Even if the six hundred thousand dollars had been lost, it
would not have been a losing investment for his company, and there was
little danger of this because we were ready to hand over to him the
securities which we obtained in return for the loan to the Union
Pacific.
My interview with Mr. Thomson took place at his house in Philadelphia,
and as I rose to go he laid his hand upon my shoulder, saying:
"Remember, Andy, I look to you in this matter. It is you I trust, and
I depend on your holding all the securities you obtain and seeing
that the Pennsylvania Railroad is never in a position where it can
lose a dollar."
I accepted the responsibility, and the result was a triumphant
success. The Union Pacific Company was exceedingly anxious that Mr.
Thomson himself should take the presidency, but this he said was out
of the question. He nominated Mr. Thomas A. Scott, vice-president of
the Pennsylvania Railroad, for the position. Mr. Scott, Mr. Pullman,
and myself were accordingly elected directors of the Union Pacific
Railway Company in 1871.
The securities obtained for the loan consisted of three millions of
the shares of the Union Pacific, which were locked in my safe, with
the option of taking them at a price. As was to be expected, the
accession of the Pennsylvania Railroad party rendered the stock of the
Union Pacific infinitely more valuable.
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