The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-10-28
AMERICANS NOW
INVADE RUSSIA
Propose to Buy Street Railway
of st. Petersburg.
MAKE SYSTEMS ELECTRICAL
PENNSYLVANIA MAN AT THE
HEAD OF THE ENTERPRISE


ST. Petersburg, Oct 15.-The offer
of Murray A. Werner of Pittsburg. Pa,
to buy all the municipal and private
street railways of st. Petersburg, in
troduce electrical traction and organize
a complete system of electric tram
ways has been received very favorabIy
ny the local press. The municipal
council has been discussing the matter
Tor several years, but Mr.. Verner's Of
fer is the first genuine step towards
the introduction of electricity.
The city owns three lines and a num-
Der are owned and operated by two
private companies. The city has be-
gun legal proceedings against these
comp lies. with view to unifying all
the srfs traction companies and Mr..
Nern stipulates that the city
shall tdrn the private lines over TO
him when the matter has been iftigated.
Mr.. Verner's offer is regarded by the
press as straightforward. businesslike
and fair. 1t is too early to predict
success since many cooks help make
a broth in this city, but the municipal
council was not approached until Mr..
Werner, who had been to st. Peters
burg three times within four years,
had carefully studied the whole prob
lem from a financial and technical
point Of view, and, through his local
representative, w A Heydecker, the
American vice CONSUL. had sounded
various authorities in the matter
Mr.. Verner's proposal *, briefly stat
ed, to organize company under the
laws of Russia with capital stock of
D, 100000 rOubles and the right to is
sue bonds to the same amount. He
states that he and his friends can sup
ply the money. He would agree TO
complete the transformation of all ex-
listing lines into electrical lines within
four years from the date of the fran
chfse and would so arrange the traffic
that no needless change of cars would
take place in going to and from the
center of the city.
Equipment of Roads.
He would employ Girder rails weigh
ing ninety-six pounds (English) to the
lineal yard, except in the suburbs
where eighty-pound rails would be
used. Overhead trolley wires would be
employed, but the insulated copper feed
wire would be carried in conduits.
Double deck cars would be abolished
and replaced by trains with three sep
arate classes. The platform of the
winter cars will be enclosed. Bridge q
will be widened and strengthened
where necessary at the 'company's ex-
pense and the company offers to as
sumo the burden Of building a stone
o. steel bridge across the Neva near
the palace to replace the present wood
to be deducted from the annual COM
persatiOn payments. This is a point
of great Importance to the city. which
is considering the issue OF bonds for
this purpose
1t is stipulated that Russian ma
terials and Russian engineers and
workmen shall be employed as far as
available. The compensation Stipu-
lates the immediate payment by the
company OF the actual cash. value OF
the inventory of the existing lines, the
payment to the city during four years
of the previous revenue of the various
lines and the payment annually there
after of a percentage of the gross re-
ceipts to be agreed upon by mutual
consent.
The municipality shall enjoy the
right of purchase at the end of TWEEN
ty-five years. again after lapse of an
equal period and thereafter every ten
years. Bonds shall be paid for at par
and the net earning capacity of the
shares shall be capitalized for purposes
of purchase.