Evening journal., 1911-07-31
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
The Resignation That Led
to Americas Greatest
Congressional Scandal
By Holland.

D4 holAcHVr
Il was invited last year to deliver an
address before the students of the Uni
yersity of Iowa." said Mr.. George T..
Parker, the biographer of Grover
Cleveland, to me recently, "and while
there I was especially gratified 10
meet the man whose resignation made
IN protest of the actions Of his super
iors, brought about the famous Credit
Mobilier scandal. which has been
called the greatest Congressional
scandal in American history. This man,
Peter A. Dey, is now eighty-eight years
Of age, in perfect possession OF his
mental faculties, and rejoices in the
fact that he was the first engineer
to survey q railroad in the state Of
Iowa and that he has lived to witness
the wonderful development of the state
since the days Of that survey.
~ suppose many Of the younger gen
Grafton have never heard of the Credit
Mobilier syndicate, yet II gave the
country its FIRST notable sample of So
called high finance on a large scale.
The syndicate, or company. with It's
French name was organized for the
purpose Of building the Union Pacific
railroad II was made up Of an inside
group Of officers and managers OF the
road and II took contracts for the
building of the road on the understand
ing that It would be paid for the WORK
IN second bonds of the Union Pacific.
These men. acting for the Credit Mobi-
lier, saw TO It that they, as officers OF
the Union Pacific. awarded fat con-
struction contracts to the syndicate
and I'm this way the railroad company
was milked of a large sum of money
| The head of the syndicate also oper-
ated in the Byndicates interests IN
/ Congress. the Government being d
partner In the Union Pacific enter
| prise. This led 70 charges in the prest
/ dental campaign of 1872 that the syn
| dicate had bribed members of Con
gress 20 vote in favor of Union Pacific
! by selling them Credit Mobilier stock
far below its market value. The Nic7
President. the Speaker Of the House
three Senator's and a number of the
leading members Of the House of Rep
resentatives we're freely accused of be
ing so bribed and the result of all
these accusations was q prolonged in
yestigauon. beginning in 1872, which
fired the country with intense excite
ment
We'll. as the surveyor of the first
railway which crossed the state OF
Iowa, now known as the Chicago
Rock Island and Pacific, Peter A. Dey
did the work so thoroughly and hon
estly that when the Union Pacific pro-
iect was got under way and IL was time
for the surveys TO be made Mr.. Dey
was selected as chief engineer and he
started out from Omaha upon the sur
vey about 1864
"The survey was carried rapidly
west. and the time was almost at hand
for the contractors to begin the work
of constructing the line when the late
Oakes Ames. member of Congress
/ from Massachusetts and president OF
the Union Pacific, received letter
/ from his chief engineer In that letter
/ Mr. Dey stated that he had just learn.
ed that some of those In authority In
I the Union Pacific had organized a con
tracing company. which they owned
which was to get the TAI opportunities
associated with the contracts for th'
building Of the road.
This Is a fraud on its face, Wrot'
Mr.. Dey of the proposition, i'm practi
caliy those words. II is something con
ceived IN dishonor. II prevents tan
competition for contract work. Unless
II is abandoned Il will imperil th'
Union Pacific and destroy the reputa
ton Of the men now associated witt
IT, My reputation is of more conse
ouence to me than money. ] will no
consent TO be associated with thos
who have planned such q thing
therefore resign my office as chief en-
gineer
Although this letter was not mad
public at the time of its writing con
tinued Mr.. Parker. yet the fact be
came known that Mr.. Dey had resigne
the office Of chief engineer of th
Union Pacific because Of the organiza
ton OF the Credit Mobilier, and thi
KNOWLEDGE gave rise to many inquirie'
which az last led TO great publicity an
the historic investigation by Congress
an inquiry that resulted in the reputs
tions OF most of the leading men I
Credit Mobilier being blasted. as MI
Dey had prophesied they would be.
Nov at the age of IS years, thl
great railroad engineer, the first
carry a railroad from the Mississippi
west. Is living in honorable retiremer
in Iowa City, feeling, probably, that ,
never rendered a greater service to HI
fellow countrymen than he did whe
he resigned the office Of chief eng
neer of the Union Pacific in prote'
against the creation of the ecandalot
Credit MObilier."
Copyright, 1911, by r j. Edwards A
Rights Reserved.)
Tomorrow Mr.. Edwards will tell
"The Crucial Incident OF StirriI
! Carporr