Exhibit 99.1


                EASTERN ENTERPRISES COMPLETES COLONIAL GAS MERGER


         WESTON,  MA - August 31, 1999 - Eastern  Enterprises  (NYSE: EFU) today
announced  that it had  completed  its merger with  Colonial Gas Company  (NYSE:
CLG).
         Colonial  shareholders  will receive the equivalent of $37.50 per share
in cash  and/or  Eastern  common  stock.  Colonial  shareholders  who elected to
receive  Eastern common stock will receive 0.85239 share of Eastern common stock
for every  share of Colonial  common  stock,  based on  Eastern's  market  value
(determined  by the  average  closing  price per  share for the ten  consecutive
trading days prior to and  including  the third trading day prior to the closing
date),  subject  to  proration.   Preliminary  results  indicate  that  Colonial
shareholders  have elected to receive Eastern stock for  approximately 6 million
shares of Colonial stock. Therefore, according to the terms of the merger, those
elections will be pro-rated to receive  approximately  82% Eastern stock and 18%
cash. All Colonial  shareholders  who elected to receive cash for their Colonial
shares will  receive cash  payment.  Colonial  shareholders  who did not make an
election  will  receive  cash  for  their  Colonial  shares  and  will  be  sent
instructions as to how to exchange their shares over the next few days.  Eastern
is paying  $150  million  cash and  issuing  approximately  4,220,000  shares in
connection with this transaction,  which has an equity value of $336 million and
a total transaction value of $474 million.


         Eastern Enterprises owns and operates Boston Gas Company,  Colonial Gas
Company,  Essex Gas Company,  Midland Enterprises Inc. and ServicEdge  Partners,
Inc. Upon completion of the pending merger with EnergyNorth,  Inc., Eastern will
serve over 800,000  natural gas customers in  Massachusetts  and New  Hampshire.
Midland, headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, is the leading carrier of coal and a
major  carrier  of other dry bulk  cargoes  on the  nation's  inland  waterways.
ServicEdge is the largest  unregulated  provider of  residential  HVAC equipment
installation and service to customers in Massachusetts.


Eastern Enterprises' press releases are available via fax by calling, toll-free,
1-800-311-4607 or on the Internet at Eastern's Home Page on the World Wide Web:
http://www.efu.com

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