Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1909-02-06

lars with such speed and thorough
ness that by 1889 he had accumulated
a fortune generally estimated at
100000. Then he retired from ac-
tive work in Cleveland and returned
to New York
Two millions isn't great deal now
adays, but when a man comes back
to town with that much money there
is some smiling about down Wall
Street way to see what chance there
is of taking it away from him. There
seemed to be little chance of doing
this with Calhoun, and so it was not
long before he had strong following
of friends-as friends go in that part
of Manhattan. They were powerful
financially, and saw in Calhoun a man
who was likely to make money for
them if they hunted with him He did.
Whenever he saw chance to get
something valuable for less than it was
worth-and his instinct, always a little
keener even than that of his associ-
ates, rarely misled him-he got it and
added it to his collection.
Saw His Opportunity.
In the early nineties the scent of
much money came family to Calhoun
from San Francisco, and lie went
thither. What is now the traction
combine the United Railways of San
Francisco-was in those days a lot of
separate lines. The key to them all
was the system that had its tracks
in Market street-a thoroughfare 200
feet wide, double the width of the
broad streets and avenues in this city,
and the main artery of the towns traf-
fic. This property and some of the
tributary lines-they all run into Mar
ket street-was controlled by Messrs.
Sloss, Hellman and Gersel-not jointly
but as individual representatives of
some of the great banking interests
on the coast. How Calhoun got hold
of the Market street line and of all of
the feeders to it and of all the subur-
ban lines as we'll is a long and pic
turesque story. The United Railways
of San Francisco finally was organized
in 1902
At the same time that the traction
combine company was incorporated
under the laws of California there was
organized also the United Railways In
vestment Company of San Francisco,
a holding company which took posses
sion of all the stock of the traction
company except IL shares necessary
ner of purchase of the San Francisco
, lines was simple. Calhoun's new
company got the whole thing for about
$4,000, 900. They issued bonds against
the property to pay for it and retained
the common stock, amounting to some
2O,000,0O0. There also was some $685.
100000 of preferred stock, some of
which was turned over to the sellers
as a part of the purchase price The
stock of the investment company was
| S10,000,000 at first, but this was in
creased in 1906 to $25, 200, 900. This
made a total of about $4,000, 900 CAPT.
Utilization in the two companies, as
against a purchase price of $4,000, 900.
OF course there were a great many
millions of bonds of both companies
besides.
Made Properties Pay Well.
The separate units of the street rail-
way system had not been prospecting
to any marked degree before they
| were united in one company by Cal
houn. Economy in operation, for one
thing, put them on a paying basis
quickly. The common stock of the in
vestment company scared to close to
par Other companies in other cities
were bought with some of this stock
and some of the bonds. In 1903 the
| San Francisco company controlled
some lines of the St Louis tramway
system and that of Pittsburg. The
St Louis company has passed out OF
the investment company's hands. but
IT still holds the Pittsburg tramways.
Probably if the earthquake had not
shaken and the fire destroyed San
Francisco in 1906 the stock of the trac-
ton combine would have been be
tween $40 and 500 a share in the
market to-day. These disasters, add
ed to the six months bitterly fought
strike that preceded them. sent the
stock down so that last year in the
time of depression it was selling
around IL for the common and 81 for
the preferred Now the common is in
the 30s-
The strike on the United Railways
brought the bulldog grit and fighting
qualities of Calhoun more into public
notice than anything else he had done
or that had happened to him previous
iy. He had made up his mind that the