The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-03-07
IN A new ROLE.
Hartman Seeks Meeting With
Commerce Commission.
Says He Will Take Public Into
His Confidence.
TO SPEND BILLIONS
Plans to Rebuild All Railroads
in the Country.
Would Like to See Railroad
Legislation Stop.

Washington, March 7.-E. H. Harri-
man has outlined to the interstate COM
merce commission a huge plan for the
reorganization of the railroad systems
of the United States. His plan would
| involve an expenditure of billions Oh
dollars. The railroad magnate indi-
| Gated to an official of the commission
that he would like to call on the mem
| bers of the commission and discuss
! with them the traffic conditions
| throughout the country. He stated that
| he desired to meet the commission as
a body In response to an invitation he
,met the commissioners. In the course
| of his talk on the railroads, he said;
| "The railroads will have to be rebuilt
with much heavier rails and with
guage of six feet, instead of the pres
ent one of feet S1s inches. Either To-
comotives of such sizes that nobody
now can ina gine them. or electric en-
gines will have to be provided. 1 think
| in time the latter plan will be found
more feasible.
| 1.-The combination freight car of the
present will have to give way to an
alI-steel freight car which will be two
! feet wider, two feet higher and several
| feet longer than the car now used II
will at the same time be possible TO
make the car much lighter in proper
present cars, and this will effect a
great saving in the cost of transpor-
tation.
| tunnels will have to be enlarged;
bridges must be rebuilt to make them
equal TO the strain of the increased
loads that will pass over them
ITO do all these things will cost bill
lions of dollars-nobody can tell how
many billions.
"Tve made up my mind in future 10
give more attention to the interest OF
the public in these affairs. 1t mas
never been my idea to concern myseir
much about the relations of the pubic
to the railroads, but propose mere
after to give the public lnformatlon, 70
take 1t into my confidence as to mat
ters il is entitled to know about 1
think l shs.il. give the newspapers more
of the Information they want ABOUT ths
business of the roads am cohhecteu
with. The interstate commerce COM
mission in my opinion. would be more
useful if it would cooperate with tne
railroad managers and with lhe puoiIc
in all these questions. 1t could pc most
useful as a medium to secure smooth
and satisfactory relations among rail-
roads. :.
discuss financial problems except 10
the extent of the casual illusions that
has been quoted.
The visit of the magnate to Wash
ington, his unsupported gen1alty ana
talk of some of the problems of rail-
roadine and finance with everybody
from the newspaper correspondents 10
the president, has been wonder TO
Washington. Everybody guesses Wnat
If NAV mean and everybody has his
own answer But they all seem TO
simmer down to the impression that
Mr. Hartman is going to make an ef-
fort for the first time in his remark
able career. to cultivate the good will
of the public. That he has designs,
too of making himself a larger in
f1uence in politics, is suspected by
many.
road legislation. He protests that the
public Interests do not demand it;
that too much of it would be bad for
the country, injuring confidence OF IN
vestors and making it difficult to get
the money needed to extend and re-
build the roads.
Mr. Harriman's expressions in
Washington have served decidedly to
imnress people with whom he has
talked. that he hopes to scare the
country out of supporting President
Roosevelt. He has talked much about
the immense things that increasing |
tonnage demands shall be done in re- |
building the roads. Always and Wig !
orouslv he has used the argument |
that the railroads are only in the in
fancy of development, and that the |
problem of keeping them up to the re- |
auirement of the country is greater |
today even than was originally the |
problem of getting them when there |
were none.
The report that Mr.. Hartman had |
acquired control of the Reading rail- |
road and the spectacular perform
ance of the stock of that road in the |
New York market was widely dis |
cussed here. Mr.. Hartman was asked |
if the report that he had purchased |
large blocks of the stock was true, re- |
piled:
''I cannot answer your questions. I |
make 1t a rule never to talk for the |
regarding anything 1 have |
bought or sold
The statement that the Hartman
control had been extended to the |
ficials of the interstate commerce
If the commissioners
have any authoritative information on
that subject they are carefully con-
cealins it. Washington brokers who
have New York stock exchange con-
nections eagerly sought information
at the office of the commission, but
were no wiser for their efforts
Mr.. Hartman granted a farewell
interview to fifteen newspaper men.
that he would return to
New York and stop talking for publi-
cation. Mr.. Hartman discussed the
ira ransportatiou problems. railroad leg
islation. the tariff. the currency ques-
tion the attitude of the public toward
the railroad corporations and the
probability OF a panic in the future.
Il notice that the afternoon papers
saw that the New York Central hold
ings and those of the old Wasserman
pool in the Reading railway were
not purchased a single share of rail-
road stock since have been in Wash
ineton.''
He refused to answer the direct