The Washington herald., 1911-05-28
Continued from Page One.


field of operations.
Early in that year Fisher, while II
New York. succeeded in interesting tn,
Goulds in the Virginia traction ane
power situation. Young Frank Gould
became particularly interested, and be-
fore the end of the year had invested
heavily in Fishers Virginia Passenge'
and Power Company Just how much
Gould put into the project is not known
but his initial investment must have been
one of several millions.
A Quarrel and Its Result.
AS soon as Gould took hold in Rich
mond he found himself engulfed in q
controversy with a new company oper'
ating the Broad street line. The two
companies bickered and fought ovel
rights of way and extensions until young
Gould ended the squabble by buying out
the smaller company and merging it with
the passenger and power concern.
Then began the trouble between Fisher
and Gould. The story of the quarrel is
a long one 1t resulted in the property
remaining for nearly five years in the
hands of Gould's receivers. Finally, ir
the fall of 1908, the United States Circuit
Court ordered a foreclosure sale, which
took place the following May and al
which Gould became master of the prop
erty and Fisher was officially oustec
from all interest in the concern.
The company was Immediately reor'
ganized and its name changed from the
Virginia Passenger and Power Company
20 the Virginia Railway and Power Com
pany and a charter applied for and Sc
cured in June, 1903 giving the newly
named corporation the power to operate
forever and ever unto the last genera
ticn.
Gould FOrges Ahead.
Meanwhile Gould and his receivershir
had been by no means idle. Confident OF
ultimate victory, the young traction mag
nate had been going ahead with his great
projects quietly and without blare OF
trumpets. He had applied for and re-
ceived a charter for the Richmond and
Chesapeake Bay Railway Company, the
ostensibIe purpose of which was to oper-
ate an electric line from Richmond
nOrthward and eastward to an unnamed
point on the shore of the Chesapeake.
Not that any one expected Gould to
build trolley line out through the farm
lands and marshes and near wilderness of
the section of the State lying northeast
of Richmond. Every one knew, or at least
suspected, that this new company was
designed to begin operations on the much
heralded Richmond Washington electric
road. There was one good old monopoly
of a railroad that knew this better than
any one else and was particularly inter-
ested. This was the Richmond, Fred
ericksburg and Potomac which, through
the kindness of the State legislature,
rested secure in the provision that no
parallel railway should be built to inter-
fere with its monopOlization of the right
of way from Richmond to the nation S
Capital
Fight with a Steam Railroad.
Just how the Richmond, Fredericksburg
and Potomac had managed to ingratiate
itself so far in the hearts of a benevolent
legislature when no other railroad in
Virginia WAS SO protected by legislation,
would perhaps provide interesting read
ing if the ins and outs of the transaction
could be dug out of the musty records of
the past. Be that as it may, the fact re-
mains that any intention Gould may have
had to build his trolley road from Rich
blocked forever by the law protecting the
Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac
from all competition.
Matters came to a head, however, when
Gould applied for charter under which
an electric line was to be built from Fred
ericksburg to Buford. The Richmond and
Chesapeake Bay Railway had already ad-
vanced fifteen miles north of Richmond
TO Ashland. Buford lies another fifteen
miles or so north of Ashland 1t did
not require any great degree of clever
ness on the part of the Richmond, Fred
ericksburg and Potomac magnates to dis
Germ the fly in the otherwise harmless
looking Fredericksburg Buford ointment
There could be no doubt that once Gould
succeeded in building this much of par
allel line to the Richmond. Fredericks-
burg and Potomac, the latter corporation
would soon find another line building
from Ashland to Buford and before long
one from Fredericksburg Eorthward.
How Gould Won Out.
The r., F. & P. uttered a protest that
could be heard in California. 1t went
before the State corporation commission
and sounded a commanding voice in the
halls of the State capitol.
Then the Gould interests let the kitten
scramble out of the basket. They dropped
all pretense and came out flat-footed.
Yes; the Fredericksburg-to-Bu -Buford line
was meant as the first link in the Rich
mond-Washington chain. What was the
r., F. & P. going to do about it?
The R.. F. P. didn't know what
1t was going to do about it, but it made
a lot more noise, and spread itself unuer
the protecting shade of the law that pre-
vented the building of parallel road.
Then Gould unmasked his batteries, and
let fire. His attorneys prepared a bill
Of some two sentences repeating the law
granting the R, F. & P. these monopo-
listic rights. 1t was presented in the
legislature. The R., F. & P vainly rail-
lied the ranks Of its faithful friends in
the capitol The law was repealed, and
an amendment TO the charter of the Rich
mond and Chesapeake Bay Railway Sc
cured whereby permission was given to
build a line from Richmond to Fred
ercksburg and Washington.
Extending Operations Into Norfolk
With this obstacle cleared, Gould be-
gan to cast his eyes in the direction of
Norfolk. There was a line in opera ton
by this time between Richmond and
Petersburg. the natural route for the
necessary ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS railway
Gould Uaifed M lonuar bot ,bo son 20,