Bus Race

Last week the U.S. busline business honked and roared with excitement as the nation's biggest highway transport system came sailing out of its best year, and eight other lines banded together, opened up their managerial throttles in a daring effort to overtake the leader.

From his Chicago office, strapping President Carl Eric Wickman announced that Greyhound Corp., with net profits of $4,673,465, had earned $7.55 a common share after paying preferred dividends. The dividend on one Greyhound common share was thus $5.30 more than Carl Wickman made in his first bus operation.

A young Minnesota Swede who had been a diamond-drill operator in the iron mines until the slack season of 1914, Carl Wickman became the Hupmobile salesman in the bare little town of Hibbing. Unable to sell the first Hupp sent him, he began a small livery business. Collections on his first trip amounted to $2.25. Presently he added a partner, another automobile, scheduled trips. By 1918 the company was making some $40,000, had 18 ramshackle busses in northern Minnesota.

In 1922 Busman Wickman sold out for $60,000, wandered to Duluth where he began buying up small businesses. Established as Northland Transportation Co., this system prospered so sweetly it looked good to Great Northern Railway's then President Ralph Budd. Unlike other railmen, he considered busses not as rivals but as possible allies. In 1926 Great Northern therefore bought 80% of "Northland for $240,000. Leaving that concern largely in Great Northern's capable hands, Busman Wickman formed Greyhound Corp., a holding company for a baker's dozen of other buslines which he & associates proceeded to buy. By 1929 Greyhound straddled from coast to coast, and straddled on Greyhound was a top-heavy financial structure in which Goldman Sachs Trading Corp. held a large interest.

Greyhound crashed into trouble when Depression struck. Its superb operation under President Wickman continued to make profits but not enough to carry its dividend commitments. These might well have ditched Greyhound for good but for the timely arrival of smart Atlas Corp., which in 1933 took over Goldman Sachs Trading Corp. and with it Greyhound. Atlas left President Wickman in the saddle but cut off the huge dividend arrears by a redivision of stock. With six railroads owning a share in them, Greyhound Lines last week had 1,726 busses which traveled 137,998,394 miles in 1935, an increase of 10% over 1934.

To eight other lines. Greyhound's boom brought not joy but envy. Forgathering in

Chicago, they formed National Trailways System to give Greyhound a run for its money from coast-to-coast.

Unlike Greyhound, Trailways is not a corporation. It is an association of five big bus companies, three little ones, each with individual franchises, terminals, routes. Each will continue to act as a separate unit, run only its own busses. But all busses will be painted a common cream & maroon, bear a common name, issue through tickets on each others' lines, will therefore to the public seem identical in function with Greyhound. Only difference will be that Trailway riders will change busses frequently, no great disadvantage because bus riders constantly have to get out anyway.

Biggest of the new allies is the Santa Fe Trail System, with 300 busses operating over 12,000 miles. More than 50% owned by the Santa Fe Railroad, its lines run from Chicago to Denver to Los Angeles, with many feeders in the Southwest. Next biggest is Missouri Pacific Transportation Co., owned entirely by Missouri Pacific Railroad, with headquarters in St. Louis. Its 130 busses run over 4,600 miles in the territory between St. Louis, Salt Lake, New Orleans and Brownsville, Tex. Burlington Transportation Co., with 100 busses, is third in the group. Owned by Ralph Budd's Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, it operates from Chicago to Omaha, Salt Lake, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Burlington's General Manager Henry Wylie Stewart is chairman of National Trailways' managing committee. A 48-year-old son of an Indiana Presbyterian preacher, his early career fluctuated between railroading and voice teaching in music school. Eventually he bought a coal mine near Peoria, got into busses in 1924.

Fourth biggest in Trailways is the Frank Martz Coach Co., operating 127 busses over 2,000 miles between Chicago, Philadelphia, Buffalo and Boston. Others in the association are Safeway Lines, operating between Chicago, Manhattan and Washington; Rio Grande Motorway, owned by Denver & Rio Grande Western Railway; the Denver, Salt Lake & Pacific Co., a joint subsidiary of Burlington, Missouri Pacific and Rio Grande Motorway; and the Denver, Colorado Springs & Pueblo Motorway.

To these eight companies and their 27,000 total mileage, Trailways expects to add many another busline within the year. All eight of the present group made money last year, have a total value of some $10,000,000. After a few changes in schedule and terminal facilities, they expect to begin functioning under their new title by April 1.

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