Payette enterprise. (Payette, Canyon Co., Idaho) 1909-1935, 1923-04-05
Statement Of Judge Robert L chairman the Board of of
the Union Pacific System at Interstate hearing
regroupng of Transconnenta Railroads
San Francisco, April End

the Hill INES, Dut that II that were
done the commission should also au-
thorize the reconstruction of the Har-
rtman group-the Union and South
ern Pacific-to meet the strong com
binatiou that would be effected by
the consolidation of the Hill lines.
The Holden plan, however" Judge
Lovett declared, docs not contem-
plate consolidation of the Union
and Southern Pacific but instead
weakens both by loading them down
with lines with which they have nc
natural affiliations and makes them
com petitive with their natural allies
notable in the case of the Union Pa
! cific by placing the Chicago 6, North
| western in 4 rival group. The Holden
plan also would run counter to the
legislation under which the Union Pa
cific and Central Pacific were con-
structed ss one. continuous line, by
| assigning to the Southern Pacific, a
half interest in the Denver & Rio
Grande Western and Denver & Salt
Lake which, with the lines of the
| Rock Island from Colorado Springs
and Denver to the Missouri river and
| Chicago would make it to the inter-
est OF the proposed Southern Pacific
group to tear down instead of build
| up the Ogden route of the Union and
| Central Pacific -
| In addition he said, Both the I'm
lon Pacific and Southern Pacific are
sent far afield into territories where
they have never been, where they
have no business or connections and
where apparently there is no shadow
OF reason for them to go. The Union
Pacific is sent down into Tennessee,
Alabama, Louisiana, Texas, Arkan-
sas and Oklahoma with lines to New
Orleans, Laredo on the Mexican
border and to Ell Paso and again into
northern Michigan. The Hill lines,
I however, are treated very conserva-
lively in this respect and the only
new territory in which they venture
is from Fort Worth to Houston, Tex
As, and over the Kansas City South
ern and another short line to New
/ Orleans"
With reference to Mr.. Holden e
substitution OF the Chicago, Milwau-
kee & st. Paul for the Chicago &
! Northwestern for consolidation with
the Union Pacific, Judge Lovett
/ pointed out that the former is a com
petitor Of the Union Pacific for traf
fic to and from the Puget Souni
country while the Chicago & North
western is a connection.
The substitution would not onl,
disrupt existing routes and channel
Of trade but would run counter t.
another requirement of the law thai
competition be preserved as fully as
possible. Again, the consolidation OF
the Union Pacific and Chicago, Mil
waukee & st. Paul would be linking
OF the two weakest Puget Sound lines
while the Northwestern Pacific and
Great Northwestern which are the old
est and strongest lines in that ter
ritory, would be consolidated under
! the Holden plan. Such an alignment
would certainly not be in the inter-
est of giving the Puget Sound coun-
try the best competitive service"
Concluding this portion OF his tes-
timony, Judge Lovett said, 1.-The con-
solidation Of the Hill lines with their
subsidiaries into single system
would so far overshadow its eompeti-
tors and any other railroad system
proposed in the United States in size
and financial strength and possibii-
ties that one might infer a desire to
meet this objection had something to
do with the iumbling of the Interna-
tional & Great Northern, Texas &
Pacific and St. Louis-San Francisco
systems with the Union Pacific and
of the Missouri Pacific, Toledo, Pc
oris & Western and the Missouri,
Kansas & Texas and various other
lines with the Southern Pacific in
order that there should be other sys-
TENS equal in mileage and investment
to the Hill combination, however I'M
equal in solidarity, financial strength
and prospects and in traffic and oper-
atink relationships"
Judge Lovett complimented highly
the manner in which Prof. Ripley and /
the commission had worked out the
direction of Congress for a plan for
the consolidation OF the railway pro-
perties of the United States. He said
that while there we're defects and mis-
takes here and there which must be
corrected IL great injury to public as
well as private interests is to be
avoided that yet the tentative plan of
the commission affords the basis and
rround work which should be follow
ed and from which departures should