Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-10-17
HISTORY OF STATE RAILWAYS.
Col. {. c. harrington. Secretary of
Commission, Contenplates WRITING II.

! der consideration and which, if writ
ten. would no doubt, contain much in
tcrestine reading;
| t'ol. T.. &. Harrington, secretary Of
| the State railroad commission, has il
contemplation history of the severn
I Maine railroads. included in which viii
! be an Interesting incident of what wa.
| known as the war Of the guages.'
| The Penobscot & kennebcc con.
structed ii road from Gardiner to Ban.
gOr III 1876. At that time the Andres
| cogcin 4 Nennebec road had been con.
structed as a broad guage road in orde,
to connect with the Atlantic & St
lawrence. while the Somerset & Ken
| nebec was to be 4 narrow guage road
Quite Il contest arose as to which
gage should be used on the Penobscot
Il Kennebtc, and was continued for
! some years The friends of the broad
guase succeeded in constructing i'm 1852
the road from WattrVille to Fairfield
A question arose as to the right of the
company to cross the north line of Wa
! terVille and run to Fairfield, but as
! that village was in the general direc-
| ton Of Bangor from the starting point
| in Waterville, it did not get into the
courts.
The Androscoggin x kennebec hav-
| in" secured thu. construction of the Pc
| nObsyot < kennebtc with guage the
| same as its own. and the narrow guage
| line having secured the Somerset &
k"nnebec from Augusta to Skowhe-
gan, there arose at once a sharp COM
| petition for the eastern business at
Fairfield where the two lines intersect-
ed.
The broad suage interests succeeded
| iii obtaining the passage Of an act au-
thori%ing the consolidation of certain
railroad con- operations, or any two of
them. but the narrow guage supporters
succeeding IL Incorporating into it the
famous ninth section. by which, in
case of consolidation, persons coming
from, or going to points north or east of
Fairfield We're entitled to go between
Fairfield and Portland by either line
At the same rate of fare.
AS no method was provided for de-
termining the division of the fare each
company might charge the other local
RACES between Fairfield and Portland
and. as very many more passenger <
came from the east than from the
north, the narrow guage line would OBJ
tain Il decided advantage over the 9TH
On. For this reason the broad guagc
companies did not accept the act of
consolidation, but the AndroScoggin &
kenhebec took a lease of the PenobscOt
kcnnebcc under a separate and dis
tmCt section Of the same act.
At the Legislative session IN 1S57 efforts
We're made to repeal the ninth section.
and ;hcreupon cnsued the most famous
ana earnest railroad contest the State
legislature ever knew. The contest was
made in the House. None was made i'll
the Senate. which passed the bill by Il
vote of 10 |. In the House the bill
passed to be engroSscd by ma iority OF
IL, but on its passage to he enacted an
other contest followed and the bill was
defeated by tie vote. and when /, came
back from the Senate concurrence was
defeated by three majority so that the
measure failed of adoption.
BY the lease however the AndroScog-
gin & Kenncbec derived most Of the ad-
vartages of consolidation. During the
summer of 1851. by running al Il high rate
OF speed, the trains on the broad gage
line We're able to reach Fairfield and leave
for Bangor before the arrival of the train
on the other side. securing all the through
travel from Portland and beyond.
To still further draw business stage
line was maintained from Augusta to Bel
grade, connecting with the Androscogain
4 Eennehec by which route through
ticks IS were sold at ali stations between
Bangor and WateIvlle. to ana from Au-
gusta, at {ower rate than by the all
rail route
The narrow guage then procured the
rassage by the Legislature of 1888 of an
act compelling the first train arriving a
Fairfield from the west or south to wait
~ minutes for the other and to establish
ii board of railroad commissioners to fix
the terms and rates. The And"OscOggin
g. Eennebec claimed that this law was
in conflict with the provisions of the char
tiers under which it was operating the
Penobscot & kennebeC and refused to
comply with IL provisions.
Tie superintendent was arrested for
violating the law. The pleadings in bo;n
cases were drawn with view of carry
ing the cases before the supreme court
Of the United States, but the law court
Of Maine decided that the Legislature had
no right to III set the charters. Accord
ingly, in 49, the ninth section was re-
pc;Ird and tn" directors agreed npon
consolidation Of the two companies under
4hr name Of tn Maine Central Railroad
The CpTGvnittee in charge of the ar