Show IVESHARRIS FACTION ANSWERED The Receivers of the Northern Pa cine Make a Great Showing Milwaukee Feb 3There wer filed today by the Farmers Loan and Trust company Sheldon Co P P Winston Wins-ton and Receivers Oakes Payne and Rouse in the circuit court of the United States six separate answers to the Ives petition for the removal of the Northern Pacific receivers The answers present extensive replies to every charge made and comprise over 500 printed pages The answers not only meet all the specific charges but explain and refute the insinuations I is shown that the branch line policy originated during the Ives V Harris administration and the receivers re-ceivers bring proofs to show that by rejecting the branch line leases they have saved more than 1000000 per year The receivers have already paid 5000000 preferential debts and about 2000000 interest with important economies econ-omies in the operation Oakes answers every charge specifically V fically filing exhaustive documents and proofs i Ralston vigorously scores his accusers ac-cusers And refutes every allegation In the answer Oakes specifically denies that he was a partner in or profited by the construction of anyb line on the guaranteed bonds of the V same he also denies that the directors direc-tors profited thereby and shws that under his management the ross earnings earn-ings increased frpm 12000000 to 24 000000 until the recent extraordinary depression which solely caused the i bankruptcy of the company He reviews re-views the history of the purchase or lease of the various railroads and the 1 answer shows they were necessary for the meeting of competition md the i controlling of business and the protecting pro-tecting of territory The Northern Pacific Pa-cific director and stockholders unanimously unani-mously adopted this policy in 1831 and I readopted i in 1886 and 1889 Pursuant Pur-suant to this policy branch roads I were constructed or acquired to meEt particular exigencies In each instance the subject was carefully examined referred to special committees and reported re-ported upon by the various departments depart-ments to the board and all twenty three branches row in operation with the exception of five were commenced or authorized by the IvesHarris board The acquisition of the branch lines was a necessity in the railroads management manage-ment and upon the whole beneficial to the system The branch lines now i n construction or acquired during the period Work was a director furnished I business tb the Northern Pacific railroad rail-road company of over 4000 00 The Central Washington Green River and Northern Spokane Palouse antS Northern at Pacific and Montana roads all were constructed or the construction provided pro-vided for under the HarrisIves management man-agement The Spokane Palouse business bus-iness last year exceeded 360000 The net revenue paid all interest on the bonds issued on account of the extension exten-sion of the Green River Northern t authorized by the IvesHarris faction directors The contract for the construction con-struction was signed by Robert Harris Har-ris risThe The answer shows no director wass interestedin the construction of the I united railroads of Washington their cost the total amount of bonds issued thereon and no profit was made in I the construction The answer shows that not a cent of money was paid to I the Oregon Transcontinental company pany for services in purchasing the Seattle Lake Shore Eastern Four direotors of the company were interested inter-ested in the syndicate which owned and controlled the Rocky Fork mines and the railroad company purchased the stock of this company and made n contract with the RocKy Ford company com-pany for 500 tons of coal dally for ninetynine years at 250 per ton with certain rebates for the three fiscal years ending June 30 last The company com-pany saved by virtue of said contracts over 1000000 or a sum equal to about 1000 a day A to the Northern Pacific Manitoba Man-itoba railway the answer shows a syndicate was organized by Villard to construct this road but he had no personal per-sonal interest in it The entire road Including the properties at Winnepeg Portage La Prairie and Brandon and the Winnepeg transfer road cost 0000000 and th profit for the year ending June 1892 was over 300000 As to the Chicago terminals and the Wisconsin Central lease the answer shows that before the lease or any traffic contract was entered Into the value of the properties was thoroughly and carefully examined by experts not only representing the company but also representing the bankers who expected to make large investments in the Chicago terminal bonds These experts uniformly placed the value of the leased properties largely in excess of the value on which the rental was paid under the leases The Ives Clewes report last year placed the value of the Chicago terminals at about 28000000 while they were acquired ac-quired under the lease by the Northern North-ern Pacific on the rental value of about 18000000 and Oakes had no in terest direct or Indirect in the ac quisition and control of these proper te I |