| From the New Orleans Times Picayune |
| |
| April 9, 1861 |
| |
| Southern Pacific Railroad |
| When the Illinois Central
Railroad Company was incorporated with a donation of six sections of
land to the mile, it was regarded, and justly regarded, as one of the
most magnificent speculations of the day. It is true, that when the
grant was made, the lands could not be sold for the Government price of
$1.25 per acre, but the far-seeing sagacious minds of those interested
in the project saw clearly that with a railroad running through the
heart of a productive State like that of Illinois, these lands were
destined to increase in value, while the railroad itself would be a
source of immense profit. The result exceeded their expectations. One
million acres of these lands sold for $17 per acre, realizing to the
stockholders seventeen millions of dollars. |
| Now, let us contrast this
scheme with that of the Southern Pacific Railroad. |
| 1. The latter company, instead
of six, is entitled to a donation of sixteen sections of land to the
mile. In other words, the grant to the Illinois Central was 3,840 acres
to the mile; while that of the Southern Pacific is 10,240 acres to the
mile. |
| 2. The Illinois Central runs
through a State intersected by a number of valuable navigable streams;
and as water navigation is cheaper than railroads, the effect must be to
take a great deal of business from the road. The Southern Pacific, on
the contrary, does not encounter a single navigable stream, worthy of
the name, from the Louisiana boundary to El Paso, and must necessarily
command the carrying trade on either side of the road for hundreds of
miles. |
| 3. The Illinois Central passes
through a country requiring a heavy grade. The cost has been immense. It
is safe to assume that the grading on the Southern Pacific will not cost
half as much, and perhaps not more than a third of that road. |
| 4. Look at the difference in
the climate. There are seasons of the year when the Illinois Road is
obstructed by ice and snow. The winters are of such severity as to
seriously affect travel. The climate in Texas is just the reverse. There
is not a day in the year when there will be slightest interruption of
the business of the Southern Pacific Road. |
| 5. The Texas lands produce
wheat and corn in great abundance, and from the character of the
climate, it must be recognized as the best cattle country in the world.
The wheat crop is harvested in May, which will enable the Texas farmers,
by the assistance of this railroad, to get their flour into market six
weeks earlier than that of Illinois. The cereals not only thrive in this
latitude, but this section embraces also the richest cotton lands in the
world. And such is the value of this cotton district, that it may be
affirmed with truth, of which any one may be satisfied by examining a
map of the country, that taking an area of one hundred miles on either
side of the road, it is capable of producing more cotton than is now
raised in the United States. |
| 6. The business upon the
Southern Pacific is destined to far exceed that of the Illinois Central.
The former, while it will have the exclusive carrying trade of an
immense district of country, will, if successfully prosecuted, be the
great thoroughfare to the Pacific, and when finished, possess the
carrying trade of California, Australia, Japan, and China. |
| In view of these undeniable
facts, why is it that the Southern Pacific is not destined to be a much
for lucrative enterprise than that of the Illinois Central? Are not the
lands far more valuable? Will not the road, when finished be a better
paying investment of capital? These questions require no answer. The
plain, common sense of every intelligent man will respond at once, that
the Southern Pacific is so far ahead of the Illinois Central, that there
is really no comparison. |
| These propositions being
established, let us look at the respective value of the grants to the
Illinois and Texas rods. |
| The Illinois Central, for 800
miles of road, receives 3,092,000 acres; the Southern Pacific 8,192,000.
The difference in favor of the latter amounts to 5,100,000 acres. If the
two companies were to sell their lands at $17 per acre, the price
obtained for 1,000,000 of the Illinois lands, the result would be as
follows: The Southern Pacific grant would realize $139,264,000; that of
the Illinois $52,564.000 -- difference in favor of the former,
$76,700,000. |
| But without entering into any
comparison of the value of the two grants, is it not reasonable to
assume that the Texas lands will ultimately sell for at least $10 an
acre? Is it not much more likely that they will realize $20, $25 and $30
per acre? But estimating that they are sold at $10 an acre, and the mind
can be hardly made to realize the vastness of the sum. In amounts, in
gross, to $81,192,000! At $30,000 per mile, 800 miles of road would cost
$24,000,000. The stockholders, therefore, can pay for the entire road
and realize, in addition, upwards of $57,000,000. |
| In whatever aspect this
enterprise is view, it must be regarded as the most magnificent project
ever presented in the world's history. Three dollars per acre will pay
for the work, and if the stockholders obtain this -- 800 miles or
railroad -- without costing them a dollar, surely there is enough in it
to tempt the cupidity of all men who have money to invest in railroads.
And when we consider that the amount of stock necessary to complete this
enterprise, will be, probably, not more than four, and will certainly
not exceed five millions of dollars, some idea may be formed of the
magnificence of the scheme. |
| But it may be asked, if all
this be true, why is it that the road has not advanced more rapidly? For
the reason, first, that the stockholders are so numerous and so widely
scattered that they cannot be reached; and secondly, they have no seemed
to properly appreciate the value of the enterprise. If the charter had
been in the hands of a few men of capital and enterprise, it is not
unreasonable to suppose that two hundred miles of road would have been
constructed ere this, and the stock today would be the most valuable in
the world. All that is required now is a purchase of new stock at the
rate of one dollar a share on stock now held, which is not a payment or
a donation, but a sum for which the stockholder gets a fair equivalent
in the stock of the company. There are 400,000 shares of stock, which,
if all represented by this call, will amount to $400,000. The whole of
this sum is required to py the debts of the company and to finish the
fifty miles of road, and if furnished promptly would run the stock up in
a few months to $10 a share. But while most of the stockholders are
responding to the call, there are many who are holding back. What must
be the inevitable result of their course if continued? At best the
prospects of the enterprise must languish, ending probably with the sale
of the franchise and property under execution. The debts are now due;
many of them are in judgments. A day's delay may be fatal. Why, then,
does not every individual stockholder come forward immediately and lend
his aid in this emergency? They hazard nothing in doing so; for, if
through the negligence of some and the ignorance and obstinacy of
others, the property has to be sold, a powerful company will be formed
to purchase it, and all those who have stood up in the day of trial will
be protected. It is desired that the road shall not be sold, and that
every stockholder shall continue to hold his enterprise. Hence these
frequent and earnest appeals. |
| Will the stockholders be true
to themselves and their own interests? If not, and the road is sold, and
this splendid speculation passes from them forever, they certainly can
attach no blame to the managers of the company, nor to that portion of
the press which has favored this enterprise. Argument and persuasion
have been exhausted, but, we trust, not in vain. We entertain the
confident hope, amounting almost to an assurance, that the stockholders
will do their duty, and their full duty, by advancing the necessary aid
to render this enterprise a splendid success. |
| With these remarks, we would
refer the reader to the card of Col. R. V. Richardson, who publishes an
exhibit of the condition of the company, with a proposition to sell five
hundred thousand dollars of new stock. He estimates the length of the
road at 900 miles, to which it will doubtless approximate, when the side
tracks, &c., are taken into the account. This, while it increases the
extent of the road, also enlarges the bonus in land, thereby increasing
the profit of the investment over our estimate. |
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