| Annual Report of the South Side RR |
| as of October 1, 1865, |
| President's Report |
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| Report of the President and Directors
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| Office South Side Rail Road Company |
| Petersburg, Nov. 25th, 1865 |
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To the Stockholders of the South Side R. R. Co.
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Gentlemen,
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The Board of Directors submit the Sixteenth Annual Report
of the operations of your Road for the fiscal year ending September
30th, 1865.
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The Treasurer's Report is made up to the 1st April, in
the currency in circulation at that date, at which time your road
passed into the possession of the United States authorities; and from
the 24th of July, when the road was restored to us, in the present
currency.
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| The gross earnings from October 1st, 1864, to
April 1st, 1965, were |
$2,238,042.80 |
| The expenditures for the same |
1,594,626.22 |
| Leaving a balance of |
643,416.58 |
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As per statement A, of the Treasurer's Report, all of
which is nearly a total loss to the Company, except the amount of coin
reported by him.
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During the period from October 1st, 1864, to April 1st,
1865, the Confederate government monopolized nearly all the motive
power of the Company, art rates about one-fourth those charged to
individuals, which shows the vast amount transported for the
government. Every effort was made to settle the accounts regularly,
but without effect. The excuse alleged for not paying was the want of
currency. The last payment made to this Company was one-half in coin
and the other in certificates of indebtedness.
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A very large item in the expenditures of the first half
year was for meats, a supply of which had been procured and paid for
sufficient for the current year, all of which was stored in the depot,
at Petersburg, and was destroyed or stolen the day after the
evacuation of the city. We lost at the same time many other valuable
stores.
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There has been no reduction in the bonded debt of the
Company. Due notice was given by the Treasurer, by advertisement in
the public papers, to pay the bonds that had matured, and the interest
due thereon, but the holders did not apply for payment, doubtless
preferring to hold them as a debt against the Company rather than
accept payment in the then existing currency.
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The amount of bonds due and unpaid were as follows:
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| Six per cent., third mortgage bonds, due January
1st, 1862 |
$14,900 |
| Eight per cent., last mortgage bonds, due
January 1st, 1863 |
4,500 |
| Six per cent., special mortgage bonds to City of
Petersburg, due January 1st, 1865 |
87,500 |
| Total bonds due and unpaid |
106,900 |
| To which may be added Eight per cent., last
mortgage bonds, due January 1st, 1866 |
13.500 |
| Total bonds due and soon to be due |
$120,400 |
| The amount due for Coupons of interest, which
the holders would not bring in, is estimated by the Treasurer
to be |
140,000 |
| To which may be added coupons due January 1st,
1866 |
27,000 |
| And interest to the State to same date |
56,000 |
| Total interest due January 1st, 1866 |
$223,000 |
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This, added to the bonds, makes the indebtedness that has
to be provided for $343,400.
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Doubtless the city of Petersburg will agree to endorse
new bonds having ten to twenty years to run, to meet the amount of her
endorsation on the bonds that fell due in January last. This would
leave the amount of bonded debt past due $32,900, and also the
interest above stated, making the total amount $255,900, to be
provided for in some other way.
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Any increase of the bonded debt is objectionable if it
can be avoided, for it will necessarily increase the annual interest,
which is now a large and serious item. But your Board, at present, see
no other alternative.
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A great source of trouble in the finances of the Company
has been the short dates at which the money was borrowed to construct
the road, some of which was for so short a time that it fell due
before the road was completed and stocked with the necessary
machinery. This created embarrassment by causing a heavy floating debt
to be incurred at an early date in the history of the road.
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The road cost nearly three and a half millions of
dollars, of which the stockholders contributed about one-third, making
it necessary to borrow the rest, the interest on which is nearly equal
to four per cent on the entire cost of the road.
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*****
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You are particularly referred to the Report of the
Superintendent for a history in detail of the embarrassing
circumstances attendant upon the management of the road for the past
year. It will show that notwithstanding the shops of the Company were
frequently struck with bombs, preventing the machinists from doing
regular work, yet the rolling stock was kept in running order, and the
business of the government and individuals was accommodated.
Independent of the ordinary transportation for the army, the road was
relied on all last winter and spring to haul most of the timber
required for the fortifications and the firewood used by the troops
round the city. It will be remembered that early in December last, the
Weldon Road {Petersburg RR} was taken by
the United States forces, which threw an increased amount of army
supplies around by Danville and over our road. The Quarter Master's
Department was immediately appraised of this and informed that this
Company had not rolling stock sufficient to meet all the demands of
the Government as fast ass they were made, and we urgently asked that
some additional engines and cars should be furnished us. but no
response was made to this application; and crippled as we were we had
to run during the whole winter, with only the occasional assistance of
some trains from other roads.
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Early in March last, the James River canal was cut by a
raiding party, which added still further to the military
transportation of our road, and we again made an urgent application
for assistance. The Quarter Master General, instead of responding as
we expected, thought it best to adopt another plan, which he deemed
more efficient, to-wit: to require this Company to confine the running
of its cars between Petersburg and Burkville, and to Danville when we
had any spare power, and to make the Virginia & Tennessee Company
do the transportation between Lynchburg and Burkville, and make that
the dumping place for army supplies. Your Board objected most
strenuously to the adoption of such a plan, for many reasons, but the
most conclusive ones were as follows:
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1st. The Lynchburg end of our line was the greatest
source of cash revenue to the Company, and it was the only reliance we
had to pay our expenses, as we could not get the money the Government
owed us.
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2nd. The grades of our road were light, and we had built
it of light iron, and our engines had been made to correspond with
them, and were not able to work efficiently on the heavy grades of the
Danville road, whilst the engines he proposed to put on our road were
heavy engines, and had been built so to work on mountain grades, on a
stronger rail than ours, and would do great damage to our track, then
very much worn for want of new iron to repair it. but the Government
was determined to carry out its plan, which however it was stated to
us would only be a temporary one; and finding this to be the case, we
entered into an agreement to permit the road to be used at the rate of
$275,000 per month. But before this agreement could be consummated,
the road passed into the hands of the United States authorities.
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You will also find in the report of the Superintendent a
detailed statement of the losses of the Company in bridges, rolling
stock, and other valuable property.
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*****
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The most formidable obstacle to overcome {to
restore the road after its return by the US forces} was to
replace the burnt portion of the High Bridge, and to rebuild the first
James River Bridge. The former was 450 feet long and over 100 feet
high. The latter was 672 feet long, and at a place where the river was
deep and rapid. ***** As we had an abundance of suitable timber at our
saw mill at Waverley, on the Norfolk {&
Petersburg} railroad, (the purchase of which was reported in
our last report,) *****
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It is a fortunate thing for the company that we have such
an abundant supply of timber at Waverley. It is only 20 miles from
Petersburg, immediately on the Norfolk road, and it is estimated that
we can cut three millions of feet from the lands. *****
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Respectfully submitted,
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Lem. Peebles
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President
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