The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-12-19
Heaviest Bonded Debt of Any
Railroad in Country.
RECEIVERS ARE NAMED
But Action Will Not Affect OPP
Grafton Of Lines.
Westinghouse Air Brake Com
pany Application.

: Elmer B. Adams in the United States
t circuit court and qualify by giving
$500, 900 bond each. These bonds must
be given in ten days. Henry Miller
vice president and general manager OF
, the road, in a statement today says
the receivership in no way will affect
the operation of the road. which has
10000 EN- plOyeeS.
Frederick A Delano of Chicago,
president of the road; Edward B.
PRYOR of St. Louis. vice president, and
w K Bixby of St. Louis are the re-
ceivers appointed late yesterday by
Judge Adams on the application of the
Westinghouse Air Brake company OF
+ Pittsburg, which filed a claim OF S1S,-
600 and alleged the road was insolvent
and unable to meet unpaid vouchers
of $1SOO,OOO and had bonded obliga-
tions, due January /, 1912, when
would be defaulted
Mr. Bixby is president of the La
clede Gas company of ST. Louis and
chairman of the board of directors OF
the American Car and Foundry COM
pany, besides being director of the st.
Louis & San Francisco railroad. MI
Pryor had experience in a receivershlp
capacity when the road was involved
in similar trouble in 1885. Delano has
| been president of the system since
1905, when Joseph Ramsey, Jr was
retired following a disagreement WITH
| the Goulds.
l. Secrecy surrounded the filing Of the
receivership petition. The suit was not
filed until nearly 6 p. m yesterday.
The closing hour of the court is
| O'Clock The local attorneys who filed
! the petition would not talk of 1t and
the government officials in the fed
era1 building, aside from the judge
and Clerk James r. Gray did not
know any action had been taken. Law
renee Greer of New York, member of
the law firm of Pierce & Greer, and
r. H. Nelson, representing Cravath, |
Henderson & De Gersd orff, attorneys
for the Westinghouse company, were |
in court when the petition was |
filed. Greer's partner is Winslow
Pierce, who recently succeeded Ed |
ward T. Jeffrey as chairman of the
Wabash board and who is chairman Of
the readjustment committee recently
named by the Wabash directors. The
United States circuit court. in which |
the receivers were named. will be aboI- |
ished January 1, but Judge Adams is
expected to continue to have charge OF i
the road The Wabash's extensive
general offices here occupy several
floors of the Title Guaranty building,
adjoining the Missouri Pacific build
ing. where are the general offices OF
the Missouri Pacific-Iron Mountain
system, the center of the Gould prop
critics. A third Gould railroad, the st.
Louis Southwestern Cotton Belt), ra-
dates from st. Louis. These three
roads have attracted attention in the Il
financial WOE1u Recently. hSls TIE
Missouri Pacific reorganization result
ed in the bringing of B. F. Bush here
from the Western Maryland presi
dent of the Missouri Pacific, a presi-
dent who as George Gould, his prede-
cessor, said would "sleep and eat on
the job. Then Frank J. Gould lost
in a contest with his brother, Edwin,
for a greater voice in the affairs of
the Cotton Belt.
With the Wabash, the GouIds almost
17ax fo1 70
Missouri Pacific meets the Denver &
Rio Grande at Pueblo and the latter
joins the Western Pacific at Salt Lake
City.
the fiscal year ending June 30 showed a
deficit of $403 600 under the requirements
necessary 10 pay the companys total in
terest charges, but arrangements were
made by the directors at that time to
provide the money for the July I pay
ment. Since that date the monthly earn
ings reported by the company have
shown a steady falling off and it seemed
inevitable, in Wall street opinion, that
tate the company, unless its earnings i'm
proved
The management has been hampered in
the operation of the road, according to
statements of it's representatives because
the funds forthcoming were not adequate
to the maintenance of the roads prop
erty and equipment.
The company's total bonded debt
amounts to more than S114.OO0,000, and is
road in the country. Besides being
burdened by these heavy fixed charges,
the company, a few years ago, became
involved with heavy obligation in con-
nection with the purchase of the Wheel +
ing & Lake Erie railroad and the build
ing of the Wabash-Pittsburg terminal.
George Gould and the Gould estate are
credited with control of the Wabash sys-
tenn Recently the banking firm or Kuhn,
Loeb & Co. was appointed the companys
fiscal agent, somewhat to the surprise of
Wall street No public statement was
forthcoming from Mr.. Gould in cOnnec-
ton with the entrance of the Equitable
Trust company interests into the direc-
torate, but it was assumed in Wall street
that Mr.. Gould acquiesced to this
angement
The Wabash refunding 4 per cent bonds
have recently been selling below 50, on 3
account of the rumors that a receiver
ship was imminent. President Delano, b
has been making an inspection trip over
lie Wabash system during the last sew
sral days and had not returned to New
Z ork so far as could be learned. Mr..
Oelano had engaged rooms at an uptown
hotel but had not claimed them at a late
TOUT.
)ioneer railroad properties built up and
developed by Jay Gould and began its
resent corporate existence as the Wa
ash Railroad company in 1889. 1t now
perates a total trackage of 2,514 miles,
ne of the longest railroad systems in the Ez
ountry- The main lines extend from To- III
edo and Detroit to st. Louis, Chicago @
Kansas City, Omaha and Des Moines
With trackage from Detroit to Buffalo,
yer the Grand Trunk The company
lSO has controlling interest in the
Wabash Pittsburg Terminal railway and 81
he Wheeling & Lake Erie railroad. b
Its outstanding capital stock amounts
s., 10000 is common and s3s. 100000 pre- III
erred. &
-S- "a
The Prudential Bank.