The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-09-16
Especial to The Farmer.)

lSpecldl 10 The Fdrmer.)
 Hartford. Sept Ex-Governor Simeon E. Baldwin sent two vetoes to the general assembly Thursday, one to the House and one to the Senate disappearing the bill amending the charter of the Connecticut River Co. As pointed out in this newspaper the bill contained many provisions that were deemed inimical to the public interest. The communications from the governor are admirable and we CTS.
 The vetoes follow:
 To the Honorable House of Repre-
 sentatives:
 herewith return, without my ap- proval, a bill for an Act amending Co., being a substitute bill for House Joint Resolution No. 225.
 My objections to it's enactment are these:
 The bill contemplates the provision of the necessary funds to accomplish the corporate purpose by LOANS, WITHOUT ANY CONTRIBUTION BY THE SHAREHOLDERS, AND WITH OUT ANY PROPER BASIS OF SEE CURITY. Epress permission is given to borrow by issuing bonds secured by mortgage of the corporate assets and franchises, the only limit of the issue being that they shall not exceel five million dollars in amount at par, nor three quarters of what an engineer, to be named by the company, may, with the approval of a majority of the directors estimate as the value of these assets and franchises.
 This seems to me contrary to the rules of sound finance. The stock holders who manage the property and the expenditures should be themselves contributors to the corporate funds of the bond issue be left so largely to the judgment of one of the corpora tion's employees.
 It is not claimed that the tangible property now owned, by the company is as much as one million, two hun dred thousand dollars in value. It's franchises, which are undoubtedly principally on their security that any large loan must be based.
 An engineer employed by the com pany nine years as submitted an esti- mate of the value of it's water power, developed and undeveloped, to the Board of Army Engineers at Washing ton. This estimate put the value at nearly four million dollars. The com pany claims now to own tangible property worth about one million, one Hundred and fifty-five thousand dol lars. On the basis of a three-quar- ters value of these items, the corpora ton could apparently, under this. bill, issue bonds to the amount of three million, eight hundred thousand dol lars without putting dollar of the proceeds into new improvements or acquisitions. e
 The company already possesses valu. able franchises granted by the state. Others are given by this bill. Such in my judgment, ought not to be given away to private individ- uals or corporations. It seems to me that either a large sum should be paid as a consideration for granting them, Or an annual payment required of a certain percentage of the gross re- ceipts of the corporation from it's bus mess.
 My view of this matter may be i shortly stated thus: Either the fran- | chises which the corporation would l receive or would exercise more benefi- cially under this bill, are very valu- able or they are not.
 If they are not very valuable, the | State should not authorize the issue | of bonds to so large an amount.
 If they are very valuable, then the | State should secure some compensation l for granting the franchises now solicit |