The evening times., 1900-01-11
Mr.. VANDERBILYS OFFER
He Wants the New York, New Ha-
ven and Hartford Road.
The Negotiations for Its Control Said
60 Have Been Begun Prior 10 His
European Trip-The Proposition
Contains n Guarantee of 3 Per Cent
ON the Capital stock of the Line.

Contains n Guarantee of 8 Per Cent
ON the Capital stock of the Line.
NEW YORK, Jan. 11.-Wlliam X. Van
deTbilt, on his return from two months
cruise to Mediterranean ports which he be-
gan on his steam yacht Valiant on Monday,
may complete another colossal achievement
in railway inanciering. the first steps Of
which, it was said last night. were entered
upon a few days before Mr. Vanderbilt
sailed.
A director of the New York New Haven
and Hartford Railroad Company is believ-
ed to have taken to New Haven and Boston
on Saturday last an informal offer from
Mr.. Vanderbilt which indicates that the
New York. New Haven and Hartford sys-
TEN may become later a part of the New
York Central system. Mr.. Vanderbilt told
the director. it is said. that any close OBJ
| server should have no, trouble In noting
the tendency of railway consolidation
movements in the trunk line territory east
of the Mississippi and north of the Ohio
River.
They meant that the Central system was
| in position to dominate the Eastern situa-
tion. and would do So and that it might,
be advantageous for the New York. New
Haven and Hartford directors to consider
a liberal offer from those in control of the
! Central. This director, whose influence
| with his associates in the board is potent
! one said that. il the offer were large
enough il would be kindly considered, and
he asked what the Connecticut and Boston
people might expect.
/ Ii was suggested that a guarantee of
! per cent on the capital stock might be con-
/ sidered. That is as far as the conference
1 advanced it is said and the director went
away TO talk il over with his friends in
J New England with the conviction that
such an arrangement would be fayorably
regarded by the Rockefeller and Morgan in
terests in the road.
The fact that J. Pierpont Morgan and
William Rockefeller are directors Of both
! the New York Central and the New Haven
! is regarded as signifying that the important
interests represented by them would not
be ayerse to a plan for bringing the two
roads into closer relations on terms not
I Instantaneous to the New Haven. The
latter company covers the entire field OF
southern New England, but its directors
! cannot fail to have noted the trend Cf rail-
way affairs in the Eastern States, which
/ in the minds OF well-infOrmed observers
points to the ultimate control b. the New
I York Central Of all the New England roads.
A year or two ago the Vanderbilt inter
/ ests secured control Of the Rutland Rai'-
4 read the plans for the extension and de-
! veiopment of which have not yet how
/ ever. been fully worked cut. Within the
/ last fortnight the stockholders of the New
! York Central and the Boston and Albany
/ have ratified the action OF their respective
boards Of directors in making long lease
OF the Boston and Albany to the Central.
/ although the lease cannot become operative
until sanctioned by the general court of
Massachusetts, a sanction which is opposed
{ by the Massachusetts State Commissioners
! for the Fttchburg Railroad stock. on the
ground that the lease may be huIyf 10
/ the interests of the Fitchburg Road.
/ The Fitchburg, which al one time seemed
/ likely to ccme under Vanderbilt control. is
now in negotiation with the Boston and
/ Maine with the object OF having the latter
road lease it, The Boston and Maine al
ready virtually owns the Maine Central,
and if it secures the Fitchburg, sep
which would cut off the Rutland Road
from its hope of obtaining a Boston con-
nection, it is belived in Wall Street that
the Boston and Maine itself would before
long be taken into the New York Central
system.
( RumDrS 1nat Sucn move Was III toh-
! temptation were current only recently, to
be denied by the president OF the Boston
and Maine but its execution is believed
in this city to be only question of time.
The New York New Haven and Hartford
system operates a total of 1,464 miles
made zip of Al miles of track owned by
the company, 025 miles of leased lines
and twenty-five miles of line operated un-
der trackage arrangements.
Through securing control of a large
number of formerly independent roads
the most important being the Old Colony
Railroad system, which in February 1898.
it leased for ninety mine years. and the
New England Railroad Company, a ninety
nine-year lease of which it effected on
July l, 1s9S-the New Haven company
now has a network of railways covering
the whole southern part of New England
Its terminal arrangements at this end
Of the line however. are not believed TO be
as satisfactory as its management could
desire for while il has extensive and
valuable freight terminal at Norris Dock.
near the junction of the Harlem River and
Long Island Sound, it is dependent upon
the New York Central system for direct
entrance into New York city for It's pas
senger traffic. its trains using the tracks
of the New York and Harlem road for the
n.
the western end of the New Haven line.
to the Grand Central Station.
This fact, it is pointed out, may be an
added consideration tending TO dispose the
stockholders of the New York, New Haven
and Hartford TO look with favor upon such
a proposition as that which Mr. Wander
bilt is said to have in mind for submission
to them.
The stock of the New York, New Haven
and Hartford Railroad Company is an s
per cent dividend payer. Its range in 1899
was between 19S and 222. Ii is an ENACT
i've stock" and the most recent quotation
for ii is 213 bid, 2l7 asked.
New Haven stockholder of the road
said last night at the Waldorf
The absorption is coming sure enough.
and it's coming in a hurry. / believe that
if Mr.. Vanderbilt suggested an per cent
guarantee as the price of the New Haven
shares the Central people would get the
system in the course of few months The
per cent guarantee would make the shares
exceedingly valuable to put away while the
years roll by, as the Central would be in
position, through evil as well as through
good report, to make good the guarantee"
No one in a position of authority at the
Grand Central offices would talk about the
mooted arrangement yesterday. President
Galloway is out of the CITY, and Senator
Depew will not return to New York from