Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-08-02
NO NEW ROAD HERE
Plan of GouIds to Build One
Abandoned.
AT LEAST, SUCH is RUM0R
Harriman's B. and o. Will Not Have
to Fight.
FOR THE RATCHET IS BURIED
Report That Wabash Trains Would
Some Day Enter Over Great Falls
Electric Road Is Dead.
FOR THE RATCHET IS BURIED

Electr1c ROAD Is Ueao.
1t is not at all unlikely that this city
will share in the results of the Could
Hartman railroad pact. which, -cording
to reports. is going to influence railroad
management and construction all over the
country When the news that L. III. har-
riman and George ]. Gould had buried
the Ratchet and would hereafter aid each
other in the big financial game, instead
of posing as bitter business enemies.
reached here from New York last wee 6
the local business men who had their eyes
on such things began to sit up and take
notice They recalled at once the stories
printed a few months ago to the effect
that the Gould system was making
tremendous effort to secure an entrance
to this city and thereby to compete wnh
the Baltimore and Ohio, controlled by
Hartman. and the Pennsylvania lines.
which together monopolze the freight and
passenger business with the north and
west.
One of these stories-and it was
pretty we'll founded. apparently, for it
was oft repeated from many different
sources-was that the Great Falls and
Old Dominion electric line, running
across the Aqueduct bridge from George
town. and thence to Great Falls, was in
realty a Gould road and was copstructed
with a view to being used someday as .
steam road. 1t was reported that this line
would be extended to connect with the
Western Maryland railroad, which marks
the present eastern limit Of the Gould
system.
Analostan Island in the Potomac just
of Georgetown was. according to the
stories, to be turned into a mammoth
freight yard for the Gould system, and
there was to be passenger station ei-
Their at Rossyln or Georgetown where
| one could board train for Pittsburg and
the west. The details Of this important
part of the Gould plan to establish q
great competing line from the Pacific to-
| the Atlantic were all worked out. The
Baltimore and Ohio, especially. and the
straining every nerve to defeat this ef-
fort, just as they did in Pittsburg with.
out avail.
Efforts Abandoned.
Now. it appears, the Gould competition
is no longer to be reckoned with. The
Goulds needed money to float loan.
Hartman was able to furnish it, and did
so last week. with the result that Harri-
man is given a great big say in the man
agement of the Gould lines, and the
Gould system will no longer compete with
the Baltimore and Ohio. Therefore, it is
apparently certain that no more effort
will be made by the Wabash road to get
into this city. either by way or the Great
Falls and Old Dominion line or any other
way.
Local railroad men are optimistic, and
so are the local business men. The lat
ter recognized at once the Importance OF
the effort of the Gould system to enter
this city with competing line touch
ing freight rates and the rapdity and
quality OF the service rendered, but to-
day they are inclined to believe that the
burying of the Ratchet by the two big
railroad magnateS will also have bene-
fetal results as far as Washington is con-
cerned. Both local railroad officials and
shippers are inclined to hold the opinion
that the union of the Gould and Harri-
man interests will leave the Baltimore
and Ohio road free to carry out fully its
various schemes for improvement of the
traffic in and out of this city. For ex-
ample. they say the spur from Linden.
Md, by way of Chevy Chase lake. to
Georgetown, will be completed without
delay in all probability. the Baltimore
and Ohio will not feel bound to keep it's
surplus cash in readiness to defeat some
unexpected move on the part of the
Gould lines.
Center Of the War.
Since the Gould lines secured an en-
trance to Pittsburg. after a long and
mighty struggle, Washington has been
the center of the war. 1t was here that
the Baltimore and Ohio and the Wabash
systems were to have their next drawn
battle, had not the compact Of last week
been signed. OF course. as there is no
longer any war. this city Is no longer
storm center
There are some persons who profess to
believe that the ending of the Gould-Har-
riman war Is bad thing for this section.
for they say II will do away with healthy
competition that was about to be INDUCED
in to an extent new here. Every one
agrees however, that time only will dis
close who is right in this respect.
Shorter Line to Pittsburg.
Special Dispatch TO The Star.
PITTSBCRG, August lit Is announced
tonight that an important feature of the
deal between E. II. hartman and the
Gould interests is the fact that valuable
right of way property between Pittsburg
and the western terminus or the Western
Maryland railroad will be used for
Strengthening the main line of the Balti-
more and Ohio road and eliminating
number of curves. which will materially
shorten the trackage between here and
Washington. ID. {.
The statement that the Erie railroad
will enter Pittsburg over the Wheeling
and Lake Erie and Wabash roads Is not
taken very seriously in railway circles.
although 1t is believed that the Gould
interests will aid the Erie along freight
tonnage lines at other terminal points
For some years Baltimore and Ohio
engineers have been working to secure a
through line with better grades and fewer
curves between Pittsburg and the east
Increased traffic to and from the east
and the development of new coal fields
were responsible for this move. Several
sets of plans have been prepared, one
of which calls for the elimination Of the
Sand Patch tunnel.
High railroad officials stated that by
using portions OIL the route selected by
the Gould interests the Baltimore and
Ohio could obtain a much shorter line
from PITT ShurU n the east with p,n,h