Republican farmer., 1919-06-20
WALKERC0NTR0L.S
 HARTFORD ICE:

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 Hartford. June 19.-The assertion of Harry W. Walker of Bridgeport that he sold out the Merchants Ice Company of Hartford to protect himself found veriication in a state ment by Barney L. Myers of No. 343 Windsor ave, formerly a partner with MT. Walker in the company. Not only was protection sought and ob- tained by MT. Walker for himself at that time, but he now has the ice businesses in Hartford so tied up that nothing can be done without his. consent. His latest move in the mat ter of protection" was the acquire ment of the Greenwoods Company in New Hartford which controls the New Hartford pond from which the Trout Brook Ice Company has been harvesting ice for several years, most of which has been sent to Hartford and a considerable part shipped to other cities and towns in and out of the state.
 . The agreement between the Trout Brook Ice Company, the Spring Brook Ice Company and the Berk- shire Ice Company, as related by Myers, seems to provide the informa ton for action by United States Dis trict Attorney John F. Crosby, who let it be known that he was Willing to prosecute if it could be shown that an agreement was made by ice deal CTS for the purpose of fixing the price of ice. MT. Myers says there is no question but the price of ice has been fixed for Hartford and other cities. and the fixing was done by Harry w Walker. In addition to this, there is an agreement, according to Myers whereby one of the leading Hartford companies provides the other with certain quantity of ice, even though it's own supply may be low, before the Berkshire Company will send ice to the city.
 The Merchants Ice Company, ac- cording to MT. Myers, was organ ized in 1906, though it did not be- come fairly operative until the fol- lowing year. It did good business, disposing of about 55,000 or 65,000 tons of ice a year. A. c. Wagner be- ing associated with MT. Myers in the business. Most of the ice was at that time purcha sed from The Berkshire Ice Company, but it was before the time MT. Walker had obtained con- trol, MT. Howell, a banker of Boon ton, N. J., being president, and the interests of the Merchants Ice Com pany were cared for in every way. The control of the Berkshire com pany was afterwards bought by MT. Walker.
 Even after Walker had sold his in terests in the Merchants Ice Company to it's two greatest competitors. for a time MT. Myers was continued as manager of the Merchants Company. He explains he had several good cus- toners in the "hilP' sectio,s of the city, and continued to send his teams there. He was told by MT. Arnold not to do this, as the Trout Brook Company would care for the trade in this section and it would lessen the operating expenses not to do so,-but Myers continued to supply his trade until he received instruc- tions from Bridgeport to desist. The Instructions came from c. T. Brown, then as now Walkers chief asset in the Bridgeport office and was in the form of a diagram showing the sec tions of the city in which the teams of the Merchants Company could and could not operate. According to Myers the order was designed for the purpose of throttling the Merchants Company The terms of the agree ment between the Berkshire Company and the two Hartford companies were told to Myers, he asserts, by Walker himself.
 Myers declared that the statement made in New Haven by Walker that the reason he acquired the Mer- chants Company was because the company owed him money was en- tirely without foundation. Myers says the company owed the Berkshire Company about s2.10o or s2,2O0, and the Merchants Company had s4,500 in the bank. From this was paid $1,- O5O for the horse Walker insisted on buying, which left approximately S3,- 500 in the bank. When the settle ment was made of the affairs of the company. Myers says he had to col feet $1,750 as his share, just half of what he should have received for his holdings. Samuel Collins got s5.25G for his holdings. The company was never in bad shape financially, Myers declares.
 Walker declared before the New Haven ice investiga ting committee that he had never heard of the lily gieta Ice Company of Hartford when asked if he knew anything Of its fate. Myers declares this statement abso- lutely untrue, for Walker commits stoned him to purchase the plant of the Hygieia Ice Company for from ssO,00O to $35.000. and instructed him to go no higher than the last named figure. Arnold paid more than that price for it, and got the property. It was operated by the Trout Brook Company but one year. where there was a small crop of ice, and the building is now used as a garage. It was located near the Blake drxr IVindSnr Str fore giving orders to buy 1t, Walker went through the plant with Myers the latter says.