Evening star., 1921-08-18
TRACTION MERGER
BILL L1SFAV0RABLY
REPORTED IN HOUSE
Woods Measure Wins in
Committee Over Govern
ment Ownership.
PLAN TO FORCE COMBINE,
THOUGH NOT COMPULSORY
Power Company Must Await Union
of Rail Lines-0ther Amend
: ments Made.

The Woods bill. authorizing a mer-
ger OF the street railways in the Dis
trict of Columbia, was ordered favor
ably reported to the House by the
House District committee today. The
vote authorizing the favorable report
was 3 to s.
A motion by Representative Walters
of Pennsylvania to substitute the gov
ernment ownership bin relating to the
Districts street railways for the
Woods bill was lost by vote of to 8.
The street railway merger bill now
goes to the House calendar. and Chalr-
man Focht of the District committee
plans to call it up for consideration
at the earliest opportunity. 1t IS not
likely, however. that an opportunity TO
take up the bill will present itself un-
til after the proposed thirty days re-
cess of Congress, beginning next
Wednesday.
Amendments Adopted.
A number of amendments were
adopted by the committee before the
bill was ordered favorably reported.
The principal change in the bill was
that making a merger between the
Company and the Potomac Electro
Power Company impossible until
after the Washington Railway and
Electric Company and the Capital
Traction Company have merged.
While the bill authorizes merger +
Of the street railway companies. 1t
does not compel such a merger. How
ever, the committee has inserted a
number of provisions calculated TO
force the street railways themselves
to bring about a merger.
In the first place the bill changes
the method of taxation imposed upon
the compa nies. so that an excess prof.
its tax shall be levied In place of the
present system. 1t Is believed that
this change will make the Capital
Traction Company more Wiling TO
agree to a merger than at present.
since its net operating income will be
regulated.
The committee also adopted sub.
stitute for the original. section OF
the bill. which wst cfey9d .bF. hsps
resentative Zihlman OF Maryland
'n1r Thss st0si unisss the measer or CON
solidatiop hereinbefore authorised
and provided for between the CAPT.
tai Traction Company and the WASH
ington Railway and Electric Com
pany. and the subsidiary companies
held by them, shall have been effected
by July l. 1922, then the Public Ctl-
tiles Commission of the District OF Co
lumbia shall fix separate rates OF rare
for I) the Capital Traction Company
and (2) the Washington Railway and
Electric Company and it's subsidiary
companies, as provided in paragraph
of section of the act of March 4.
1918. entitled An act making appro-
priations to provide for the expenses
Of the government of the District OF
Columbia for the fiscal year ending
June 80. 1914. and for other pur-
poses.
ment created the Public Utilities Com
mission.
The meeting of the District COM
mittee was stormy at many times
today. When Representative Woods
of Virginia, the author OF the bill.
moved to strike out section eight, on
the ground that this section might
have the effect of delaying the
merger since it proposed to repeal
the excess profits tax on the street
railways as carried in the bill un-
less the street car companies merged
Representative Hammer OF North
Carolina protested vigorously. MI.
Woods finally moved to strike out
and substitute the Zihlman amend
ment.
Declares Amendment Unfair.
Representative MiIspaugh of Mis-
ment was unfair to the Washington
Railway and Electric Company. since
. it probably would have the ehect
of bringing about a reduction in the
fares of the Capital Traction Company
and throw all the traffic to that com
the Woods motion to strike out sec
tion eight. On a roll call the Mills
paugh motion was defeated IL to 1.
Replying to the suggestion that his
substitute for section 8 would -, be
and Electric Company, Representative
Zihlman admitted that such might be
the case He said, however. that to
have different fares on the street rail-
way companies would bring about a
situation intolerable to the companies
and to the public also and in the end
would help force a merger. Mr.. Zihl-
man said as things are today every
man who rides on a Capital Traction
car pays 1 II cents more fare than he
ought to. The Zihlman substitute for
section was finally adopted without
Representative % Kunz of Illinois
suggested that under the Zihlman
amendment it might be possible for
the Public Utilities Commission to fix
separate rates for all the subsidiary
lines of the Washington Railway and
Electric Company. increasing some of
Zihlman denied that this was the case.
Representative Lampert of Wfscon-
sin at the outset of the meeting today
proposed that provision should be
written into the bill that IL the mer-
ger was not entered into within six
months the Keller government own
ership bill should become effective.
His motion was laid. on the table by
a vote of 8 to 5.
Free Transfers Opposed.
Mr. Lampert offered several amend.
ments. only one of which was adopted.
The amendment adopted provides that
it shall be the duty Of the Public. Util-
titles Corporation created by the
merger. provided for in the bill, to
keep its books, records and accounts
of the cost, expense and operation of
its power plant or plants and the dis
tribution of it's products separate and
apart from the operation of its street
railway lines.
Mr.. Lampert offered an amendment
directing the issue of free transfers
on all the lines. This was lost on a
vote of 8 to 6. He also offered an
amendment providing that the max
imum rate charged for street railway
transportation should be cents cash.
or four tickets at 25 cents. This was
lost. 10 to 5.
Under the provisions of the Woods
bill the law requiring the street rail-
way to pay the expense of maintain
ing special policemen at street rail-
way crossings would be repealed, ef-
fecfive December 81. 1921. There
after the expense Of maintaining these
policemen would be borne by the Dis
riot of Co1umhia