The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-02-21
MELLEN PROVES
 GOOD WITNESS
PRESIDENT OF NEW HAVEN ROAD DESCRIBES RUTLAND DEAL BEFORE ALBANY
 COMMISSION.
DIDN'T BUY RUTLAND STOCK
Declares He Wanted Central to Have Ontario and Westcrn-Unrufflcd
 By Hecklfng.

Albany, Feb. 21-Charles s. Mellen, president of the New York, New Ha- ven & Hartford railroad, was on the witness stand for three hours, yester- day, at the hearing before the Public Service Commission of the Second dis trict on the application of the rail road to purchase the control of the Rutland railroad, a, purchase to which
 the minority stockholders of the lat
 ter object.
 President MeIIen made a model wit Samuel Untermyer, counsel for the minority stockholders. carried on without once losing his temper or even becoming ruffled- He gave a frank expanation of the several deals between the New Haven and the New York Central authorities, explaining which his own railroad now gets half the net profits of the Boston & AL bany
 He denied that he had either di- share of the stock of the. Rutla nd road. He assumed, he said smilingly, that the recent rise in price of the Rut and stock on the stock market myer and his friends to get hold of as much of the stock as possible. This remark brought from his in uuis'tor the statement that Untermyer and his clients had bought no Rutland stock recently. Untermyer declared that in his opinion the rise in price naQ been que to SStIeI puTCHdSeS ny MT. Mellen and his friends. This af- ternoon William C. Brown, preside ent of the New York Central, was sched- u ed to explain what he knew about
 At the outset, MT. UnternYer raised the question as to wbethe~ Brown and Mellen, having heen Subpoenaed by him, would hereafter claim immunity under the law on the ground that they had heen required to give testirn ".
 MT. Un termyer asserted that the entire transaction involving the Boston & Albany. Ontario & Western, ard Rut- land railroads was a clear and d'stinct violation Of the fede~a' antitrust law. Chairman Stevens disposed of the question, after considerable argument, by calling attention to the fact that the applicant company before the com mission had called Mir. Mellen as a wit~e ess on its own motion, and that give he had been produced by the ap- plicant on its voluntary motion
 President Me'len re"ited the history of the nee1ot 'ations with the New York Central. and said that the argument in favor of the New Ravens taking the Rutland was that the New Haven might have an independent line, to be run in connection with the Boston & Maine between Boston and Montreal; an arrangement had heen finally me de whereby the New England Naviga- tfon Company purchased one-half Of the stock Of the Rutland, and that since, that time the New York Cen traI had consented to dispose of the remainder of the stock held by It. The company had not, however, had in mind that the Rutland was a New York corporation, after negotiations had been completed, and then the ap- plication had been immediately filed with the commission.
 MT. Mellen denied that there was any community of interests affecting the Poston & Albany. the New Haven and the Rutland propositions He tes- tified that, since the New Haven had New York Central on the Boston & Albany property, the New Haven had been able to turn over considerably e hus'uess to the Boston & Albany, and that now that property was paying well for both the New York Central and Boston & Albany.
 MT. Mellen admitted that just prior to the conclusion of the agreement with the New York Central to sell the stock of the Ontario & Western, Thomas P. Fowler, president of the Ontario 6, Western. had told him that President Loree of the Delaware & Hudson Company had said that that company was willing to pay S15,- 0oo. .0O0 for the Ontario & Western property. This was approximately S2, GOO, GOO in excess of the price agreed upon by the New York Cen tral
 MT. Mellen had said that he would ,refer to give the property to the New York Central for one dollar, rather than sell it to any other company, because of the power of the New York Central to control business. and he believed that the action finally taken upon his recommendation to ern had been for the best interests nf the property itself and its stock