rance and Brinkerhoff. The state of my health prevented my going be. yond Cheyenne, therefore Mr. W. M. Thompson, who was examining the accounts of the Central Pacific Railroad Company, was instructed to inspect the parts of the Union and Central Pacific west of that point, in returning from San Francisco. The track, bridges, culverts, workshops, round-houses, stations, tanks, were found to be in excellent condition. The work I saw in progress last summer has improved the road greatly. It has now an extremely good surface, the road-bed sufficiently raised and the ditches ample; the ties well leveled and the rails (steel) accucurately and firmly laid, constituting this a first-class road, and proving the efficiency of the present management. The only want is that of proper ballast, which the country does not furnish. The ample work. shops are well placed, well equipped, and manned with skilled workmen. The improvement of the Union Pacific Railway during the year is further indicated by the following account of expenditures for that object: For right of way and real estate... Repairing track... Bridging, piling, and trestling Buildings for all purposes Fences. Tanks $127,718 78 14,053 67 352, 264 89 51,210 37 1,100 29 1, 434 99 534 32 548,317 30 At the end of the fiscal year the company owned 350 locomotives, 313 of which were provided with Westinghouse brakes. Of these, 39 had 8 driving-wheels, 97 had 6, and 177 had 4. It had 285 passenger cars, 7,466 freight cars, and 184 road and miscellaneous cars, snow-plows, sweepers, and steam shovels. In 1885, at the company's coal mines at Carbon, Rock Springs, Almy, Grass Creek, and Twin Creek, 817,114 tons of coal were mined and sold at a net profit of $106,555.02. The company received during the fiscal year patents for 16,493.47 acres of land, making the total number of acres received 3,856,835.85. One million fifty thousand four hundred and eighty-five and eight hundredths acres were sold during the year; making the entire land sales amount to 12,260,163.64 acres, at the average price per acre of $2.54 for Union Pacific, $3.51 for Kansas Pacific, and $4.37 for Denver Paci fic land. The sum of $21,667,734.70 has been paid and $13,986,939.15 are due on these sales. Amount due the United States for 1885 from the Union and Kansas Divisions. In the following statement a sum equal to 25 per cent. of the net earnings of the bridge at Omaha is included as due to the Government, on the decision of the Supreme Court in the case of the United States v. The Union Pacific Railroad Company, October term, 1878 (see vol. 99, p. 419), that the net earnings of its road "must be regarded as embracing all the earnings and income derived by the company from the railroad proper, and all the appendages and appurtenances thereof, including its ferry and bridge at Omaha, its cars, and all its property and apparatus legitimately connected with its railroad." A sum equal to 25 per cent. of $64,182.39 (a part of the company's Pullman-car earnings), and also of two debits to earnings-the first of $10,000, termed "closing out of Laramie rolling-mill," and the second "undercharges on coal," $62,273.54, both being properly debits to the income account, is likewise included. It was stated in my report of last year that in the accounts of the Kansas Pacific road the earnings are divided as if the business per mile of the aided and unaided parts was equal, although the former is much greater than the latter. In consequence (I presume) of a correspondence between Mr. Adams and me on the subject, these accounts for the last year are correct, and show the net earnings of the subsidized part of the road, 5 per cent. of which are due to the United States. The Government gains $32,672.05 by this correction. Reports of the Treasury Department show settled accounts and money paid into the Treasury, June 30, 1886, as amounting to $20,674,414.17, or $929,727.72 less than the amount claimed by the company, as follows: Transportation applied to interest account.. Cash paid and applied to interest account... Total payments to interest account Transportation applied to sinking-fund account... Total payments to sinking-fund account.. Total payments by the company. $14, 420, 499 39 The credits of the company are increased, however, by accumulated interest on sinking-fund investments. Total credits June 30, 1886 20, 674, 414 17 448,500 02 21, 123, 014 19 DUE THE UNITED STATES. Five per cent. of net earnings... 222, 693 96 337, 323 09 Total applicable to interest account ... One-half of amount charged for Government transportation 560,017 05 Cash payment required by section 4 of the act of May 7, 337, 323 09 1878.. 216, 129 64 Total applicable to sinking fund account 553,452 73 Total equal to 25 per cent. of net earnings.... 1, 113, 469 78 *Exceeds amount reported by company $64,182.89, being 55.35 per cent. of $115,958.25 income from Pullman sleeping-cars. Earnings apportioned to aided and non-aided road on basis of sleeping-car mileage. Exceeds amount reported by company $72,273.54, made up as follows: "Loss closing out Laramie rolling-mill"; deficit in material account, deb ited to earnings (see letter of Secretary of the Interior, March 24, 1885).$10,000 00 "Undercharges on coal" 62,273 54 This amount was debited to earnings in order to relieve the operating department. During the strikes at the mines last year the coal mined was insufficient to meet the demands of the operating department and the company's commercial coal trade. In order to maintain the commercial trade the mined coal was sold and the operating department was supplied by purchase from off the line, at an additional expense to the operating department of $62,273.54. It is submitted that the company's coal should have been used on the road, and that bought "off the line" used by its customers. Five per cent. of net earnings of aided road.............. 1,883, 737 78 $94, 186 89 46,832 36 141,019 25 Total..... TOTAL DUE FROM UNION PACIFIC RAILWAY COMPANY. Account Union Division. Account Kansas Division Total $1,113, 469 78 141,019 25 1,254, 489 03 Statement showing expenditures for new construction and new equipment for the aided roads during the year ending December 31, 1885. PARTICULARS OF EXPENDITURES FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION. Exceeds amount reported by the company $10,030.98, being 8.66 per cent. of $115,958.25 sleeping-car earnings. KANSAS DIVISION-AIDED ROAD. Right of way, side-track and machinery at Armstrong... St. James street viaduct, Kansas City, Kans., three-fourths of $3,354 59 3,000 00 $6,404 59 22, 461 14 Statement of amounts charged the United States for transportation, year ending December 31, 1885. Amount retained by Treasury Department, authorized by United States courts:" Union Division Kansas Division, one-half amount charged on aided road Total...... $674, 646 18 46,832 36 721,478 54 Funded debt. The funded debt of the Union Pacific Railway Company June 30, 1886, was $115,048,189.50 as against $116,441,797 the year before, a net decrease of $1,393,807.50, as shown by the statement below. In order to provide the funds necessary for the reconstruction of the bridge across the Missouri River at Omaha, the company began, in 1885, the issue of a new gold five per cent. bond, due in 1906, secured by second mortgage on the bridge. The total issue of these bonds is limited to $1,250,000, and no more than $227,000 can be certified by the trustees in any one year. See case 1291, United States Supreme Court, October term, United States v. Central Pacific Railroad Company. |