Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1914-01-27
'B|[R[t" MAY HEAD
CHICAGO I ALTON
GENERAL MANAGER OF N. 4 81.
/. OFFERED PRESIDENCY .
OF ALTON.
WANTS FREE HAND IN
REHAeILIrArING ROAD
Said That eisrd Was. Offered Prssi.
dsneys Of Minneapolis & st. Louis at
Same Salary Offered by Alton II He
Would ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Change
Surprise to Local Employees.

/ in the announcement from New York
that w. G. Bierd. vice president and
general manager of the Minneapolis
dency Of the Chicago & Alton, and will
likely accept.
| 1t is also said in New York that Mr..
Bierd was offered the presidency of the
remain with that property, at the same
salary offered on the Alton, said to be
$4,000.
Likely to Take Alton Offer.
| A special to the Minneapolis Tri-
bune from New York tells of the pros
Alton as follows:
! 1T IS understood that w. G. Bierd,
| who is to become president of the Chi
! cago & Alton Railroad Company, sue
ceeding B. A. Worthington. was offered
the presidency of the Minneapolis &
, st. Louis Railroad Company at the
same salary that he will receive on the
! Alton. After considering the matter
E! carefully and acting partly upon the
advice of intimate railroad friends he
decided to accept the Alton offer.
To Have Free Hand.
1T is further understood that Mr..
Bierd stipulated that he should have
a free hand and be given practically
unlimited financial support by the
Union Pacific and its bankers. who
now control the Alton before signify
ing his willingness to take the po-
sition.
Alton a Hard Road.
Last year the Alton made the larg-
est gross. but the smallest net. earn
ingS in its history. A large sum of
money must be expended for addition
al facilities in order to cut down the
cost OF operation. It Is learned that
Mr. Rierd had several other tempting
railroad offers at the time that the AL
ton proposition was made to him. No
one has been selected al his successor
as vice president and general man
ager of the Minneapolis & ST. Louis.
1t is estimated that his salary on the
Alton will be $4,000 to start.
Not an Easy Job.
| "Mr. Bierd Is not going to an easy
! job on the Chicago & Alton. Some
! years ago that property was exploited
| in notorious way by the Union Pa
cf1c interests and their bankers. 1t
! has never recovered from the heavy
i bonded obligations which they placed
; upon it. When Theodore P. Shonts
/. was president he was also at the head
, of the subway lines In this city and
could not give the Alton the attention
which 1t demanded. Prior to that the
road was a part of the Rock Island
system, but altho Judge Moore and
Dan Reid were eager TO get control
Of it they soon found that it did not
| belong to the Rock Island and were
glad enough to sell their interests to
the Glover Leaf which was then
dominated by the late Edwin Hawley
and his associates The road soon
proved a burden to it's last purchasers
and the Union Pacific was obliged to
take it under its wing in order to avoid
| a receivership.
Will Need Money.
after all these various ownerships
! and vicissitudes the Alton does not
now possess the physical facilities with
which to handle the business offered.
Large sums of money must be ex-
pended For the last two years at
least the company has made large
deficit. If the Union Pacific will now
come forward and place in Mr.. Bierd's
hands the money ne eded. in due time
/ he will be able 10 bring Il "p to the
proper standard. In the meantime. he
will be handicapped by a lack OF ia
| cilities and the prestige which the COM
panv has lost in recent years, because
| Of it's poor physical and financial con-
| dition."