Appeal from D. C. S. D. N. Y.

Applications for a stay of enforcement of an order of the Interstate Commerce Commission 1 authorizing a merger of the Pennsylvania R. Co. and the New York Central R. Co., pending this Court’s determination of appeals from a decision of a three-judge court in the Southern District of New York, 279 F. Supp. 316, sustaining both the Commission’s order authorizing the merger and its order 2 directing the Norfolk & Western R. Co. to include in its system the Erie-Laekawanna R. Co., the Delaware & Hudson R. Corp., and the Boston & Maine Corp., have been submitted to Mr. Justice Harlan as the Associate Justice assigned to the Second Circuit. The applicants for a stay include four railroad companies, 3 holders of New York, New Haven & Hartford R. Co. bonds, 4 a Pennsylvania city, 5 and a Pennsylvania R. Co. stockholder. 6

pursuant to our Rule 50 (6), has referred these applications to the Court for disposition. *947 Papers supporting the stay applications have been submitted by the Delaware & Hudson R. Corp. and the Erie-Lackawanna R. Co. In addition, the Baltimore & Ohio R. Co. for itself and certain other railroad carriers 7 has docketed an appeal from the part of the Southern District of New York judgment which upheld the Commission’s order authorizing the Penn-Central merger. Similarly, the Norfolk & Western R. Co. has docketed an appeal from that part of the judgment which upheld the order directing it to include in its system the three railroads named above. 8 These appellants have filed a joint motion to accelerate consideration of their appeals. Motions to consolidate and to accelerate consideration of the appeals have been filed by the Delaware & Hudson Corp. and the Erie-Lackawanna R. Co. The United States and the Interstate Commerce Commission and various other parties 9 have indicated that they do not oppose a stay of the merger if consideration of the appeals is substantially accelerated.

Upon consideration of these applications, motions, and other papers, a stay of enforcement of the order of the Interstate Commerce Commission, and the motions to consolidate and accelerate, are hereby granted subject to and in accordance with the following expedited schedule. See Hannah v. Larche, 361 U. S. 910; Erie-Lackawanna R. Co. v. United States, 385 U. S. 914. Any parties to the proceedings below who desire to appeal and have not already done so shall file notices of appeal and shall docket their cases on or before November 17, 1967. *948 Appellants who have filed notices of appeal but who have not perfected such appeals shall docket their cases on or before the same date. Appellees shall file their motions in response to the jurisdictional statements on or before November 27, 1967. Appellants shall file their replies to those motions on or before November 30, 1967. All appeals will be consolidated, and all matters involved are set for oral argument on December 4, 1967, without further exchange of briefs beyond that indicated hereafter. A total of four hours is allotted for argument, with two hours allotted to those supporting the judgment below and two hours to those attacking that judgment. Four attorneys will be permitted to participate in the oral argument on each side, the division of time to be settled among counsel. The case is to be submitted upon the oral arguments, the.jurisdictional papers before the Court, the briefs filed below (copies to be filed in this Court on or before November 20, 1967), and the typewritten record.