The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-06-20
PRESIDENT ELLIOTTS VIEW

With the fundamental principles upon which notification of New Eng land railroads into one system was based. President Howard Elliott Was in full accord He regretted, as Theo- dore N. Vail also regretted when he agreed with the Department of Jus tice to tear apart the consolidation which he had perfected with tele- graph and telephone systems. that its was expedient to accept the terms
 which the Department of Justice of- fered in settlement out of court of the New Haven suit.
 Nevertheless, President Elliott, at the time of his resignation of the presidency of the New Haven, and since his service under the government began in war days. and also since he
 returned to the seat formerly occupied by him IS president of the Northern Pacific, never for moment wavernd in his view that the railroad situa- tion both in New England and in other parts of the country was of such cha~- acter as to justify unification of the New England railroads and also the l alliance of that unified system with one or more of the trunk lines
 Recently President Elliott spoke of | a consolidation of that kind. the mak- ing thereby of New England a true re- gional railroad section of the United States in connection with trunk lines | as something that must be done if there is to be established satisfactory relations | between the people of New England and also other parts of the country and railroad transportation.
 DIRECTOR GENERALS VIEW To this conclusion Director General Hines has now come. In reaching it he also clearly intimates that in other parts of the country it is the wiser probably the inevitable method to adopt if transportation is to be ade- Quate, to form into various systems
 perhaps five or six, possibly 10. com binations which may be called regional or zone, or by whatever name is ap- propriate, of all the railroads of the United States.
 The director general said at Boston that he is now convinced that the systems of the many railroads Of the United States as probably the only practical method of securing ultimate ly perfectly adjusted, thoroughly ade- quate transportation system throughout
 the United States. He believes that this
 is not only practical but safe, if only
 there be provided adequate govern
 mental supervision and regulation. If the government has a watchful eye
 behind which is a competent and fair
 minded disposition. wisely overseeing
 the methods and the operation of the
 railroads of the United states, then the
 people will have nothing to fear, but
 on the other hand everything to gain
 by the unification into several systems
 of the railroads of the United States.
 TIMES CHANGE If anyone had ventured to predict
 when the department of justice began
 proceedings against the New Haven rail
 road that within 10 years the master ex- ecutive authority of the United States over the railroads would be heard advo- eating the very policy which was at the bottom of the plans of the senior Nor
 gan and Charles S. Mellen, he would have been regarded as worthy of medical examination for his sanity.
 Of course, the lesson which Director General Hines now admits he has so |
 well learned would not have been taught, | possibly for many years, had not the l exigencies of the war and the results of 1 the governments control and operation | of all the railroads not revealed to the | government and in great measure to the l people the truth which the great railroad l leaders recognized years ago, which was | that the greatest service and most satis-1 factory service the railroads could give | could be secured only through combl- i! nations, provided the governments supel. | vision and direction were adequate inn partial and timely.
 That was the view taken by E. H. | Hartman and he at one time said that | if the authorities at Washington would | let him alone he would make common | stock of the Erie railroad a dividend l payer within few years. It was the view taken by Commodore Vanderbilt. | and he acted upon it. A.sJ Cassatt of | the Pennsylvania held this opinion, and | proved his conviction of it's soundness by | taking over the Long Island railroad | system into the Pennsylvania familyI Now. if the director general of the American railroads recommends such ac- ton by Congress as will, in the first l place. restore the railroads to private | owpership, in the second place, permitt