The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-01-24
Bush Has Plan to Change West
ern Rail Map.
Greatest Shakeup in History of
This Territory.
MANY LINES INVOLVED
Rock Island and Burlington MAY
Take Over d. & R. G..
Other Items Of General Interest
in Traffic World.

New York. Jan. 24.-There is TN
der thoughtful consideration among
some OF the most prominent men in
the western railroad field and their
bankers, plan which, if consum-
mated. will result in greater changes
In railroad relations west of ST. Louis
and Chicago than any since the days
OF Es H. Hartman. Apart from the
AtchiSon. Topeka and Santa F'e rail-
road, the Chicago, Milwaukee and ST.
Paul and the Hartman lines, the plan
concerns all of the great railroad SyS-
TENS of the west. Involved in it are
the Rock Island (the Moore-Reid sys-
tem,) the Gould Western system, the
Chicago and Northwestern, q Wander
bilt road and the three great Hill lines
the Great Northern, Northern Pacific
and Chicago, Burlington and Quincy.
In the elaboration of this plan an
important part has been played by B.
F. Bush, who succeeded George J.
Gould as president of the Missouri
Pacific last year and who has more
recently followed E. 7. Jeffrey as
president of the Denver and Rio
Grande. It was understood and even
proclaimed at the time Mr.. Bush as
sUmed the work of those new offices
that he had plenary powers. If that
is the case there is no doubt that the
arrangement will be completed. In
fact, it was declared positively today
that the only likelihood of the plans
failure arises from the alleged habit
y
Roads to Take Over D. & 4. G.
The plan is for a joint interest by
the Rock Island and the Chicago, Bur
lington and Quincy in Missouri Pa
cities control of Denver and Rio
Grande, which also carries with it
ownership of the Western Pacific and
probably joint obligation of the Rock
Island and the Burlington with the
Denver and Rio Grande in the West
ern Pacific bonds.
This is how the situation stands now
and how it came to that position: The
Missouri Pacific controls the Denver
and Rio Grande. The Denver and Rio
Grande, in turn, owns two-thirds of
the Western Pacific and guarantees
principal and interest on all of the
Western Pacific bonds Until 1910
Denver and Rio Grande paid dividends
at the rate of ) per cent a year on it's
preferred stock. Because of the great
load of Western Pacific, which only
started operations early in 1910, Den
yer and Rio Grande suspended the
dividend. The Western Pacific stood
as the western extremity of George ].
Gould's ambitious scheme for a trans
continental railroad. system, embracing
eastward the Western Maryland, Wa
bash Pitsburg Terminal, Wheeling and
Lake Erie, Wabash, Missouri Pacific
and Denver and Rio Grande.
Panic Stops GouId's Plan.
The panic of 1907 smashed the east
Receiverships throttled continuation
of the idea. But on the western end
also the GOulds had their troubles
When George Gould determined to
build the Western Pacific he had a
fight with Hartman. AS he built it
they fought. Since Harrimans death
the perpetrators of his system have
been hostile to the Western Pacific. At
one time the Hartman people made a
traffic alliance with the Burlington
a Hill property controlled Jointly by
Great Northern and Northern Pacific,
which runs to Denver. The Rock Is
land also runs to Denver.
Great Northern has the larger
equity in Burlington. All of that bust
ness came out of the Northern securi-
ties case. Lately there has been a
plan on foot to sell Northern Pacific's
equity in Burlington to Great North
ern. That intention is feature of the
plan revealed today so far as the Hill
camp is concerned. Within the last
month the Northern Pacific has made
a traffic alliance with the Chicago
and Northwestern, a Vanderbilt line,
which secures for it traffic facilities
from St. Paul to Chicago and thence
on eastward. Hence the Northern
Pacific gets through the Northwestern
comparabl to those held
by the Great Northern through the
From today's revelations it becomes |
clear, then, that the railroad map for
the northern half of the United States |
west of the Mississippi will have |
across it in continuous lines Northern !
Pacific and Mort hWestern, from the |
coast to Chicago; Great Northern and |
Burlington. likewise connecting the |
Pacific with Chicago, and Western Pa |
cific, Denver and Rio Grande and the |
and Rock Island, running |
again from the coast clear through to I
Chicago. like the others, except that