raffic on March 24, 1891.

Many other circumstances, however, contributed to delay the opening
of the whole line. Compensation claims were very slowly agreed to;
the Government engineers slightly altered the plans; the company's
engineers could not find a hard strata in the bed of the Calumpit
River [130] (a branch of the Rio Grande de Pampanga) on which to
build the piers of the bridge; and lastly the Spanish authorities,
who had direct intervention in the work, found all sorts of excuses
for postponing the opening of the line. When the Civil Director was
applied to, he calmly replied that he was going to the baths, and
would think about it. Finally, on appeal to the highest authority,
Gov.-General Despujols himself went up to Tarlac, and in an energetic
speech, reflecting on the dilatoriness of his subordinates, he declared
the first Philippine railway open to traffic on November 23, 1892. For
about a year and a half passengers and goods were ferried across the
Calumpit River in pontoons. Large caissons had to be sunk in the river
in which to build the piers for the iron bridge, which cost an enormous
sum of money in excess of the estimate. Later on heavy rains caused
a partial inundation of the line, the embankment of which yielded to
the accumulated mass of water, and traffic to Dagupan was temporarily
suspended. The total outlay on the line far exceeded the company's
original calculation, and to avert a financial collapse fresh capital
had to be raised by the issue of 6 per cent. Prior Lien Mortgage Bonds,
ranking before the debenture stock. The following official quotations
on the London Stock Exchange will show the public appreciation of
the Manila Railway Company's shares and bonds:--

OFFICIAL QUOTATIONS.

December.
| 7% Cum. Pref. L10 Shares.
| | 6% Deb. L100 Stock.
| | | 6% Prior Lien Mort. Bonds,
| | | Series A., L100.
| | | | 6% Prior Lien Mort. Bonds,
| | | | Series B., L100.

L L L L
1893 2 49 98 87
1894 1 32 104 91
1895 1/2 29 107 85
1896 1/4 22 96 64
1897 1/4 19 101 75
1898 1 3/4 45 110 98
1899 1 3/4 33 1/2 101