St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1886-08-05
RAILROAD TALK.
Some Facts and Many Rumors.

Passumpsic railroad stock touched
99S last Saturday. 1t wont have to go
many points more to be at par. The
steady rise in this stock for the past
year bespeaks good management of
good property. The road has declared
a semi-annual dividend of % per cent
payable August L.
Gov. Horace Fairbanks and Colonel
Franklin Fairbanks have resigned
their positions as members of the boa I'd
of directors of the Lake road and their
places have been filled by the election
of Ex-Gov. Hendee of Morrisville and
H. E. Folsom of the Passumpsic road.
G. S. Mellen of the B. & L. road is
elected president, Col. A. B. Jewett re-
mains vice president and w. A. Sto-
we'll of Montpelier is elected treasurer.
All local control or management of the
Lake road is practically at an end.
1t is doubtful if there has been for
many years more fruitful subject for
rumors than the various transactions
in progress between the Boston &
Lowell, Concord, Boston 81 Maine and
other connecting roads. Among the
rumOrs of recent date is this one that
has been verified. An order was issued
this week that goes into effect this
morning directing that all freight for
the South be forwarded East via. SCOTS
and the Wing Road instead of down
the Passumpsic as formerly. For a
long while the Passumpsic under con-
tract with the Lake road has hauled
this freight over 62 miles of road.
Close upon the report that the Con-
cord road was negotiating for con-
trolling interest in the Boston and
Lowell system comes the statement,
apparently well founded, that within a
few days there have been negotiations
that tend in the direction of a lease of
the Lowell to the Boston & Maine. In
fact, if the New Hampshire courts de-
eide that the Northern lease to the
Lowell is invalid the probabilities are
ell stockholders will be called together
within thirty days thereafter to vote
upon lease advantageous to both cor
poratiOns. The New Hampshire courts
were to have rendered their decision
on the validity of the Northern leases
to the Lowell road August /, but we
are now told that the decision is with
held until Jan. l, 1887, so that uncer-
tainty seems likely to prevail for some
time to come.
Chas. S. Hastings received orders
this week to clean out and close the
Office in the Bank building that has
been maintained ever since the trans
fer of the st. j. & L. G. to the Boston
e. Lowell road. The office will be
closed at once, SO far as railroad bust
ness is concerned.
A new time table on the Lake road
goes into effect Sunday morning. 1t is
arranged largely to provide for run
ming the freight trains through from
Swanton to SCOTS. There is no change
in time of passenger trains.
There were sold 1000 shares of
Boston & Lowell stock Saturday at
1928 in one block. The stock would
doubtless have sold higher except for
the restriction that it must go in one
lot. Since then the stock has steadily
advanced. Tuesday it was quoted at
1871, and yesterdays report says that
"The theory that Boston & Lowell will
| be leased to the Boston & Maine at
about per cent. if the New Hamp-
shire courts decide against the lease of
the Northern road adds to the strength
of Lowell stock, which closed Tuesday
at 1874. This is Sc above the auction
price of the 1000 shares sold Saturday"
Should the Boston & Maine get hold
of the b. & L. system they would con-
troll nearly all the New Hampshire rail-
roads as we'll as those of Maine and
Northeastern Massachusetts. There is
no use in specializing on the possible
effects on this section of the country
that any of these changes would pro-
duce, at least not until something more
than rumOrs grow out of them.
The latest rumor at hand, that seems
to have some foundation, is that the
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