The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-12-16
NEWS OF THE RAILROADS
PRESIDENT HILL PRONOUNCEs RU-
NOR OF RAILROAD COIBINA-
TIoN AS RUBBISH
BELIEVES ERIE A GOOD THING
And That Is Why He and
Some Friends Have In
vested in It's
stock.

The press reports which tell of the res
ignatiOn of James ]. Hill as president of
the Great Northern and Of his having
become a member of the directorate Of
the Chicago, Milwaukee & St Paul road.
Were called to the presidents attention
during his Office hours yesterday. He said:
Neither of these reports are true. Upon
the other hand, they are both the worst
sort of rank Imagination"
President Hill admitted that he had
been elected a director of the Erie COM
pany, as stated yesterday in the
q es dispatch. He said he had gone
into this company the same as he went
into the Baltimore q Ohio, because lie
considered it a good financial departure
HIS representation in the company was
large enough to qualify him for place
IN the directorate, and therefore his cleo
ZION TO that place followed.
Dispatches came from the East yes
terday stating that a consolidation of the
Erie, Milwaukee, Baltimore & Ohio
Great Northern and the Northern Pacific
mad been formed, and that Mr.. Hill was
q potent factor in bringing about this eli
gantic amalgamation of roads He en-
bhatically denied this rumor, and de-
Tislveiy stated that such scheme would
0e wholly impraCticable. 1.-The story is
nonsensical,'' he said.
The whole story is rubbish he re-
marked, after he had carefully read the
the Erie railroad has been kicked about
Tor many years, with little good care,
while 1t is good road, one of the best
properties in the country. The simple
fact is that few friends have gone with
me into an investment in the stock of the
Erie, believing that careful management
would make it more valuable, and bring
it TO be good paying property, such as
has been done with the Baltimore & Ohio
road. l went into that a fa9e rears ago,
and, with President Cowen at the head
OF II, 1t has been placed on it's feet in
good shape, and is now paying dividends.
Ihcre Is no reason why the Erie road
should not be brought to the front in
tac same way. It runs through a good
country where everything that makes
Tor tonnage is to be found, and it should
be earning money all the time
AS 10 this rumOr of a great railroad
combination, the matter is too impracti-
cdi 10 be even dreamed about I doubt
whether the man lives, or is likely ever
10 exist, who would seriously undertake
such movement The conditions be-
tween the various sections of the country
vary too much to permit the practical
working out Of such a scheme A board
OF directors cannot regulate existing con-
HCons. Things must be taken as thew
exist. The whole proposition is nonsense
cal
As to my retiring from the presidency
OF The Great Northern, 1 was lust re-
elected to that position at our annual
meeting in October, No, it may not have
been announced, but then our annual
meeting is Just a days work, and mere
~ a matter Of a little time. There is
Attle Likelihood Of my getting out of
the BURDENS Of management. although T
would greatly like to be relieved of more
o. them.
That article in suggesting the lake
steamers as part of the mammoth sys-
tenn shows how little the man who wrote
Il knows about the whole business. Those
steamers are our safety valve We had
To build them for cur own protection in
the matter Of rates, and there is no pros
poet OF increasing that part of the sys-
ten under present conditions. The whole
story is simply rubbish"