", ". fuiton Esq,
Astoria, Ore.
Dear Sir:--Referring to your de-
cision yesterday that the Chamber of
Commerce would not aid the Portland
Oregon 4 Seacoast Railway Co. TO get
any rights Of way unless on consign-
ment by 1t to your Committee of $3.50
600. and that the Court would not pass
March, or the third Monday February
March. or the third Monday OF February
term rather, have nothing TO say. You
and yonr Committee have perfect right
to come to any decision thereon and
whether IL binds the people Of Astoria
or not Ia nothing to that Railway Com
|pany. | told you in "a hours you would
have the monies for the Nix miles Rights
Of Wav desired, nothing more do we need
or ask. which you. however positively
declined or anything less than $780,
900, deposit for the Chamber Of Com
merce. When ! asked you courteously
for an explanation you indiscreetly
vented your ire upon me by saying that
/ had never built Railway in Oregon
and when did try got the Roads 4
had promoted into debt and caused
their non completion These rash un-
truthful statements coupled with the
wild mode Of expressing them has chang
ed the controversy into serious per-
sonal charge against me which cannot
allow to pass without correcting you,
although one Of your best friends On the
train told me 1t was proyerbial Of your
nature and to pay no attention to IT.
However I am not built that way, es-
peciallly when have the History Of
Oregon to refute your erroneous state
ments and to fall back upon. In this
Astoria Road the wish may be father
TO your thought that 1t should not be
built by me hence the public mus. be
apprised Of the facts seeing you added
yesterday you would personally fight
me II I endeavored to refuse to comply
with your e25O,0Oo, deposit require
ment-an unheard of demand in Railway
circle-as condition for your Chamber
giving us, without resorting to the
Courts, only the six miles Of Right Of
Way, 70 acres of treeless land without
a trail or access thereto, which we asked
through 1t, and offered to pay for.
Here are the facts controverting your
personal allegations that I never built
any completed Road. Mr.. Henery vii
lara siad Of me las you do nowl in 1880,
that / never could raise money to build
that line from Rays Landing to Spring
field and father he would, as you now
say also, prevent me building it, yet
that line "a miles in length was built
lby me in IS months, and is there today
except 10 miles from Rays to Woodburn,
the track of which 10 miles he lifted to
prevent competition with River Boats
after the lease he made at per cent on
Stock and Bonds was repudiated. Mr..
Willard seven months before his death
lived to say to me he should not have
opposed same, and when G. p. Hunting
ton acquired it the Bondholiers got 100
cents IN the aIilar therefor as per agree
ment he signed which can show you,
The West Side Road started by, Joseph
CASTOR, which in opposition to Mr. vii
lard I completed from its present ter
minds Airlie to Dundee Junction IS
miles, Is there now also is it not and in
operation. The third line ! built from
Portland to Dundee Junction and to
Willamette River so miles in it's con-
.struction was opposed by G. P Hunting
ton and vet he bought 1t at 100 cents
on the dollar Of Bondholders in 1889
after it was built and it is at foot Of
Jefferson Street, Portland today is IL
nots Yet all these three lines were
acuired for cash, face value and interest
to bondholders.
Now we come to your bitter pill the
Astoria & South Coast Railway, Asked
to enter this scheme unsolicited on my
part, by ID. K. Warren and your broth
er, Senator Fulton land no two more
honorable men ever lived), and by other
Astorians in 1890 after c. P. Hunting
ton had induced me to build It lsee' his
letter now with John n. Whyte. ESQ.,,
and after his meeting with me at San
Francisco Edid undertake it, While its
construction was never finished and was
unfortunate, nevertheless the 10 miles
which were built and IN operation, sub
sequentlg paved the way for It's acquire