Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 64, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 March 1914 — RAILROAD DEAL WAS CLOSED SATURDAY [ARTICLE]

RAILROAD DEAL WAS CLOSED SATURDAY

H. R. KURRIE NEGOTIATED PURCHASE NOT ONLY OF GIFFORD ROAD BUT OF PRIVATE STOCK. PRICE WAS $95,000 Stock in Hands of Individuals Purchased at 10 Cents on the Dollar— Monon Will Begin Improvements Immediately and Will,Extend the Road to the North and West, Making Another Connection at or Near St. John. I The deal for the purchase by the Monon railroad of the Chicago & Wabash Valley railroad, negotiations for which had been pending for the past two or three weeks, was concluded in Rensselaer Saturday afternoon, when H. R. Kurrie, general counsel for the Monon, returned to this city from Chicago with Executor George H. Gifford, of the B. J. Gifford estate, ihis private secretary, N. G. Halsey, and his attorney, Moses Leopold. They arrived here on the 2 o’clock train from Chicago, went directly to the court house, where Judge Hanley was in waiting, and it required hut a short time to close up the deal. UnTEurrie, whenlfie"offer was first made had deposited SI,OOO for the option. He brought with him a, draft for $94,000 and this was turned over to Executor Gifford as soon as the transfer had been approved. Besides the stock in the railroad owned by the Gifford estate there were outstanding 488% shares, in the hands of several who had been associated with Mr. Gifford for some years in the operation of the railroad. These are probably all to be acquired by the Monon and an offer of $lO per share was made for the stoek and several of the stockholders sold. Frank E. Lewis, general manager; C. J. Hobbs, chief engineer; T. M. Callahan, N. G. Halsey and C. E. Kersey were stockholders. There were in all nearly 100 of these share holders and they are scattered from Maine to California Most of the stock was given away by Benjamin J. Gifford when he was building his railroad, Among the stockholders was A. C. Ruble, who was the head man for the Bloomington Pickle Company in Jasper county several years ago,

and who was the ipresident of the board of directors while a resident here. He now lives at Omaha, Neb. Mr. Kurrie deposited in a local bank enough money to take up all of this stock and all the stockholder has to do is to take his certificate of stock to the bank and get the money. This money will be available for a short time and those who do not accept the offer will not get anything. Mr. Kurrie was accompanied here by the auditor and head bookkeeper for the Monon railroad. Messrs. Lewis, Hobbs, Callahan and Halsey, stockholders, were all here and all sold their stock at $lO per share. The face value of the stock was SIOO. While the road becomes the property Of the Monon at once it will not take active management until April Ist. Mr. Kurrie directed Messrs. Lewis and Hobbs to continue the management until April Ist, following the policy they have been operating under. Between now and April Ist the Monon engineers will submit plans for the contemplated improvements, a survey will be completed for the extension to the north and west and everything arranged for the active carrying out of the construction and the improvements to the roadbed, which will probably include the laying of new steel rails, the putting in of new ties and the improvement of the stations. It is probable that the extension will be carried to some point near St. John and there connected up with the Monon railroad. Mr. Kurrie allayed all fears about the junking of the road, saying that the Monon either had to, double track a considerable part of its track or secure this road to care for a part of the business. This purchase adds considerable new territory to the road and the distance from McOoysburg to St. John by the Gifford road and the proposed extension will be just about the same as it is over the present Monon road. The matter of working out the change in the schedule of the trains will be taken up later, but it is more than probable that at least one of the through trains that now passes through Rensselaer will be routed over the Gifford branch and it is not improbable that trains Nos. 15 and 16, which now run from Chicago to Michigan City, making a round trip each day, wiil-be sent on a new sehedule over the Gifford branch. It has been said for a long time that these trains were not paying and would be taken off. It is also probable that a number of freight trains will be sent over the new line. It is understood that Engineer Hobbs has been informed that the Monon can use him in the engineering department of the Toad and that a position will probably be found for F. E. Lewis, the general

manager of the road. The section hands will be used and probably the train crew. There will be great activity this summer along the road, as it will take a long' time tb make the contemplated improvements. The money procured .from this! sale will practically let the estate of the late Benjamin J. Gifford out of debt, leaving 7,300 acres of land unincumbered. The price on all of this land has been advanced and the sale will not bo pushed except at the higher rate. One of the beneficiaries under the will stated that he considered every acre of the land worth at least SSO and that it should average every cent of that. This will make the estate worth $365,000. The estate also has about SBO,OOO in second mortgages on land which B. J. Gifford had sold and which the estate has sold to various purchasers. This will make the estate worth somewhat in excess of $400,000. The bequests under the will total $342,000, and the will provides the + l - executor, George H. Gifford, shall get all the residue after the bequests are paid. It looks favorable now for him to eventually get from $60,000 to SBO,000.

N. G. Halsey, secretary-treasurer of the railroad, will , continue in that capacity until April Ist. After that time he will probable be with Mr. Gifford in handling the affairs of the estate and it is probable that offices will be maintained here for some time. Miss Ethel McCarthy, who has been employed at the office for some time, has been offered employment in Attorney Gifford’s law office at Tipton, but prefers remaining here if she can find employment, which she doubtless can. The sale of the road has taken the greatest burden off the shoulders of Executor Gifford and he figures that the estate has benefited far In excess of the money procured from the direct sale. Much of the land is tenanted and being practically out of debt the estate will be earning some money and not running behind as It had been ever since Mr. Gifford’s death. It will probably take a long time yet to complete the sale of the land and close up the estate but the biggest end of it was taken care of in the sale of the road. A man who owns 600 acres of land in the Gifford country said Saturday that he figured that the sale of the road to‘ the Monon had made him $15,000. Other land owners feel the same way about it and from the standpoint of the estate it Is generally considered that a more fortunate sale could not have been made. t Order your Calling Cards at The Republican office.