Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-02-02
MERGER OF BIG ROADS WILL
MAKE OCEAN TO OCEAN
LINE.
BROWN is: ADVANCED
Former General Manager of the Hurl
Iinston, Now With Vanderbilt sys.
tenn, to Have Charge of Operation 81
Big Four. and Michigan Central.

New York, Feb 1.-THE Rockefeller.
Hartman syndicate now has control Of
the Vanderbilt group Of railroads.
This, the elimination Of one of the
biggest deals in the history of the rail.
road world, has just been anIourced
together with the publication Of spe
cific changes in the management Of
the Vanderbilt system. The Hartman
people are now masters of transcon
tinental line Of communication be.
tween the most important cities on the
Atlantic and Pacific coasts. They have
obtained possession, 1t is learned, OF
81 per cent of the securities of the
New York Central lines, giving them
direct communication between New
York and Chicago.
Secure Transcontlnental Line.
This, with the control Of the North.
western lines and the Union Pacific
system, obtained some time ago, gives
them direct line. Of transportation be-
tween New York and San Francisco.
Through the commanding position
thus obtained they also have the Lake
Shore & Michigan Southern, the other
Vanderbilt line between Chicago and
New York, the Boston & Albany which
gives them a trunk line through the
richest of the New England states, the
Pittsburg & Lake Erie and the Lake
Erie & Western, which furnish control
Of feeder lines from the wealthy dis
trict Of western Pennsylvania, and the
Illinois, Indiana & Iowa railroad, which
taps the three most important states
Of the middle west,
Changes Of Officials:
Following were the important
changes In the official heads Of the
Big -Four and the Michigan Central,
two sofs the most i'm port e.3ts =, i Of the Van
derbilt lines. ''-''-'s = ~. ss,s X
M: 3. Ingalls,, president Of the Big
Four resigned as president and be.
comes chairman OF the board Of direc-
tors Of that road.
H. B. Ledyard, president of the Mich
igan Central. resigns and becomes
chairman of the board of directors Of
that road to succeed United States
Senator Chauncey Depew, resigned.
William H. Newman, already presi-
dent Of the New York Central, Lake
Shore & Michigan Southern, Boston &
Albany. Pittsburg & Lake Erie, Lake
Erie & Western and the Illinois, Indi-
ana & Iowa lines of the Vanderbilt
system, elected president of the Mich
igan Central and Big -Four.
Larger Places for Vice Presidents.
Four vice presidents, who already
hold similar Offices on other Vanderbilt
lines, were elected to administer the
affairs of the Big Four and Michigan
Central, as follows:
William G. Brown, to be vice presi-
dent in charge of operation.
e. v. w. Rossiter to be vice presi-
dent In charge of finances.
John Christensen, vice president in
charge of accounts.
: Capt. G. ]. Grammer, now traffic
manager Of the Lake Shore & Michi.
gan Southern, vice president in charge
Of traffic of all lines west Of Buffalo.
With the election of Mr.. Brown and
Capt. Grammer, a radical departure
will be made in the managing Of the
affairs of the system. They will handle
the operating and traffic departments
from their Offices in Chicago, making
this city practically the pulse of the
vast system.
Control Widely Extended.
Through the requirement Of the
route the mileage Of
the road controlled by the Rockefeller
Hartman group is increased by 15,s43
miles, as follows:
Miles.
N. Y. Central and leased lines. S,422
Lake Shore and Mich. So. sys-
TENS ...... .........+... LOLA
Michigan Central ...,.. ....... 1853
Lake Erie and Western ....... 8S7
Indiana, Illinois and Iowa .... 253
Chicago and Northwestern sys-
tenn ...... ............ 1871
The new powers do not control the
stock or securities of the Lake Shore
or the Michigan Central lines. but the
interests of those lines and the New
York Central are so closely allied that
those conversant with railroad condi-
lions consider that the status of the