Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1915-01-20


will accept it and assume the unpaid
liability thereon, thereby making
them a present of the 80 per cent
paid thereon), it remained for the
mayor to declare that there was no
quorum to act on the matter and an
election was the only thing that
could be done.
From the article in the Teller one
would inter that the friends of the
railroad had offered to buy the stock
of the members of the council, but
they don't need to buy the stock
all anyone who is responsible will
have to do is to accept the assign
ment of the above mentioned stock
and assume the unpaid liability on
the same, and in this way they can
not only get some cheap stock but
get rid of those horrible knockers
who are opposed to having their
money squandered toolishly. | refer
here to one item of So, 1900 paid
to the Grant Railroad Company three
months before their charter expired,
to reimburse the stockholders of the
said Grant Ry. Co., for money that
they had absolutely lost and had no
hopes of recovering until they were
approached by the fnancier of the
Chicago Short Line Ry., and through
him worked the directors of the said
Short Line to buy them out before
they slid out backwards. At that
time the argument was that the
Short Line Ry. could not wait three
months and here they have waited
nearly two years and still are wait
ing.
When stakeholder opposed such
transactions he was put into the dis
card and branded a knocker. / would
rather be a knocker and know / was
right than a sucker any time and
feel all the time that | was being
grated.
There is not a man on the city
council but who would be glad to
support a railroad proposition that
could show where the same could be
or would be financed; but what are
the present conditions? When the
present R. r. project was startede
the hackers said that it was impos-
sible to sell railroad bonds in tbs
United States, and that every raile
road proposition sold all their bonds
in Europe, where the people wers
crazy to buy 20 years to 40 year
bonds, and that all bonding house,
claimed that Europe was the dump
ing ground for everything on the
bond line. Now everybody knows
that their statement was true and
everybody now knows that Europe
will not buy railroad bonds for the
next 100 years, so that from their
own statements their market for their
bonds is gone absolutely. Oh no,
they come back now and ask the
railroad rate commission of this state
to give them the privilege of issuing
$45O,O0O worth of gold bonds.
On what? And they say they can
be sold to the people of Grant County
and even go so far as to say that the
people of Grant County must buy
these bonds if they want the railroad.
Do you want this railroad badly
enough to invest few thousand
dollars of your hard earned money in
such chance? If you do, just write
to the treasurer of the company and
let him know how many thousand
dollars you wish to invest.
The ordinance asked for, by the
railroad, states that the company will
hold the city harmless from all
damages they may do the streets.
What is that statement or guaran
tee worth in case it became necessary
to collect damages. What the COM
pany should be required to do is to
give to the city a bond sufficient to
protect the city from not only the
damage the company may do to the
streets, but also to protect the city
from damage lawsuits instituted
against it by property owners who
may think they have case against
the city for granting the r. r. a
right-of way over property over
which the city has not now or never
had any control whatever, and over
which said ordinance, as submitted
to the voters, asks a franchise.
Why does this company at this
time want a franchise across the city
when all they need at present, even
il they should succeed in financing
the present. stub to Patch Grove, is
a connection with that old and worn
out c. N. & w. Ry over which they
expect to sendssthe freight from West
ern Grant to Chicago and other points
in about one-half the time and with