The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1909-04-01
Chicago Railway Men Seek To Ge'
Control he Chicago & Mil
W iik5s Electric Railway
MAY ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Giant Scheme is Worked Out to Unite
Great Traction System Of the
Ncr5n Shore With the
City CT Chicago

Interests which are trying to effect
merger of the elevated railroads of
Chicago, are aiming also to get con
troll Of the Chicago and Milwaukee
consin division of the electric road
have been purchased within the last
few days by various firms in a mys-
FERROUS manner, which has caused a
quiet investigation on the part of the
bondholders committee.
Some Of the members of the commit
tee, which is composed Of j. V. Clarke,
G. B. Shedd, George A. Somerville,
Robert Cassels, and Miller Lash, all Of
Chicago, believed that the Northwest
ern Elevated railroad company was be
hind the mysterious bond purchases
with the intention Of forcing fore
closure Of the mortgages, obtaining
the bonds and in this manner dividing
temporarily the Illinois and Wisconsin
divisions into separate lines.
With this done, it was said to be the
intention of the company to get con
troll Of both divisions at favorable
prices.
Mason B. Starring, president Of the
Northwestern Elevated road, declared
there was no truth in the rumor that
his company was trying to get control
of the Milwaukee line, The line can
not get into Chicago except over the
Northwestern Elevated, so that road
will get the business under any cir
cumstances.
Kenosha people may expect in few
years to reach Chicago by way Of the
Frost electric line and the subway"
as the glitterlng hope that the Illinois
Central is now holding out to Chicago
is net work of subways about the
city to land suburbanites as well as
citizen shoppers at doors of business
and amusement places they seek.
Coupled with this, it is said that the
step means identification Of the Chi
cago terminals of all steam roads and
the possibility that the Northwestern
will erect another station for suburban
traffic and as it's end Of the subway
system proposed.
Prospects of "Greater Chicago"
subway system were illumined We'd
nesday by the uncovering Of cherish
ed hopes long ~fostered by the Illinois
Central railroad, says the Tribune.
The Illinois Central wants subway
of it's own. Careful consideration has
been given the needs of the road and
the public, and it has determined that
to keep pace with events, it was neces-
sary that passengers be brought to the
steps of the department. stores and Of
fee buildings.
Announcement Of this necessity of
the future and it's feasibility was made
to Mayor Busse months ago when the
question of identification was under
consideration by the Illinois Central,
but no word of the great idea was
allowed to escape to the public until
Mayor Busse in a casual converse ton
mentioned what had been told him.
At the time approval even to a gen
eral, indefinite plan could not be given
until it was known whether what
might be known as the interurban sub
ways would interfere with the local
transportation bores then projected.
Mayor Busse did indicate that TIE
handling Of all urban and suburban
passengers by underground routes was
probable development of the future
and that all the railroads entering the
city should have equal advantage
when that time came
That was the path that led railroad
men, engineers, and fnanciers to
grasp the full meaning of the move
ment under way. The inspiration of
the Illinois Central officials in some
ways had escaped the inner councils
Of officialdom It had reached the
heads Of other roads and they took
the same watching and waiting atti-
tude as the lake front company.
It had gone so far as to reach the
local transportation committee, which
primarily now has the subway PROPOSE
ton in hand, and it will be one of the
legacies passed on to the new coun-
Gil that, working from the great mass
of information compiled in the big re-
port Of the subway bureau, will tackle
the task Of determining the fate of
underground Chicago.
By that time, the predictions go, the
city and the steam railroads, as well
as the elevated and the surface lines,
will be working together for a COM
mon object-the building of the
"Greater Chicago subway system,
TIE like of which never has been
planned in the world.
It will mean the enlargement Of the
subway proposition from purely
street car proposition to one big
enough to take care of people living
within a radius of thirty or forty
miles of the city. It will mean a
double system Of subWays, one for
strictly urban and one for interurban
passengers. the one almost entirely
local in its facilities and aimed to re