Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-21
RAIL MERGER PLAN
INVOLVES TRACKS
RIGHTS on Shore of Lake Erie
Connected With Proposed
Combine.
BY CHARLES F. sPEARE.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, January 2l.-While all
Of the members of the proposed four
marty railroad plan in the East are
actively engaged in setting up the facts
which they viii present to the Inter-
state Commerce Commission relative to
the suggested arrangement between the
trunk lines and independent roads, it
n understood that this material will
not be ready for submission to the
commission for some weeks, and pos
sibly not until early in the Spring.
II is quite likely that several minor
points may have to be arbitrated, along
With the conflict of opinion between
the Pennsylvania and New York Gen.
trail interests over trackage rights along
the shore of Lake Erie.
Extent of Undertaking.
The bigness of the merger plan and
the enormous amount of work involved
In passing it through its routine stages
make 1t doubtful whether the Inter
state Commerce Commission will be
able to give its final decision in the
case much before the Summer recess
In 1882. President Atterbury OF the
Ec00SylNdIlld SJdJcu ACCCAt1y eAHb Az
might be three or four years before
the plan became operative.
Considerable interest has been aroused
lately by the activities of the Van
Sweringen interests in connection with
the Boston g. Maine. 1t may be salu
that these have been overemphaSlzed
IN some quarters and that there Is no
truth in the statement that a plan by
which the Chesapeake g. Ohio-Nlckel
VnN- d n rntNf "a
New England road has been presented
for adjustment to the administration
At Washington. The Van SweringenS
aeel that the Boston & Maine will be
q natural complement to the system
which they have already developed and
which will be supplemented by the
Iehigh Valley in the four-party plans.
They have not, however, taken any ag-
gressive action in this matter.
Might Jeopardize Plans.
It is obvious that any attempt at the
present time on the part Of the trunk
line roads to inject the New England
railroad situation into the one which Is
now under negotiation might seriously
ieopardize the success OF negotiations
that reached the end Of the frst stage
when the presidents Of the pennsylvania,
New York Central, Baltimore q ONO
and Chesapeake g. Ohio-Nickel Plate
systems signed the agreement early this
year.
ANY activity of this sort on the part
of the Cleveland railroad men might
very quickly arouse antagonism from
the Pennsylvania Railroad management,
which, directly and through the Penn
road Co., has a large investment IN the
New York, New Haven q Hartford ana
in the Boston g. Maine. 1t is felt that
n would be much in the interest Of
peaceful settlement of the four-party
plan to leave the New England situa-
ton alone until the alignment In trunk
line territory had been contaminated.
In the Interstate Commerce Commis-
SONS plan of consolidation promulgated
In December, 1929, the New England
territory was divided between two sys-
TENS, the one dominated by the Boston
g. Maine and the other by the New YORK,
New Haven & Hartford. Inc former
included the Delaware & Hudson ana
the Bangor & Aroostook. To the latter.
or New Haven system, were added the
Lehigh g. Hudson River Railway and
the Lehjgh g. New England Rallroao
companies.
Opposition 70 "Set-up."
This "set-up" has not been altogether
satisfactory either to the transportation
lines involved or to their connections
outside of New England. There has
been a tendency on the part OF some
New England business interests 70 work
away from 1t and toward plan that
would give the Boston & Maine and the
New Haven better opportunities for de-
veioping, as well as allow other trunk
line systems to have advantages equal
~ those held by the New York Central
through its ownership Of the Boston d
Albany.