The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-06-15
CALL OFF AUTO MERGER BECAUSE
 OF DIFFICULTIES
John N. Wyllys Makes Official Announcement of Aban-
 donment of Plan.

New York, June 15-The proposed merger of automobile companies which, as originally planned was to include the Willys- Overland. ChaI- rners, Hudson and Auto-Idte Compa- nies. and perhaps the Fisk Rubber Go has been abandoned. This was officially announced yesterday in the following statement given out by John N. WilIys, president of the Willys- Overland Co.,:
 .eBecause of complications. the pro- posed motor consolidation has been abandoned Therefore, the Willys- Overland Co, the Hudson Motor Car CO. the Chalmers MotorsCar Co., and the Auto-Lite Go. will continue to operate Independently
 Further than this announcement no authoritative statement was made as to why the merger had fallen through. Members of banking firms interested in the underwriting syndicate refuseo to comment on the 'tcompltcauons' mentioned, In weIl-inforrned quarters it was believed that the proposed mer- ger had been discouraged by leading bankers, because of the large amount of money involved, and the present state of the money market compncaI- ed as it is by the recent heavy de- cIiness in the surplus reserve or the New York banks. The merger which had been tentatively called the American Motors Compahy, pend ine the selection of another name, wes fo have s7O,Oo0,o0o preferred stock and 2,50O,O00 shares of com mon of no par value, to be issued at $50 a share, making a. total capitaliza- ton of $220,000,O ,OO0-
 The decision to abandon the mer- ger was reached, it is understood, at a meeting yesterday evening, attended fov MT. Wil1ys, l.. G. Kaufman, pres1- dent of the Chatham & Phen1x Ma ttonaI bank; Elisha Walker of William Solomon & Co.,. Syndicate managers, Sol Weller, of J. s. Bacne 6S %, anu an others. Both legal and financial diff cI1lties are understood to have been discussed at the meeting, and 1t was coucludeds that these difTeculties were iflsurmountable.
 News. that the plan nao 1a1len through resulted in a severe break Tn the price of Wi1lys-Overland stock at the opening of the Stock Exchange thfs raornfne After closing last night at 3O5. the stock opened at 279, and aI- edwards sold as low as 277 other Automobile stocks, including Chandler ana studebaker, were sympathetically weak, though it had not been propos- ed to include them in the merger. The speculation in the automobile snares on the Exchange, which reached US height in the week ended June 8, re- suited in a gain of 40 points in Wtllys- OveFIand in that week, following an sdyance of 10 points the previous ueek. On June 5 the stock soId at 325. The stock lost 4 points in yes terday's trading.
 AS originally understood in Wall street, the proposed merger was to ar fiIiate. if not to consolidate, several r,f inc greatest automobile interests fn the country, including those of w e. Durant. president of the General Motors and chevrolet Companies, and of John N. willys- It was reported tt,at tFe nerged companies would ac- ~1v1fY-e an interest in the United Motors Cooperation, a, recently organized Du- rant concern, which included five i'm p0rtant manufacturers of automobile accessories.