National Republican., 1883-10-02
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
COMMISSIONER EDMoNDs AND THE RAILWAY
QUESTION.
10 ihe ElilOr.

QUESTION.
TO The Editor.
Your paper is the only one of this city that
has the independence and manlness TO lay
before the public the intolerablo arrogance of
the Baltimore and Potomac railway and tho
great wrong the people of South Washington
suller in the use of streets and avenues for
railway purposes For your fearless oxpos-
tion, which has already borne fruit, tho poo-
plo OF this section owe you debt Of graft
tude
Will you please publish portion of two in
terviews that | had with Commissioner Ed
monds relative TO n side track leading down
thirteenth street to q private coal yard. |
live on Maryland avenue, within fifty feet
of tho main track, tho switch of the offending
side traclNbeing nearly in front of my house.
About Two weeks after tho unloading of
cars on Maryland avenue, between Twelfth
and Thirteenth streets, was stopped by
tho stern mandates Of law, l
heard that the railway was about
to lay this side track. l waited on the
commissioner to protest against It. He told
me that the railway had improved our prop
erty ~ por cent, and that it was no longer fit
| for dwellings,; that it would become great
business center, and y great deal more
such talk, too long and too foolish for repro
ductiou hero. | told him would bring him
| a petition the next day Saturday. signed by
everyone living in tho vicinity. The next
morning at 3 o'clock llfty-tivo men were ut
work laying down this side track hastily
| scattering tho tics, aud mailing ON the iron
| ahead of the grading sort of thief in tho
| night style--and the foreman OF the work
| openly boastcd that tho reason they COM
mencod on Saturday was because there was
no court held on that day to enable us to got
| out an Injunction.
| This track has grade Of about 100 feet to
| the mile around stiff curve and the weight.
| NJ frin ID thuf tltn
monster engines have to be fired up to their
fullest capacity, casting out dense volumes of
smoke aud cinders at such a low grade, which
! the wind sweeps into our houses. Moreover,
tho. engines cannot haul more than two or
three cars at time, thus being forced to make
many trips to tho yard. These cars, loaded
ana unloaded, are run up on Maryland
avenue, and hauled up and down several
times to separate the empty from the loaded
ones. This is done at all hours of night and
day, as well as Sundays.
Last Wednesday l waited on the Hon.
Mr.. Edmonds with two property holders
| TO have tho permit for this track re-
voked, rs he mad told me in my first
interview that it was only temporary.
His reply was that we had driven the
railway company from unloading in the
streets, and that they must have some place
to unload. Must they go over to Virginia?'
he asked. We complained of tho smoke
and cinders. He said that was uni
vcrsal in Pttsburg, as if that was parallel
case. We told him that we were subjected to
this annoyance for the benefit of private
| individual from whom we could buy
coal no cheaper than elsewhere We asked il
these facilities were not granted this coal
merchant on account of his name being OH
Mr.. Vests bond. He replied that he did not
know that he was on MIR. WIS bond and that
he did not even know who was on his own
bond. Mr.. w. seems to be better posted as
he is very frequently seen in the company, OF
his coal traffic bondsman. BY the way,
| THE REPUBLICANS Saturday issue must have
smoked them out, for on Sunday afternoon
| Mr.. w. and his G. L. b. came down and per-
sonally supervised tho shifting of quite q
number of coal cars, doubtless trying TO find
something to disprove statements made in
your reliable paper. Old Goliah hooked
on to three loaded cars and started around
the horseshoe. They stuck o. G.. was
either tovorawed by tho august presence OF
fates were against him. Such putting, hiss.
ing, and pounding, as the wheels would slip
belongs only to pandemonium Did the
aforesaid supervisors look veXed? / should
smile! was afraid Mr. w. was going t.
pull his own hair, and as to 9. r. b. hC
looked like he had been out to Ingeany anC
had a spell of tho milk-sick.
1 Now, Mr.. Editor, the revenues of the cit,
are diminished in two ways in this rail
ridden locality-irst, tho assessment of oul
property has been Lowered ON account of tn,
| railway; second, if the railway was com
PEELED to build freight depot of sufficient
magnitude to accommodate their busines.
and tax levied thereon, that would be an.
other source. But hnrk, from tho tombs
| II mean tho commissioners comes the doleful
sound that we have too much revenue
Therefore they lowered the tax. sec.