The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-02-08
SALT LAKE ROAD
AND SHORT LINE
Arrangements Between the
Two Companies Brought Out
at Los Angeles Hearing.
]. ROSS CLARK ON STAND
SUBJECT FULLY COVERED BY
EXAMINATION.

Los Angeles, Feb. THE first day
OF the interstate commerce commission /
in Los Angeles on the subject of the
Hartman merger was consumed in the
direct examination of a single witness. I
! }. Ross Clark. brother of United States
senator w. A. Clark director and sec /
ohd vice president Of the San Pedro Z
| Los Angeles x Salt Lake railway. Mr.. I
| lark examination by Attorney G. A. I
severance Tor The commission was COM /
/ prehensive and complete The line Of
questioning covered every range Of the /
SUBJECT as il applied to the relations I
OF the Clark road and the Hartman |
! system, and great mass of new facts I
were elected. Mr. Clark proved q will F.
ing witness and gave information freely /
/ enough, although he was hampered oc- I
casicnally I'm his explanation by a lack /
! OF knowledge Of the details Of the bust I
ness. He, however readily referred his
! lnqulsltor 70 the managers of the var
ious departments of his company for
the desired information.
Terms Were Compelled.
The most important fact brought out
| was that showing the reason and the
necessity, from the viewpoint of the
! Clarks. for the disposal Of one-half of
| the road TO the Hartman people. 1t
was shown that when the building of
| the Clark road was commenced from
| Salt Lake City and Los Angeles. that
the Oregon Short Line, a Hartman
| property 50 harrassed and retarded
/ their progress, and finally, getting pos
| session of the only available pass
| through the Utah mountains. in the
! shortest direction to Los Angeles. COM
PEELED the Clark road TO come 20 their
| terms, sell 10 them one-half of their
property and make an ironclad agree
ment To maintain the same freight rates
! as the Hartman roads for a period OF
ninety-nine years. AS a final act Of
coercion of the Clarks, the Hartman
interests began a survey Of a road be-
/ tween Salt Lake City and Los Angeles. |
and implied, at least SO Mr.. Clark tes-
titled the threat OF building a parallel
line.
Many Attorneys on Hand.
The court room was we'll filled with
attorneys, witnesses and spectators.
Many prominent railroad men were
! among those present most of them
| suhpoenaed as witnesses. The commits
I sion was represented by Attorney &. \.
/ Severance. of Minneapolis, who has
| had charge Of the governments case
during the inquiry i'm several other
! cities. The Hartman lines We're rep
resented by y. Z. Dunno Of San Fran
cisco. assisted by f. c. DurbrOw. Judge
! Kelley appeared for the Salt Lake road
and r. ]. Norton for the Santa Fe.
History of Salt Lake Route.
J. Ross Clark, brother of Senator w !
1 A. Clark and a director and second /
vice president of the San Pedro Los
| Angeles g. Salt Lake road. was the first
! witness called by Mr.. Severance. The
attorney for the commission plunged
Immediately into the subject in hand,
namely that of determining the rela-
tiOns of the Clark road with the Harri-
mar system. Senator W. A Clark and
associates joined with r. G. Kerens and
associates, of St. Louis, in purchasing
terminal facilities at San Pedro, and
later the same parties incorporated for
the construction Of the lire between
San Pedro and Salt Lake. Mr.. Kearns,
| Of Salt Lake. and associates also Joined 1
i'm the enterprise. The survey for the |
proposed road proceeded from both Los /
Angeles and Salt Lake.
Clash in Meadow Valley.
In the Meadow Valley wash, large /
canyon In Nevada which the witness I
testified was absolutely necessary TO /
! build through in order TO get from Salt /
Lake City to Los Angeles, much oppo- 1
sition was encountered from the Ore |
gon Short Line. This company owned /
/ abort a hundred miles of old grade at !
this point which the Salt Lake road at
tempted to appropriate. but on which !
point they were defeated ia the courts. 1
\ he Clark corporation was at this time
entirely an independent line. free from
contracts or agreements with other
roads. II was the purpose of the Clark
and Kerens interests TO construct and
oueratc a line Of their own.
| All this point Mr. Severance proceeded
to show how the coalition between the
Hartman interests and the new Clark
! corporation was effected.
Agreement Was Forced.
Later the survey which had been intar-
r1IpteCF began again and was once mo-e
STONED BY the Utah, Nevada * Califor-
MIA Railroad company q subsidiary cor
poration Of the Oregon Short Line. which
Instituted suit to maintain control of the
canyon This canyon was about 100 miles
long and so narrow that the surveys II
the two roads crossed each other twenty
six times in passing through it. The can
Won il appeared from the testimony of
Mr. Clark was the key TO the situation.
He admitted that the reason he entered
into, a traffic agreement with the Har-
riman interests ia maintain rates into
southern California territory was because
ne could rot get through the Meadow
Valley wash without IT,
Later il was brought out that the same
interests which were holding up the
Clark lire in the Nevada canyon had
! started their survey east from Los An
geles toward Salt Lake, indicating osten-
sIbly the genuineness OF their intentions.
Hartman Got Half.
The matter resulted in Mr. Harriman's
! securing a holding OF One-half interest
in the Clark road and the directorate was
, equally divided between the two inter
I ests Il was also shown that the Salt
: Lake road did not after entering into this
I agreement with Mr. Hartman. build a
complete line between Los Angeles and
Salt Lake, but contracted to use certain
: trackage Of the Santa Fe between River
side Cal, and Daggett, Cal. and of The
/ Southern Pacific between Riverside and
, Cotton. which they are doing today IL
was shown by the agreement that NJ
{ Hartman obligated himself TO secure the
: latter concession from the Southern Pa
cific in favor of the Salt Lake road and
. Attorney Severance inquired of the Wit
: ness:
Mr.. Hartman therefore negotiated
with himself to induce himself To grant
your road the use OF this certain track -
1--WE secureo suck a concession said
A Mr.. Clark
Preferential Agreement.
The preferential freight agreement be
Init pCfff h.