Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-06-01
REBUILT AND RENEWED
E. H. Hartman Talks of His
Work on the Pacific Roads.
HAS BETTERED EQUIPMENT
Enormous Increase in Traffic and in
Dividends.
TACK H0CT MANV M1IrI0NC
HAS BETTERED EQUIPMENT
TASK COST MANY MILLIONS
Interesting Reply of the Napoleon Of
Railway Managers When Asked to
State What Good He Has Done.
BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.


Special Correspondence of The Star and the Chicago
Record Herald.
NEW YORK, May q, 1907.
The door to Mr.. Harrman's offices was
wide open, although from what had heard
and read l expected to find it shut and
barred and guarded against newspaper
men. There is a railing across the corridor
with a swinging gate and a harmless look
ing young man at a desk beside it, who
took my card and disappeared into the
suite of rooms beyond. He returned
promptly and beckoned me into a large
apartment, with big mahogany table and
rows of important-lookiDg chairs around
it. l assumed that it was the directors
room of the Union Pacific Railroad Com
pany, and it occurred to me that a good
many things had happened there. But
there was no time to recall them before a
genial gentleman appeared with my card IN
his hand, and introduced himself as Mr.
Miller. He said that if / wanted to see
Mr.. Hartman personally l would have
to wait a while because he was attending
a board meeting.
you can sit here and wait tit he comes"
said Mr.. Miller, "or, if 1 can serve you IN
any way. will be glad to do So
Whereupon l confided to him a feeble
hope that Mr.. Hartman would give me an
couraging. Mr.. Hartman did not like to
talk for publication. Everything he said
would be analysed and twisted and con-
strued to suit the purposes of any IN
tereStS on the stock exchange or elsewhere
that might be referred to directly or in
directly, and he had been betrayed and
msquOted and misnterpreted SO much that
he had to be cautious.
Mr.. Hartman is receiving a good deal
of attention just at present. Mr.. Miller
continued. Several articles about him
have recently been published in the current
magazines, which were written by people
accurate as to biographical details, but give
the reader a false impression concerning
his personality and his disposition. They
are written by men who never had an OPP
portunity to see the personal side of Mr..
Harriman's life, his domestic relations,
his home and family and his relations to
his office force. One writer has described
him to be as cold ice. hard as steel,
and morally as insentient as a granite
boulder Mr.. Hartman might appear
that way to his enemies and to people who
are trying to get ahead of him on a trade
said Mr. Miller, but those who work for
him and have access 10 his inner life know
him to, be very different sort of man."
Greeted Pleasantly by Hartman.
Just then Mr.. Hartman passed the open
door, and taking my card, Mr.. Miller fol-
lowed him. In two minutes he reappeared
where the Napoleon of railway managers
greeted me pleasantly, offered a chair and
asked what he could do for me. I replied
that the newspapers were keeping the pub
lie thoroughly informed of all the wicked
things he was doing, and 1 had thought it
might be interesting to hear what good if
any. he had done.
Mr. Hartman evidently has no sense of
humor. He did not crack a smile but
looked at me sternly and inquired whether
l expected him to discuss such matters
with a newspaper man.
You might perhaps he willing to answer
a few questions | replied
Very WELL" he said, fire away" and 1
fired.
What good have you done with the pro-
ceeds of the $3.50, coo, coo in bonds and stocks
you have hoated since you secured control
of the Union Pacific and Southern Pacific
railway systems?"
Reorganization and Reconstruction
Il have reorganized and rebuilt and re-
equipped two of the biggest railroads in the
world altogether about 1900 miles of
track" replied Mr.. Hartman. When l
commenced to reorganize the Union Pacific
in 1895 there was no reason why any one of
a dozen men should not have done It, but
nobody else seemed to have the nerve The
road was practically a wreck. 1t had been
five years In the hands of a receiver and
the times We're so bad that 1t could not
earn enough to pay expenses. l have since
made a new road Of it, and to promote
economy and convenience of management
and to benefit the stockholders and the pub
lie placed it in close traffic relations with
the Southern Pacific, the Oregon Short Line
the Oregon Railway and Navigation Com
pany, the Pacific Mail Steamship line and
various other railways and steamship lines
of lesser Importance l have practically
rebuilt them all, have opened up a vast
area of valuable contributing territory by
building RI mill nf
have 2,2GO miles additional under construc-
ton or projected. | have shortened dis
tanceS, have reduced grades, cut out curves
relaid the tracks with heavy steel rails
have replaced the wooden bridges with steel
and masonry have double-tracked a con-
siderable distance where the traffic is the
heaviest, have provided additional terminals
and facilities for handling freight have
built eight of the finest steamships on the
ocean, have secured the finest fleet of any
nation on the Pacific have bought or built
AIS locomotives, 1850 passenger cars and
1880 freight cars.
In these improvements" continued Mr.
Hartman. Il have spent $257, 76O, 100 IL
promote the material development of the
states and communities traversed by the
transportation lines mentioned. They serve
the people living between the Mississippi
river and the gulf and the Pacific ocean
and a part of Mexico. The water lines
furnish transportation between New York.
New Orleans, Havana and Galveston, be-
Mexico, Central and South America and
between San Francisco and Japan, China
and the Philippines
Controls About 200 Miles.
How many miles of road have you under
your control?"
"A little less than 5000 miles In the Union
Pacific and little more than 1900 in the
Southern Pacific. When consolidated the
Union Pacific system, consisting Of the
Union Pacific proper the Oregon Short
Line and the Oregon Railway and Naviga-
ton Company, nine years ago, those three
roads had a mileage of 5,325 miles, To
develop the adjacent country and to pro-
vide prompt transportation for the rapidly
increasing population we have built b15
miles of new railway and have about 500
miles. more under construction" and Mr.
Hartman called Mr.. William Mail, the
controller Of the two systems, from the
next room to give the details.
I'm these improvements" he said, there
were expended from 1898 to the close of the
year 1906, for changes in lines, reductions
of grade, improvements in alignment and In
other bettermentS and additions to the
roadway and terminal facilities, $40 9s4, 214;
for locomotives, cars and steamships, $780,
557. 129, and for the construction of new
lines and purchase Of terminal property,
$50. 616,314; total expenditure of SILL 49,
657. One hundred and forty-four miles of
second track and $50 miles of sidings were