The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-06-11
DRASTIC BILL
 AGAINST MERGER To Make It Unlawful for New Haven Road to Take
 Boston and Maine. MELLEN THERE TO-DAY Similar Control of Legisla- ture to That in Connec-
 ticut Feared.
MELLEN THERE TO-DAY

Boston, June 10.--Numerous private, business and political interests were ar rayed before the legislative committee on railroads to-day in opposition to the proposed merging of the Boston and Maine railroad with the New York, New Haven and Hartford railroad. The committee held two sessions and heard seventeen witnesses. sixteen of whom spoke either in opposition or urged leg islation to guard Massachusetts inter- ests.
 It is expected that the position of the New Haven road will be laid before the committee by it's chief executive, President Charles s. Mellen, tomorrow, while the committee may ask for an opinion on the question from the off, cials of the Boston and Maine railroad. While the committee was either urged to report against the merger or to safeguard the interests of Massachu- setts and Boston, only two witnesses, L. D. Brandeis of Boston, attorney and Representative Robert Luce of Somer- vile, came forward with definite prop ositions in the way of bills. Mir. Luce's measure provides for d controller of railroad accounts and seeks to give publicity to the financial conditions of Massachusetts railroads. On the othen hand the bill of MT. Brandeis is one of the most drastic measures that has been presented to the legislature for many years. MT. Brandels in laying the bill before the committee stated his conviction that the proposed merger could be stopped, and in this he was supported by several speakers who fol- lowed him.
 MT. Brandeis, who appeared in the in- terests of the Lawrence estate, which holds several thousand shares of Bos- ton and Maine stock, explained the eight sections of his bill and endeavored to show to the committee that its. passage would absolutely prevent the proposed consolidation. The bill makes it's un- lawful for the New Haven road to con- trol directly or indirectly, or attempt to control the Boston and Maine directs the New Haven road in case it does now control the Boston and Maine to dispose of such holdings; forbids any official of the New Haven road to act for the Boston and Maine; prevents any company interested in the New Haven company from controlling the Boston and Maine; forbids dividends on Boston and Maine stock held in vio- lation of the act; makes void any issue of New Haven stock for exchange for Boston and Maine provides for a pen alty with fine or imprisonment, and gives the supreme court jurisdiction to compel the observace of the act.
 The Brandeis bill was the feature of the day and was discussed by nearly all the the speakers who followed.
 It was commended by former repre- sentative D. J. Kiely, who spoke against the merger as a representa- tive of the democratic state committees; by Granville s. Mcfarland in behalf of the Independence League; by Will liam H. Lincoln, a Boston merchant and John F. Crocker, president of the Boston Chamber of Commerce.
 Nearly all the speakers who opposed the merger, and Senator James Fl. Va hev was perhaps the most persistent, declared that if the consolidation was permitted, it would be a glaring ex- ample of stock watering in that the recent increase in stock by the subsi- diary companies, the New England Ma vigation company ana the Consolidated company had all been made without any actual payment of money and that i the mileage indebtedness of the New Haven was many times that of the Boston and Maine, President Crocker of the Boston Chamber of Commerce, related in an interview which he held with President Mellen in which the recent increase in the capital stock Of the New England Navigation and Consolidated companies was discussed. | MT. Crocker told the committee that he was unable to understand President Mellen's explanation of such increase
 Vigorous speeches were made by former Representative Riley, G. s. MacFarland, B. Gerry Brown. All three pointed out that there was dan | ger of corporate control of the legis- lature and MT. Riley was vehement in 1 his denunciation of the New Haven ] road for what he said was it's habit of controlling the legislature of Connecti-