The Rock Island daily Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1872-1873, 1873-01-29
THE FERRY LANDING AND OUR LEvEE.
Importance Of Better Accommodations for
Steamboats, and the River Business.

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The Union says
Hundreds of people seemed to be continuously
on the river yesterday, both on foot and In sleighs
Exactly so,--and it is so every day.
And this brings to our mind the fact that
all this crossing is at Eagle street, and the
other fact that the Spencer and Robinson
ferry clique have never been able 20 oher
but one reason why the ferry Iaholhg
ought not to be at Eagle -tfee'' VIZ 1t
| is dangerous to teams Oh "o1oun' vi the
cars That has ben their torlorn hope,
and on that they have relied-but this
w;Dtor has demonstrated its weakness as
an ob;ection for there has been constant
and sfeady stream of sleighs crossing the
ice, at Eagle street, all winter, and not
single accident Of any sort, and no fagman
at the street either The truth is there is
little if any difference between Eagle and
Washington in respect 10 danger from
cars, and no accident has occurred at either
place and there is no good ground to sup
pose any accident will occur at either
place If Eagle is a dangerous place a
Aagman can be kept therc-but the fact
that there has been a continuous stream of
teams crossing there all winter, without
the slightest accident Of any kind, shows
pretty clearly that the objection of the fer
ry clique TO Eagle street is not valid one.
| II Eagle is a dangerous place on account
of the switching of ears the City Council
can prevent the switching of cars there.
/ No railroad company has ever been given
the right 10 make switching ground
there, and it is within the power Of the
Council to regulate that matter 81 it shall
/ be safe
The honest truth about the ferry matter
is this: Our people long ago perceived
that their steamboat landing. already too
small, was being encroached upon every year
BY accretions of sand below the Island, 50
that when steamboat was taken up As far
as Jefferson street it could not get out
without backing down long distance, -
and, some years ago, it was perceived that
this difficulty was growing worse every
year, and that was the reason the city eX-
/ pended some FIVE or six thousand dollars
to make good landing at Eagle street,
and ordered the ferry dock removed 10 that
point. SO that more room could he given
( for the river business on the levec The
ferry company occupied the landing at
/ Eagle street one year. with great satistac-
tion to the teams crossing, because the ap-
proach is much easier for teams there than
a; Washington street Last wear hnwev-
I err. on account Of some spite towards the
Cables. the ferry company moved back e.
/ Washington street and refused to obey the
orders Of the City Council as t. the place
Of landing The effect has been 10 divide
and nearly destroy our steamboat landing
and business, because the ferry company
persists in defying the City Council and
squatting down in the centre of the land
ing thus rendering it tho small and con-
tracted and inc0nvenient for the business
Of the town, either above or below
the ferry dock at Washington street. If
the people yield to the ferry
company they practically say that they do
not desire steamboats, to land here al all
Are they prepared u say that Ofcourse
not They must, therefore, in order to
accommodate the steamboat business Of
the town, either move the ferry dock
up TO Madison street or down 10 Eagle or
below Eacle-and as the city has already
expended five or six thousand dollars t.
make first class landing at Eagle street
It is quite likely the people viii refuse =
spend five or Fix thousand dollars more t.
make a landing anywhere else. as by NOV
ing the ferry to Eagle there then remains
room enough above Eagle for the comfort
able and Convenient transaction ii the
steamboat and river business. On ac-
count Of the roads leading cut Of town
Eagle is much the best place Of any street
in town for the landing The approach To
and from the boat AT Eagle is also much
the easiest and best Of amy in town. til,
the most convenient for the people On oc-
count of the post office, the banks, the
city and county offices Market Square.the
public scales and on every other account
which can be named Aud the daily
stream Of sleigh- crossing there all winter
shows that il is not dangerous. or even
more dangerou, than Washington street
The City Council should see to it that the
order making Eagle street the landing is
lntorced, and enact such laws as will carry
out the peoples views on this subject.