The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-08-11
GREATEST TRANSIT DEAL.
Scheme to Consolidate All New York
and 81" Surface Roads

and IL" Surface Roads.
New York, Aug. 11-Miss Helen
Gould holds the key to the most stu
pendous railway deal in the history of
New York. On her may depend the
success or failure of the effort to com
bine the Manhattan IL road and the
Metropolitan Street Railway company
interests, and, later, all the street rail-
ways of New York and Brooklyn.
Agents for the Metropolitan company
have made a generous cash offer for
Manhattan control Russell Sage said
his stock was not for sale; but he did
not deny that the offer was under con-
sidera ton.
George Gould has beer summoned
from Europe to take part in the nego-
tiations. He is said to agree with Mr..
Sage that the offer should be accepted.
William c. Whitney, representing
John D. Crimmins of the Metropolitan
the Widener-Ei lkins interests of Phila-
delphia, Pittsburg, Chicago and other
cities, is said to have engineered the
deal thus far. If, as now seems prob
able, Mr.. Whitney should be successful
in the consolidation, it will represent
the chief railway interests in all Greater
New York not only, but of the greatest
street railway combinations in Amer
lea.
Miss Helen Gould will probably de-
eide the matter. When an offer was
made for the road some thine ago she
peremptorily declined to part with her
holdings. Mr.. Sage does not think she
will agree to sell now, though it is said
she has agreed to abide by George
GOuld'S decision.
The offer is merely for a controlling
interest. and both Gould and Sage
would retain large blocks of the stock.
In fact, the proposition is for COM
bination rather than an absorption,
though the plan includes practically all
the surface and elevated roads of the
two cities.
The story of the deal, as published,
had a startling effect, and caused
Scurry to cover on the part of those
who have been carrying heavy short
started off at pace which fairly took
away the breath. From a closing Fri
day night of 99A the opening was from
1929 to 105. With no specific detail in
the rush of the first struggle for posses
sion of stock at these prices, there WAS
a sharp rise to los. and then came
reaction, and for the rest of the day
trading ran on from los to 106, with a
close al 1861.
In the two hours in which the ex-
change was open 20,346 shares of Man
haitian were sold.
There were fears that the sudden adj
vance in the stock might prove disas-
trous to some of the brokers, and Wall
street just now is especially anxious to
avoid that. So in the afternoon came
| several diplomatic denials.
Russell Sage STAYED off the majority
of the inquiries with simple ''PShaw,
pshaw; nothing in it.. Later in the day
cant in what it does not deny. He
said:
"A gentleman did call on me yester-
day and made me an offer of part
stock and part cash for portion of my
Manhattan holdings, but refused the
offer. He did not represent Mr.. Whit
ney, so far as L know. L have no de-
| sire to sell my Manhattan stock, as L
! regard it as good property. and have
held it as an investment. I have re-
fused an offer of Us for the stock, and
| that shows how regard it.
Il doubt if Miss Gould could be in
| duced to part with her holdings under
| any circumstances, as she has held
| strictly all the stocks left to her by her
| father, and she believes in the future.
At any rate there is no immediate pros
| pect of sale of any considerable
amount of the Gould interests, or of
| mine, to the Metropolitan, Mr.. Whitney
| or any other person or corporation
Mr.. Sage added that, day before yes
| terday, a man representing himself as
| company, called upon him and unfo1ded
| a scheme which embraced terms even
more advantageous than those previ-
| ously offered him. If the man had
been J. Pierpont Morgan he would have
| been ready to talk business; but the
man was a broker and promoter on
commission, and consequently he did
| not regard him as an authorized or
| responsible person in a matter of such
| magnitude and Importance. Who he is
! Mr.. Sage would not tell.
|
| go a third of her holdings at 140,and yet
| get a bigger net return on the remain
| der than she now gets on the entire
| investment. This would come from
| the change from the present 4 per cent
| basis to the proposed per cent under
the Metropolitan regime.
| Of the 100000 shares of Manhattan
| stock the present management controls
| about IFS, 900, and investors hold 100, 900,
| leaving 5000 shares floating This
shows the futility of the Metropolitan
people trying to get a footing in Man
| haitian by gathering up the floating
/ supply from the brokers' offices.
| Such a monster consolidation as the
| one indicated would mean that trans
| fers would be exchanged between the
| elevated and the surface lines, so that
| a man could take a crosS-town surface
| car to the nearest IL" station and
transfer to the elevated road for one
| fare. There will be electric elevators
| at each station.
The entire system will be in close
| touch with the Brooklyn bridge traffic
| and the Brooklyn IT, systems, so that
| passengers might board car almost
| anywhere in New York-even in Har-
| lem-and go directly, and possibly with
! out change, across the East river and
| into any part of Brooklyn, and even to
| Coney Island and various parts of Long
| Island.