The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-02-06
BUYING ANOTHER ROAD
PENNSYLVANIA SEEKING CONTROL
OF THE NORFOLK & WESTERN.
Said to BE Part of the Vanderbilt
Cassett Scheme to Maintain Rates
on Eastern Railways.

NEW YORK, Feb. 5.-The Herald to-
morrow will say: at is the plan of the
Pennsylvania Railroad interests and their
allies. as represented by President A. j.
Cassatt, to obtain voice in the manage
ment of the Norfolk & Western Railway.
This is a part of the general Vanderbilt
Pennsylvania scheme, which has for its OBJ
ject the alliance of all the railroads in the
East having seaboard terminals, whereby
the Eastern rate situation will be so Sc
cure1y held in the hands of the dominant
interests that railroad wars will be impos-
sible, no matter what may be the move
ment made by the Pennsylvania and Van
derbilt lines. There is good authority for
the statement that the Pennsylvania in
terests have been buyers of Norfolk &
Western common stock in the open market
for some time. They have bought large
blocks of it around SO per share. Wall
street interests, however, have become cog
infant of this demand for the stock and
have recently forced the price up to
higher level Yesterday the Pennsylvania
contingent apparently raised it's figures.
and on spirited buying Norfolk G. Western
ran up to 1914. 1t was the most active
stock in the market, more than $1,000
shares changing hands. Much of the SELL
ing was by London houses on orders from
abroad, where large amounts of both the
common and preferred shares as well as of
the companys bonds, have been held.
This scheme of the Pennsylvania-Van-
derbilt interests to reach into Southern and
by the action of the Cassatt contingent in
buying into the Baltimore q Ohio and
Chesapeake & Ohio properties. Large
amounts Of the shares of both these COM
panies were purchased by the Pennsylvania
people largely in the open market. They
bought persistently but so quietly that no
one knew what they were doing until their
purchases were completed. Already one
dent S. M. Provost. has gone into the Bal
timore Ohio directorate and another will
soon be elected. The Pennsylvania voice
will then be powerful in Baltimore & Ohio
affairs.
Already NJ z. ingalls, has resigned the
Chesapeake & Ohio presidency, and George
w. stevens, a Pennsylvania selection, has
been elected to that position. Several Penn
sylvania men will soon go into that COM
panys directorate. another accomplish
ment of the Cassatt contingent was get
ting control of the Western New York &
Pennsylvania Railway.
Control of the situation in the Pennsyl-
vania- Baltimore & Ohio-Chesapeake &
Ohio territory could not be complete as
long as the New York & Western remained
at large. The property is practically the
key of the soft coal situation, running
through the bituminous sections of Ohio
West Virginia and into North Carolina. II
runs from Norfolk and Newport News. Va,
to Columbus, o., and has important
branch through the Shenandoah valley in
to Hagertown. Md. 1t connects with the
Pennsylvania at Newport News by boat
from Cape Charles, Va, again at Hagers-
town and again at Columbus. The COM
pany, which was reorganized in 1896, has
outstanding adjustment preferred stock to
the amount of $23. 009, 600 and common stock
of $4,000 O00.''