Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-30
HEAD Of RAILROAD
ONCE BLACKSMITH
Van SWeringen Executive
Rose Rapidly in Car
riers' Service.

John J. Bernet the newly elected
president of the Chesapeake & Ohio
Railway, the greatest of the Van Swer-
ingen railroad properties, was poor
boy who started out in life with an
ambition to be blacksmith. But one
of those strange curves of fate which
change the course of mems lives, and
make them great or small, as the man
NAV be, interviewed, and he became sue
cessively the president of three of the
greatest American railroad systems.
Bernet's election as president OF the
Chesapeake & Ohio in succession 10
w. j. Harahan, who retired after long
service to become senior vice president
of the road. was another step IN
railroad career Of 40 years which began
as a telegraph operator in switch
shanty and now in its full bloom finds
Bernet the right-hand man and CHIEF
adviser on railroad affairs to O. P. and
M J SWeringen, the two brothers OF
Cleveland. who before reaching the age
of so have won control OF 10000 miles
of railroad and are the central f1gureS
In far-reaching proposals to unity all
the railroads into lesser number OIL
cohesive and more efhcient systems
Is so Years OF Age.
Bernet's place as president OF the
Chesapeake q Ohio places him in the
forefront of whatever Is done in the
railroad consolidation program. Slxty
years old now. Bernet will soon be "out
on the road" on the Chesapeake q OHIO
lines. living in a car and working 70
hours a da.-.
Bernet WIS born near Buffalo, N. Y,
and after having done all the things
which the ordinary poor boy does, ne
decided he'd be a blacksmith and go
In business with his father, who had
shop at country cross roads. shoelng
horses, mending farmers buggies ana
moving machines and doing IKE loDs,
Soon, however, he wandered over 10
the railroad switch shanty nearby;
where a telegraph key was singing, ana
he lost no time learning to telegraph.
Rose Rapidly.
From that point the story moves
quickly. The railroad was the Old Lake
Shore &. Michigan Southern nov ;,, a
part of the New York CentraD, running
from Buffalo to Chicago. And the JOBS
were in rarid succession: Telegraph
operator. train dispatcher, train master,
assistant Superintendent OF division,
slIperintendent of division. assistant
general superintendent, general superln-
tendent and then vice president OF the
New York Central lines west OF Buualo:;
In 1916 Bernet became president OF
the Nickel Plate and not only made the
Nickel Plate pay. but soon took in two
other railroads with 1.-THE Lake Erie
e. Western and the Toledo, st. Louis d.
Western-and made system out OF
the three, which is now known as the
Nickel Plate System.
Acquire New Lines.
Meanwhile, with Bernet's advice and
guidance the Van Sweringens had been
envisioning a larger railroad system.
They had acquired the Chesapeake 81
Ohio and the Pere Marquette, and final
ly the Erie. In 1927 Bernet became
president of the Erie and embarked on
a policy of rehabilitation and recon
struction which involved spending $780,
100000 in three years.
Heretofore Bernet has been known
rs a doctor whose speciality was taking
a sick railroad and making 1t well and
vigorous. From now on his place In the
picture will be that of co-ordinator
taking great railroads and welding them
into a system. Under his operation and
under the Van Sweringen development
program the Chesapeake a. Ohio is now
applying to the Interstate Commerce
Commission for approval Of a plan to
ioin with the other Van SWerlngen
lines, and to acquire a few others be-
sides. with the idea Of comprising sys-
tenn of some $4,000 miles OF railroad
having invested capital Of more than
two and half billions and serving
practically all that portion OF the United
! States east of the Mississippi River
north Of the Carolinas.