The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-11-23
NARROW GAUGE
 PLAN SCORED Massachusetts Ex-Legislat0r Sees Danger of Increase of
 Fares on Line
 NO USE FOR PROMISES Says Making of Them is About the Best Thing New Haven
 Management Does
NO USE FOR PROMISES

Boston, Nov. 23-Ex-Senator Will liam B. Lawrence of Medford and Boston, whose family owns the larg- road stock outside of the holdings Of the New Haven, in discussing the Mellen grab of the Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn, said:
 . "I saw somewhere in the newspa- pers the other day an announcement that if the New Haven gets the Mar row Gauge the New Haven will spend something like s17 00O, 900 bring ing the Marrow Guage up to date.
 You can gamble on one proposi- ton, and that is where the money is going to come from. In the first in stance it is going to come from the investors who buy stock and the banks which invest the savings of the frugal in bonds.
 Then the people who use the New Havenized' Narrow Gauge will be asked to step forward and pay the interest on stock and bonds.
 we of the present generation who cOuntenance this and similar efforts of MT. Mellen and the financial high binders whom he represents are sim. children's children to high finance.
 Take, for instance, this raid of the Mellenites on the Narrow Gauge. Here is splendid little suburban line honestly run, honestly capitalized and making oney aoo 1t mn represents staa and a. like amount in bonds.
 Along comes MT. Byrnes, MT. Mel lens vice-president, to tickle the pub lie fancy with talk about spending ten times the amount of the Narrow Gauge stock and bonds in improving the property. They'll increase the capitalization tenfold.
 "They are going to spend 16,0O0,- 900. we are told, tunnelling Boston harbor.
 "I have no doubt whatever that the financial highbinders will get rid of s17, ,c00.000 on the property if some body doesn't stop them. one of the things that is bound to happen will be an increase in fares on the Narrow Gauge.
 "Kick about it when the Time comes as much as you like. The an swer of the New Haven management with tears in its eyes, will be: Well, of all the ungrateful peo- ple, You made us electrify this line and you made us build tunnels and what not. at terrible expense, and now you refuse to do your little share to- wards paying the bills!'
 'I have noticed with considerable interest and not little amusement that certain town and city officials or the map of the Narrow Gauge and or the map of it's proposed extension in Essex County are talking about the promises they are going to demand from MT. Mellen and his associates
 Making promises is about the besl thing the New Haven management does. Charles F. Choate. Jr., for in- stance, formerly their chief legisla- tive counsel, told us so1ennly one day that if the verdict. of the Supreme court of Massachusetts went against them on the original merger question the New Haven would drop it's at. tempt to hog the trolley and steam railroads of Massachusetts and Woulo behave. Everybody knows how that promise was kept.
 "You can't pin the New Haven management down to anything.
 'I trust all the town and cities in- terested will get all the promises they want from the New Haven man agement, but personally I wouldn'' give a nickel apiece for them.
 .I see that the general impression is that the New Haven has already grabbed a majority of the Marrow Gauge stock and merely wants the approval of the Legislature for an ac1 performed in violation of the law o1 Massachusetts. That was their courss with reference to the Boston enc Maine. you remember, and 1t was again their course with reference tt the Berkshire Street Railway. of the Legislature had passed tht so-caIled Penalty act of this year Or last year, this couldn't have hap raned n