Monday, Oct. 31, 1932
Deals & Developments
Finished Fisheries. In Alaskan waters and off the Maine Coast, in the Great Lakes and Puget Sound, operate 1,100 fishing boats flying the red diamond house flag of Booth Fisheries Co. Last week the captains of these vessels well might have half-masted their house flags. In Chicago Booth's directors had decided to place the company in voluntary bankruptcy.
Although it is one of the biggest seafood companies, handling 65,000,000 lb. a year and running four big cold storage plants and 75 sales offices, Booth has not earned much money lately. In 1920 it paid its last preferred dividend; during its last reported fiscal year ending May 2, 1931, it lost $1,204,000. President of the company until he died by his own hand last year was Knowlton Lyman ("Snake") Ames, publisher of Chicago's Journal of Commerce, fullback (Princeton) on Walter Camp's first (1889) All-American football team.
New Loads. Seatrain Lines, Inc., which ferries loaded freight cars from New York to Havana and New Orleans, last week had a competitor by sea and a counterpart by land. The competitor was a car-ferry service by Florida East Coast Railway Co. The East Coast, long in receivership, has operated a ferry between Key West and Havana, was last week authorized to use its surplus equipment and extend the service to New Orleans, just as fortnight ago Seatrain Lines, Inc., was authorized to extend its route to New York (TIME, Oct. 17).
Seatrain's counterpart by land appeared last week when the Alton, now a unit of Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, was permitted to carry loaded trucks on flat cars between Chicago and East St. Louis. Trucks up to 20 tons are accepted, loaded and unloaded at the truck firm's expense. The transportation costs between $30 and $60 depending on weight, is slightly cheaper than the cost of driving the truck over highways. This service was hailed as "the first move of the western steam railroads to cooperate with trucking companies." Several months ago Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee (electric) offered similar service.
This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.