San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1924-03-04
SAYS.
MERGER WOULD.
|. Be BENEFICIAL
Improve Passenger Service
and Work for City's
| Future.
MEETS BUSINESS MEN
Gulf Coast Lines, He Says,
Would Build Up This
End Of the Trade.
MEETS BUSINESS MEN

Assurances Of improvement in pas
senger service, and pledges of opera
ton of the Gulf Coast Lines with San
Antonio in the event of the purchase
of the nternational-Great Northern by
the Gulf Coast, were made TO San An
tonic business men by J. $. Pyeatt,
president of the New Orleans. Texas
and Mexico Railroad. which is part
of the Gulf Coast system, when the
Greater San Antonio committee. the.
San Antonio Freight Bureau and the
Chamber of Commerce assembled in the
Chamber Of Commerce building Tues
day morning to hear n general discus
sion of the facts pertainingsto the pro-
posed merger. Mr.. Pyeatt stated that
no change in the Gulf Coasts prefer
ence of long haul could be made. as
freight would natural:> be routed
through Houston and New Orleans in
preference to San Antonio, from the
Rio Grande Valley, just as the Gulf
Coast Lines have directed the valley
business before.
1T would be unjust to ask the Gulf
Coast Lines to cut off one-third of
ms revenue, by directing its Rio Grande
Naliey shipments through San An
tonic instead of Houston, Mr.. Pyeatt
stated. 1t is the natural thing for
any business to attempt to realize
maximum revenue, and our road is do
ing nothing unusual when it prefers
the long haul. We cannot and will
NOT solipit n shorter hnul -
Mr.. Pyeatt stated, however. that
San, Antonio's freight and passenger
service will be improved. in case the
sale is made, so that better rates and
faster service can be obtained.
Would Better Conditions.
IF we acquire the I.-G. \. Lines,
we will give San Antonio as good SER
lvice to and from the Rio Grande Valley
as we give any other city, and our
policy will not be TO delay or dis
courage San Antonio business, but to
build it and TO make it better than it
ever has been in its history"
Regarding the Gulf Coasts atti-
tude toward improving San Antonio's
traffic facilities. Mr.. Pyeatt said:
1t would be foolish OF us to con-
template buying the 1.-G. n. Lines. if
we did not intend to build up San An
tonlos end of the trade, because the
e. \. railroad is essentially a San
Antonio institution. Through the pur-
chase OF TINS road. we will become a
san ANTONIO industry. and it would be
cutting our own Threats to divert bust
ness from our own road, or to dis
courage service into your city. or from
IT, san Antonio Is the largest city on
'he lhternatlonai-eireat Northern rail-
wa! ana ,he railroad Itself cannot
prosper uhless San ANTONIO does. In
oruer 10 make the LII. n. one OF the
pest raliroads In Iexas, we must
create petter business for 1t and place
lne revenue IN addltlonal equipment
ana Improvement.
Doupie working Fund.
Inc i've mi!iloh dollars that has
DeeI' SERVING as WORKING fund for
the l-u. y. would be doubled by the
Gult toast LINES, after its acquisition
of the l.-G. N. according 10 Mr.. Pyeatt
who stated that his company proposed
to make the I.-G. n. one of the best
roads in the state. Through the pros
porous condition of the Gulf Coast |
Lines. with its stock selling ot mar
and above. the InternationoI. Greot |
Northern railway would bo rn'f;ro rcod |
and robnilt NJ preott sto.od 81 G.
Antonio's nrosnor;tv Ill u All" ~. San s'i !
tnro tbo, tbn Gle % C. oe .ns
rar,h,;n ~ h c'ase woulu oe
shia IN "nen -" expenditure Oh
'n,s nlusn1.dde would De made.
harri nUgers' presiding IN the alb
of the San Antonio Chamber of Com