Evening journal., 1893-02-22
FIRST RAILWAY FIGHT.
New Castle County Represen-
Itatives Champion the WIN. c.
THE CoOPERs MEET FACE TO FACE


Eleventh Hour with Protest From
the New Castle Gas company-A ction on
the wilmington-New Castle Charter
Postponed Until This Afternoo on-The
Charter VIII be Granted.
stan Correspondence Evening Journal.
DOVER. Feb % The first big railway
fight of the session came off in the House
yesterday and occupied much of the
morning and all of the afternoon session.
II was betweenthe Wilmington City Rail-
way Company, represented byPresident
Preston Lea and Vice president Will
lard salisbury, Jr., and the Wilmington
and New Castle Electric Railway Com
pany, represented by Peter l.. Cooper,
Jr., its counsel To all interests and
purposes the old company was defeated,
as its amendment to the charter was re
jected by large vote, only eight of the
members voting for it. The seven
members from New Castle county stood
shoulder to shoulder againsJ It and for
the bill as reported from the Committee
on Corporations.
The final vote will not be taken until
this morning, but as several of the
members who voted for the amendment
will vote for the bill with or without the
amendments, if pushed to it the charter
will pass, giving the new company a
terminal at Fourth and Shipley streets
in the city Of Wilmington.
Peter L. Cooper's Rejection.
The Wilmington City Railway Com.
puny had made the proposition to amend
the charter in such way as to make the
Ia
there to make connection with the old
line, which was TO haul the New
Castle cars and passengers to any
designed point in the city
for consideration. To ensure the ful.
fillment of this provision the resident
Judge Of New Castle county was en-
powered to appoint three men as arbitra-
tors to settle any and all disputes which
might arise. If the old company failed
TO carry out the provisions of the act the
new company was at liberty to 60 into
the city over Market street bridge and
along Front and up Shipley to Fourth
street.
The committee agreed to insert the
amendment If it met with the approval
of the promoters of the new company.
Mr.. Salisbury communicated with Mr..
Cooper and the latter conferred with his
colleagues. They rejected the PROPOSE
tion and Mr.. Cooper sent the following
comm unication to the members of the
committee:
Counsel Cooper's Rejection.
The following is the full text Of Mr..
Coopers refusal to accept the New Castle
avenue proposition of the Wilmington
City Railway Company.
e.. INI.N
''MY DEAR SgR-I have conferred Will
the parties in interest of the Whining
ton and New Castle Electric Railway
Company and submitted Mr.. Salisbury
proposition to them, and they are unani
mously Of the opinion that it would no
be safe for them 10 put their money int
any enterprise tied up with condition.
and allied with another corporation whicl
state Of facts would sooner or later neces
state legal arbitration. You understand il
is risk of capital under the most favor
able circumstances, and for people wit
are unacquainted with legal matters Il
understand that we could not get int
the city without co operating with Al
older and stronger company would a
once frighten capital and defeat tn
very object of our company, viz. tn
construction of an electric railway iron
New Castle to Wilmington. When W
have secured our charter l have no doub
that we could effectuate an arbitration
which would be of mutual advantage Z
the two companies, but young compan
cannot be hampered by conditions touch
ing not the public interest but the inter
est of a private company. As this is
indeed, a matter of public interest an
public improvement, our promoters can
not understand why. private corpors
tion should be injected between the legis
lators and public demand, and be pel
mitted to say that the largest two citie
of our state shall not be connected by
system Of rapid and cheap communici
tion unless il meets with its approval
II beg you TO remember that we ar
not competing with them nor construct
ing a line which can do them any fnar
cial injury And after all It seems 70 q
that the only question to be considere
is, would it be for the general good q
the people for an electric line 10 /
operated between New Castle and Wi
mington, and we think it should be
considered without any regard to inte
est OF private individuals or prival
corporations.
"Hoping you may submit our bill
the intelligence of the General Assembl
to be promptly acted upon on Tuesday
this week, am Very truly.
p. L. CooPsR. q"
skirmish Lines Thrown Out.
The skirmishing began Just befo
adjournment for the noon recess. NJ
Watkins, representing three of the fil
members of the committee on priva
corporations made q favorable repo
upon the bill informing the House thi
IL was majority report.
Representative salisbury had given
Representative Hickman the minori
report which consisted Of an amendmei
embodying the proposition which hl
been refused by Mr. Cooper and
colleagues.
Messrs. Cooch, Dasey aud Saulsbu
then INDUCED in desultory debate, Il
former being for the majority report AT
and the latter for the amendment. NJ
Salisbury said that he wanted to ma
lis speech after dinner, aud suggests
the propriety of throwing the matt
a. lie a.. 10