, 1899-02-09
MAY REDUCE SPEED
RAILROAD OFFICIALS CONFER
RING AT OMAHA CONCERN
ING SCHEDULES.
Races of Trains on Various Trunk
Lines Between Chicago and Omaha
May Be Stopped-Agreement May
Be Reached-Presiden Burt Talks
About Work in Wyoming.

Railroad managers interested in the
fast train service between Chicago and
Omaha held a conference in Omaha
Monday. They came together to try to
agree upon some maximum rate of
speed for the operation of regular
trains to obviate the indiscriminate
competition among the lines at short
ening the time between the two cities.
An effort to get the roads together for
this purpose has been on foot since the
first few days of the Northwestern and
Rock Island daily races over the 500
mile stretch of roadbed.
So far as car be learned in Omaha,
the conference was without definite re-
suit, although efforts are not yet aban-
doned to come to some understanding.
There was a feeling on the part of
some of the roads that the Burlington
is trying to establish for itself the right
to set the pace in the question of speed,
and this is resented, while the Burling>
ton officers of course declare that such
is not their desire.
Again, it is alleged that the Rock
Island is the stumbling block in the
way of an agreement, which will have
for its purpose the lengthening of the
time, and hat this road wants more
concessions than it's competitors are
willing to concede to it. Up till with
in the last few weeks the Rock Island
secured a reasonable haul of the gov
ernmental mail on it's regular evening
train out of Chicago. 1t carried what
is denominated as the Cleanup" of
the day, and this amounted to consider
able.
When the Burlington and North
western put on their new fast mail
trains, it threatened to cut off a great
er portion of the mail service which the
Rock Island had been securing. I'm
der this new card the Burlington,
which had the fast mail contract, had
so many mail trains out of Chicago
that it really covered the field so COM
plete it is said there was little or moth
ing left for the Rock Island. The lat
ter road did not feel warranted in put
ting on a fast mail train exclusively
for the mail it had been carrying, but
it was necessary to operate some new
train to protect its mail haul. The
combination mail and passenger was
fixed upon as the service it would es-
tablish. This has largely protected its
mail business, but is opened the field
for other fast passenger trains, which
the Northwestern entered, to be fol-
lowed by other roads unless a common
schedule can be agreed upon by all the
roads interested.
1t is understood that the Rock Island
is willing to discontinue its fast train
if the Burlington and Northwestern
will withdraw n Of their fast mail
trains, thereby leaving an opening
WueTeDy ullt NUN lSldLu Will COulllue
to receive a share OF the mail carrying
business. This the other roads will
not consent to, at least not before the
fast mail contract is let by the govern
ment mex June. Further, they allege
the Rock Island has no hope of secur-
ing the fast mail contract, and the COM
petition being solely between the Bur-
lington and the Northwestern, there
is no occasion for the Rock Island
threatening the disruption of the west
ern passenger business in the effort to
keep the small percentage Of the mail
it has been carrying.
That was about the situation as it
stood at the close of the conference last
Monday. More meetings will be held,
and while there is good reason to be-
lieve the differences will be adjusted
satisfactorily, there is a bare pcssi-
bility of not only a speed war, but a
passenger rate war as we'll, in which
all the roads will participate.-Omaha
Bee.
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