THE ORPHANAGE NEWS LETTER.
The Reyr.olds-Alaska Develop
ment Company, Continued
to a position in the front rank of in
dependent Alaskan enterprises.
Few were wise enough to foresee
tke sudden October panic and my
mistake was the quite general one
of depending upon the unreliable
financial support of others in the car
rying ou«. of a great public work.
However, I have labored unceasing
ly ever since, utilizing freely every
dollar I could earn or borrow to
rectify this error of judgment, and
there is now sufficient interest a
roused among dependable men of
large affairs to assure the sucessful
refinancing of the entire situation.
To my positive knowledge not a
single stockholder among the 1700 in
the Reynolds-Alaska Development
Company, or the 500 in the Alaska
Home Railway has made any com
plaint against me, although strenu
ous efforts were made by Postal Offi
cials to induce many of them to do so.
Audits of the books in Hoston, Se
attle anil Valdez prove conclusively
that every dollar of Treasury funds
was economically expended iu the
intrests of the Company. As a
matter of pertinent information the
books of the Revnolds-Alaska Devel
opment Company show that there is
an undrawn salary account at #5,000.
a year of over #13,000. to my credit
and I never asked or received a penny
of commissou from either company
on the sale of Treasury shares, deem
ing it improper for an official of a
Company to receive commissions.
Moreover, through economical and
painstaking management the entire
flotation of shares was fullv covered
by premiums secured above the par
value on a most conservative capital
ization. These facts are hardly com
patable with a charge of fraud im
plying self interest.
The financing of the Reynolds
Alaska Development Company and
the Alaska Home Railway was 011
the cleanest lines and no misstate
ment of fact was ever made in any
literature with intent to deceive.
That the facts concerning the Com
pany and its properties were present
ed in a convincing manner is amply
evidenced by stock sales aggregating
over a million dollars in cash, but
this to the mind of the unprejudiced
should be creditable rather than
otherwise, in view of attendant cir
cumstances.
The net outstanding indebtedness
of the Reynolds-Alaska Development
Company is but #116,261.25, and this
is on account of properties, labor and
materials. This indebtedness is but
trifling compared with the value
of the assets.
The report of our Chief Engineer,
Mr. Blaney Stevens of Valdez, read
at the meeting of the Reynolds-Alas
ka stockholders at Hotel Vemlome,
loston, September 5th, fixes the de
veloped value of our largest mine—
the batouche-Iron Mountain—alone
at #5,000,000.
A committee of leading business
men of Valdez — Messrs. Hetnple,
Bovle and Boot — recently reported
that our Valdez properties are earn
ing 20 percent of their cost, so there
could be no justice in the criticism
of the value of the investments made
last Summer on behalf of the Rey
nolds Alaska Development Company.
Profits were not only earned sufficient
to cover dividend disbursements up
until the time of suspension, hut
the accumulations of surplus are suf
ficient to cover dividends on account
of the Preferred stock actually up to
date.”