Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1907-12-04
ONE WAY TO GET RICH.

McClure's for December has the
second chapter in the history of
traction in New York City. It
tells how William G. Whitney ac-
cumulated $40, 600, 600 in seven
years, how Thomas F. Ryan ac-
quired the first millions of a fortune
which has grown in twenty-one
years from nothing to fifty or a
hundred millions, and why Metropol-
itan stock has fallen from $50 to
IS. These facts have an intimate
connection with each other and
with the fact that New York con-
tinues to use horses to pull its
wTetched carson many streets.
In the beginning the Ryan COM
bination bought the capital stock of
some small street railways They
then sold these railways to the
Metropolitan at an advanced price,
receiving, for instance, $1,000, 600
in Metropolitan stock, sold later for
twice that, in return for a railway
which had cost them $500, 600 In
the case of other railways of which
they personally bought the stock,
the conspirators leased the lines to
the Metropolitan at rate 50 high
rs to pay a handsome profit to the
owners of the lines, but to cause an
annual deficit to the Metropolitan.
The name Metropolitan was painted
on the cars, but the Metropolitan
really owned little except discon-
nected lines bought at extravaganza
prices and a number of improbable
leases.
So long as the owners of the
Metropolitan and the owners of thu
other lines were the same persons it
made little difference how the
profits were divided 1t was a
matter of bookkeeping. But now
it was the purpose of the owners Of
the Metropolitan to unload their
stock upon the public at a high
figure, retaining their ownership of
the more profitable underlying
lines. This was accomplished by
juggling the books and paying an
annual dividend while the company
was actually running at loss.
The leading conspirators sold out
and invested their money in other
things. They still retained control
Of the Metropolitan and MIXED it
By extravagant contracts. Where
$50, coo a mile would be fair
estimate OF the cost Of transform
ing a horse car line to an electric
line the actual cost to the Metro
poIitan vas many times thar, in one
case & shor. line being charged for
at the rate Of $500, 600 a mile. II
several cases the cost of the change
was paid, but the work was not
done. In one case the work was
charged for twice. In nine years
the Metropolitan company has paid
81, 500. 600 for trolley lines which
were not built. TIE payments
were made to agents Of the same
promoters.
Most Of the facts and figures
given by Mr. Hendrick, the author
of the article, have been drawn
from of1ioiad reports. AS the books
of the Metropolitan company cover
ing several important years have
been burnt, it io impossible to deny
that some of these items might
have been explained more favor
ably by the men who have become
rich by exploiting the Metropolitan
stockholders, but the presumption
raised by the destruction of the
books is the contrary.
The revelations being made as to
the methods of high fuanciers ought
to prevent for a while the repetition
Of the processes Of separating fools
and their money resorted to in the
case of the Metropolitan street rail
way Chicago Tribune.