Rail Week

Opening. The Brothers Van Sweringen, lately very much in the railroad news, will once more emerge into the limelight when they formally open this week (Saturday) their great new Union Station in Cleveland. Grouped around the imposing terminal tower (708 ft. high, tallest west of New York) are the new post office, a bank, and Builders' Exchange, all of them fronting on Public Square. The project cost more than many a complete railroad; between $150,000,000 and $200,000,000. The terminal itself cost $88,560,000 (the original estimate was $60,000,000). The Brothers Van Sweringen, however, do not begrudge the extra $28,560,000 for their terminal is undoubtedly the railroad centre of Cleveland--even if the Pennsylvania will run no trains into it. Every other rail-road that reaches Cleveland will use the Union terminal: namely, the New York Central, the Van Sweringens' own Nickel Plate, the much-coveted Wheeling & Lake Erie, the B. & O., the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis ("Big Four").

A civic luncheon was scheduled to begin the opening ceremonies. Newton D. Baker, who is personal counsel to the Van Sweringens, will preside. Speakers: Mayor John D. Marshall of Cleveland, President Patrick E. ("Pull Eighty Cars'") Crowley of New York Central, President W. L. Ross of Nickel Plate. The Brothers Van Sweringen will be present: the Brothers Taplin, in all probability, will not. The Taplins, inveterate Van Sweringen-baiters, as minority stockholders in the Wheeling, tried to hold up the building of the terminal, carried their case from court to court up to the U. S. Supreme Court, where they lost it. After lunch the guests will go for a ride over the ten miles of right-of-way adjacent to the terminal that have already been electrified.

Also opened with the terminal will be the first Harvey restaurant east of Chicago. Harvey, Inc., companion concern to the Fred Harvey restaurants and hotels that flourish mightily throughout the West, will be represented further in the terminal by a candy shop, men's shop, women's shop, toy shop, lunch room, tea rooms, barber shop, book store, mammoth drug store.

It was Fred Harvey, starting in 1876 with a itiny restaurant in Topeka, Kan., who conceived the great idea of serving meals to travelers in attractive station restaurants, in a day when the few existing dining cars were dingy, dirty. His "Fred Harvey System" on the Santa Fe grew rapidly, prospered, and when he died in 1901, he saw his "system" extended over the whole length of the railroad. His son and successor, Ford Ferguson Harvey, who ably expanded the scope of the family business, died in 1928. Today another son of Fred Harvey, amiable, hard-working Byron Schermerhorn Harvey (Yale '98), is president both of Harvey Inc. and of the Fred Harvey company. He, his nephew Frederick Henry Harvey, and Founder Harvey's son-in-law, John Frederick Huckel, own the combined business. No one knows how much it is worth, but everyone knows that the $100,000 at which it is capitalized is purely nominal. Among other things. Harvey owns 69 hotels and feeds 16 million people a year.

P: Last week the brothers Taplin tied the Eastern trunk lines into several interesting new knots. The two Cleveland coal operators made it clear they have by no means given up their railroad aspirations, even though at present they control not one mile of line. "Negotiations are now proceeding," Frank E. Taplin told the I. C. C., "for the formation of a new company to acquire the Wabash and Lehigh Valley stock now held by the Pennsylvania, as well as the Pennroad Corp.'s holdings of Pittsburgh & West Virginia stock. . . . It is only a question of price."

But the price is precisely what is considered the nigger in the woodpile. The Pennsylvania paid $106,000,000 for its controlling interest in Wabash and Lehigh. When Mr. Taplin last week also talked of buying for $30,000,000 Wheeling & Lake Erie, the Van Sweringens, who now control the road, asked sharply where the money was coming from. They put the query indirectly by petitioning the I. C. C. to compel the Taplins and Pennroad Corp. to reveal the price paid by the latter to the former for Pittsburgh & West Virginia-- which the Taplins are now planning to buy back. This figure Charles F. Taplin, general counsel for the interests of himself and his brother, refused to reveal. It is no secret that the Brothers Taplin are the bitter and determined enemies of the Brothers Van Sweringen. Nor is it news that the Pennsylvania is their equally determined, though not at all bitter opponent. That the brothers Taplin are the bitter rivals of the brothers Van Sweringen is no secret. Hence Nickel Plate's request that the I. C. C. order the Taplins and Pennroad Corp. to reveal the price paid by the latter to the former for Pittsburgh and West Virginia--which the Taplins are now planning to buy back. Obviously, the Van Sweringens suspect an alliance, believe that mighty Pennsylvania may be provider to the Taplins of the money for their expensive and expansive trunk line projects. Daniel Willard of the B. & O. evidently shares this belief. Last week, when Frank Taplin included Western Maryland (now controlled by B. & O.) in his project, Mr. Willard demanded proof of Taplin independence.

P: Wabash, which is also angling for Wheeling & Lake Erie and Western Maryland, last week withdrew its application before the I. C. C. for the former. Two days later Wabash asked to be allowed to intervene in the Clayton Act proceedings against Nickel Plate for its control of Wheeling. This is purely a technical maneuver of astute Wabash Chairman William Henry Williams. Though Pennsylvania controls his road, Mr. Williams is generally considered to be acting independently in his merger moves. Both he and the Taplins would assemble precisely the same system: Lehigh, Wabash, Wheeling & Lake Erie, Western Maryland, Pittsburgh & West Virginia. Such a system would be most distasteful to the Van Sweringens and the B. & O., most agreeable to the Pennsylvania.

P: New York Central's annual report revealed that the road had sold all its 15,456 shares of New Haven stock, had in 1929 swelled its total assets from $1,613,850,000 to $1,721.697,000.

P: The Van Sweringens' C. & O. asked the I. C. C. to let it split its stock four for one for wider public distribution.

P: The Big Four, New York Central subsidiary, offered $24,000,000 in bonds through a Morgan syndicate.

P: The Lake Cargo Case, most famed of railroad rate disputes, was once more opened before the I. C. C. Its essence: the demand of Pennsylvania and Ohio coal operators that freight rates to Lake Erie ports from their districts be reduced considerably below the rates for Southern coal to Lake ports.

P: Last week the I. C. C. gave its approval to the most important railroad extension of the year: the 200 miles of line that will be built in Northern California and Southern Oregon to connect the Western Pacific with the Great Northern. At the I. C. C. hearing on the project (TIME, Nov. 25), the Southern Pacific, whose line is the only existing through route between California and the Northwest, vigorously opposed the connection, which will open a second through route. Arthur Curtiss James, chairman and biggest stockholder of Western Pacific and a power in Great Northern, took a leading part in linking the two roads.

P: Attorney General Mitchell brought suit last week to restrain the Elgin, Joliet, & Eastern ("Chicago Outer Belt Line") from transporting products of the U. S. Steel Corp. The commodities clause of the Interstate Commerce Act forbids a railroad to haul commodities manufactured by it or by its subsidiaries. Whether the reverse also holds--that a manufacturer may not own a railroad that hauls his freight-- is the question, to determine which the Attorney General is bringing his suit. Should he win, U. S. Steel will be mightily embarrassed, for it will have to give up its control not only of the Elgin, Joliet, & Eastern, but also of the Bessemer & Lake Erie (which connects its mills with the lakes) and of its two roads in the iron mining district, the Duluth, Missabe & Northern and the Duluth & Iron Range.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.