| Office East Ten & Ga RR Co |
| Knoxville 15/63 |
| |
| To The Directors |
| |
| As your meeting today will
probably be of more than usual importance I think best to submit in
writing the subjects for your consideration. You will see from
statements submitted that you have a surplus of $416,282.55 after paying
current expenses, dividend declared in Febry last and for engines, cars,
and interest accumulated during the year. I suggest the propriety of
dividing this surplus among the stockholders at once. I also submit
correspondence with the Quarter Master General with regard to an advance
in the price of work done for the Government. My opinion of what that
advance should be is set forth in my letter and the final result will
show that I have not demanded more for our stockholders than they are
justly entitled to -- it will not do to assume that any portion of our
surplus as shown from time to time are profits -- the question to be
considered by you is whether or not you are receiving sufficient
compensation for the waste and destruction of your property. I also
submit a letter addressed by me to the commanding Genl of this
Department and his answer thereto on the subject of the removal of your
shops to a place of more security. This removal would embrace
necessarily and properly the removal of your offices and valuable books
and papers. With this I respectfully tender you my resignation as
President of this company to take effect as soon as you can with
diligence and convenience provide a suitable successor, reserving the
right to terminate my connection with the company at any time I may deem
it right and proper for me to do so, but for the clouds that today hang
over our beloved country this act would be final and from the close of
this meeting. A mans first duty, in temporal affairs, is to his family
and especially so in my case as mine are mostly females and while I am,
I hope, as free as almost any man living from a desire to accumulate
property, I am bound by obligations the most sacred, particularly at my
time of life to try and provide something for their support more than my
daily earnings, but as my reasons for the step I now take are almost
entirely of a personal and private character I will dismiss the subject.
In conclusion let me suggest the propriety of your fixing the salaries
of your Officers for the year. The term for which those Dollars are
fixed extends as I conceive from the 1st July to the 30th June of each
year and it is due to the Officers that they should know what they are
to depend on as a support for their families at the commencement of each
fiscal year. Your Officers have almost quarterly been compelled to
advance the wages of all your operators until prices have become what in
after times may be considered fabulous. This has been done to enable
them to support their families and to keep up with prices paid by other
Rail Road companies and unless a rapid reduction in the price of
clothing and procuring occurs soon yet still further advances will have
to be made. I respectfully suggest that you appoint committees on each
of the subjects embraced in this communication. 1st On the propriety of
distributing the surplus found on hand. 2d On the propriety of an
advance in the rate of Government work. 3d On the propriety of a removal
of your shops &c. &c. 4th On the subject of resignation and the election
of a successor to the President. 5th On fixing salaries for the present
fiscal year. By thus systematizing the work before you the meeting may
not be unnecessarily extended. |
| Respectfully yours |
| C Wallace Prnt |
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