The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1917-12-31
RAILROADS MUST
POOL TERMINALS
Sweeping Order by Director
General Expected to Elm
mate Congestion
UNTFICATION OF
COUNTRY'S LINES
All Roads Entering Big Terminals at
New York and Chicago Will Have
Common Use of Facilities-Identity
of Pennsylvania Terminal is Lost.


WASHINGTON, Dee. 31.-The final
step in effeeting the complete unitiea
ton of all railroad lines as a national
system of transportation was taken
night by William G. McAdoo,
director general of railroads. In an
order in which he asserted that the M
ton 5 needs must be held paramount
to any actual or supposed corporate ad
vantage, he directed that all term
nails. ports, locomotives, rolling stock
and ether transportation facilities must
hereafter be utilized in the common
cause Of serving the country. This
order was addressed to the railroad eX
eeutiyes and employees who were called
upon to cooperate.
In 4 supplemental statement Mr.. Me
Adoo announced the election of Walker
ID. Hines of New York, chairman Of
the Santa Fc, as assistant .ro tempore
to the government 5 director general.
Alfred II. Smith, president of the New
York Central, also was named as an
assistant in charge Of transportation
in the eastern and northern districts.
The further specific announcement
was made By Mr.. McAdoo that imme-
date action must be taken to end con
gestion Of traffic iii the great railroad
terminals in New York city and Chi
cage, because that situation had
proved one Of the most embarras sing
to the railroads All lines entering
these ccntcrs or contributing to the
traffic into them will hereafter, as part
Of the national system, have equal
rights to the use OF any trackage or
water terminal facilities.
Passenger us well as freight traffic
Is included in the plan TO be put IN OPP
| Grafton at once. thus wiping out the
! identity Of the great Pennsylvania ter
| minal station in New York and plac-
ing at the disposal OF all railroads
which have in the past appeared n
I competing lines the use of the Penn
sylvania tubes under the Hudson river
Mr.. MeAdoo : sweeping urGcr came
with no little ahguptncss rs the answer
to railroad executives who have been
wondering how quickly he would act
and how far he would reach III his mi
tial Efforts to bring about common
use OF all carriers While the financial
side Of the problem was not mentioned
by him, there was little left untouched
regarding operation. All competitiv,
prohibitions were swept aside, the last
vestige OF individual identity OF tn,
railroads ended.
There was tendency on the part Of
many railroad executives last night Il
look upon the scope Of the order as ;
prediction that government ownership
Of railroads would IN time follow gov
rnment operation, and that the indi
vidual railroads, merged on the plan
outlined by Mr.. McAdoo, never would
be unscramblcd, especially if tn
experiment proved a success. The be
lief was expressed in some quarters al
50 that the railroads war board. an un
official organization composed of iv
abroad executives. would not long re
main as Mr. McAdoo S chief operatin
organization and that gradually tn
government would assume the dutic
now placed in the hands of that bod
Of private individuals and delegat
them to government officials