Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-09-12

n1ISSlOnefSs
The hearing before the commissioners APP
pointed by the supreme court to decide the lOca-
ton of the union passenger depot in this city
began yesterday, at City hail. in the common
council room. The commission, it will be re-
membered, consists of Hon. George 7. Bigelow,
formerly chief justice of the supreme judicial
court, Nathaniel Bradley, Esq. land Hon. Onslow
Stearns. The several parties in the case were
represented by counsel as follows: The Boston
and Albany railroad by Hon. f. Il. Hoar and
Mr. G. S. Hale; the Worcester and Nashua rail-
road by Hon q. +. Hoar and. Hon. p. Emory
Aldrich; the Norwich and Worcester railroad by
Hon. W. W. Rice; the Boston, Barre and Gard
ner railroad by Mr. F. P. Goulding; the Provi-
dence and Worcester railroad by Hon p. Emory
Aldrich; the city of Worcester by T. l.. Nelson,
city solicitor, and Hon. Dwight Foster.
Mr. T. K Lothrop, for the assignees of the Bos
ton, Hartford and Erie railroad and the trustees
Of the Berdel bondholders of that road, came be-
fore the commission and presented motion
for delay, claiming that under the lease of the
Norwich and Worcester road to the Boston,
Hartford and Erie road all expenses incurred by
the former, for changing its location, or laying
new tracks must ultimately be borne by the Bos-
ton, Hartford and Erie railroad or its successors
under the lease, which makes the Boston,
Hartford and Erie road party in interest, as
much as any other road, and therefore entitled
TO a proper notice that they may be properly
represented at the hearing. His clients he said,
have had no legal notice, and heard of the mat
ter quite accidentally, and are not at this time
properly prepared. He also urged that under
the act (sect. ~ the Boston and Albany road
should previous to the hearing. have filed in the
office of the railroad commissioners plans for the
erection of the depots on each of the two sites,
which has not been done.
Mr. Foster, Hon. f. Il. Hoar and Mr.. Gould
ING each spoke against any delay, and after a
second statement from Mr.. Lothrop the COM
mission announced its decision to be that the
hearing should go on, the Boston, Hartford and
Erie road not being parties in interest, within
the meaning of the act and the order of the
court, and not entitled to be heard in the mat
ter in any form.
An inquiry in regard to the authority under
which counsel were acting developed the fact
that the Providence and Worcester railroad OPP
posed any requirement of that road to extend its
tracks to Washington square, and appeared at
the hearing for the purpose of such opposition.
After the disposition of several preliminary
matters, which occasioned considerable discus
sion, the order of proceeding was decided upon,
| and Mr.. Hale for the Boston and Albany road
opened by presenting the advantages of the
| Washington square location over the one pro
npsaI bntwppn (1rnpu aud sfr 10
explained the act of the legislature which pro-
yided that the union depot should be located on
the line of the Boston and Albany road within
certain limits, the site to be fixed upon by the
roads interested; providing also that in case Of a
disagreement of the roads the matter should be
decided by commission, to which measure it
| had been found necessary to resort.
| The commission must present their
report within forty days, and the depot
completed within two years from the date of the
act. He maintained that the original intention
of the legislature was to have the depot built on
the easterly side of Grafton street, on land
owned by the Boston and Albany corporation,
and that the section requiring that road to build
| and maintain the depot did not originally con-
| template the expense of purchasing the land
| which would be necessary, between Green and
Grafton streets. He compared the cost of the
| two locations, estimating that some hundreds
| of thousands of dollars would be necessary to
place it at Green street more than it would
cost if located east of Grafton street.
| He discussed the question of the facility of
access of the locations, pointing out the superior
advantages of that located east of Grafton
street. The superior access, he urged, can be
obtained by crossing tracks at grade less than
| the other plan; it will also make less Obstruc-
| tions, and less danger and inconvenience. He
said the plan proposes the bridging of Grafton
street at an expense of some $4,000; by the
terms of the act the transfers across Front Me
chanic and Bridge streets are also to be ac-
complshed by tracks running above grade,
He dwelt at length and in detail upon the rea-
sons for locating the depot easterly of Grafton
street, instead of between Green and Grafton,
consuming the entire forenoon and portion of
the aiternoonIsession. He was followed by Mr..
Nelson for the city.
Mr. Nelson entered into a statement of the
advantages aud disadvantages of each location.
as the city would be effected. He maintained
that it was matter of the rst importance TO
the city to have the depot in the most desirable
place, and carefully described the course of
the various railroads and the streets leading
to the proposed locations. One disadvantage
in the Washington square depot, he said, would
be the necessity of turning the seats in cars run.
ming through the city from one road to the
other, north and south, but the weight of this
would be taken off by the fact that
never until this season had cars been
run through, and now only to a limited
extent. An advantage mentioned for that 10.
cation was thar it is the most easily accessible
as the streets of the city are laid out, and will
do away with dangerous crossings by the brdg.
ing Of Grafton street and the viaduct over
Front street, as provided for by legislative act
while by locating the depot between Green and
Grafton streets, a perpetual crossing of the most
dangerous and annoying kind is necessilated al