Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-05-15
THE L STREET ROAD
No Action Was Taken on It in the House
Yesterday.
An Interesting Debate on the Rights
and the General Public.

afternoon until 8 o'clock, when Mr.. Hep
burn offered an amendment providing that
all OF the cars Of the Belt Railway Com
pany shall, after January /. 1896. be oper-
ated by underground electric or cable
power. At this point Mr.. Heard moved an
adjournment, and District day closed with
out action upon the bill.
The debate on the bill during the after
noon developed a great deal OF opposition to
the measure, and in fact only members of
the District committee favored it. Mr.. Hep
burn was prominent in the opposition. bas-
ing his objections to the road upon two
main propositions. first, that the Till does
not provide for undertaking the equipment
and operation of the road, and that the
property owners on l. street will be injured
by the widening of the street. without be-
ing afforded an opportunity for redress
from the company.
During the discussion as to the rights of
| owners of AUDITING property. Mr.. Reed ask
ed If L street is not owned by the United
States. Mr.. Heard replied that it is.
Mr.. Reed ON street Ownership.
Then" said AIR. Reed, IF 1t is owned
| by the United States. from building 10
building. how is anybody else going TO get
damages for injury resulting from the
| United States by action of Congress. en-
ploying its streets, which it has paid for,
for any purpose that suits IL? For the
United States to authorize somebody to so
upon its land, and then TO provide for
| damages TO somebody else on some other
! land, would be rather anomalous. Here Is
| an absolute ownership CT land on the part
| of the United States. and yet IL Is proposed
/ to subject IL TO An easement that IS TO give
everybody the right that Adults on IL to
claim damages"
Mr. Hepburn insisted that the United
States has sold to these abutting owners
with the implied agreement that the street
shall be used only for the purpose of ordin-
airy traffic, and when it subjects those
streets TO an added servitude. ii is hound
| in morals TO do ell ii ran 20 protect the
abutting property owners.
| Mr. Heard asked II 1t was not a perver-
sion of that use for the United States 10
provide that individuals might fierce IN a
| portion OF that land 10 be used as their
private parks. and that they might under
mine the streets and put their coal cellars
under them. thus using them as private
property.
| proper and the proposed grant TO the rail-
road improper, and the bill should lot pass
| in its present faulty condition.
| Mr.. Wise had read at the clerks desk
letter from Mr.. +. J. Stellwagen, recently
published in The Star, Directing to the use
| of L street on the ground that the water
main would be damaged by the trenches for
the road.
A letter was also read from ex-senator
Edmunds. published in The Star. opposing
the further extension of street railways in
the northwest.
No Fear Of InjurinG Water Mains.
Mr. Richardson said that two of the per-
sons opposing this road-Mr. II. A. Willard
and Mr.. Stellwagen-were in 1890 incorpo-
rators OF a parallel line on NJ street. The
Engineer Commissioner Of the District does
not fear that this road will injure the water
e. Afe 20, Lob ,fs
the mains. Mr.. Richardson made plea for
the poor people of the city. who need street
railways, and urged disregard of the de-
mands of the rich, who live in palaces and
drive their bob-tailed horses and fine car
riages with coats OF arms on them.
Mr.. Grain of Texas held that some of the
property owners were not given opportu-
nifty to be heard against the bill. He
thought the bill should be recommittei to
the committee. to give the property owners
opportunity to be heard. The rights of pri-
waite individuals should be protected as far
as possible.
Mr. Baker of New Hampshire wanted to
know what had become of the protest of
the seventy-sx property owners on l. street
He wanted to know how much property
they represented. He said that no persons
directly on the line of the road along l.
street have asked for the road.
Who should Pay Damages.
At one point in the debate the following
colloquy occurred:
Mr.. Hepburn-"The interest of the general
public can be conserved and the railroad
can be built in this place. 1t seems to me- IL
this beneficiary. the corporation, that will
have large dividends from its operations.
pay to the owners a consideration for that
which they take away from them"
Mr.. Heard-"I ask the gentleman to be
just enough to say that the general public
which will also be beneficiary, should also
contribute"
Mr.. Hepburn--"The general public ought
not to be compelled to contribute In my
judgment. to the benefit of this local cor
poration."
Mr.. Everett on Franchises.
At later point in the discussion Mr..
Everett of Massachusetts replied to Mr.
Heard's suggestions as follows:
Mr.. Chairman. before the general debate
closes l wish TO comment upon 8 part of the
remarks of the gentleman from Missouri
CMr. HearD. the chairman of the commit
tee. in which he seemed TO take the ground
that the beneficiaries in such scheme as
this were the general public and that Il was
not right 10 speak Of the company that
obtained the franchise as receiving benefit
from it. 1 have heard that kind of argu-
ment a good deal at home. Mr. Chairman
L have heard the street railway companies
in the city of Boston claiming that because
they accommodated the general public or
said that they accommodated it. because the
general public Travelled in their cars and
made use of their roads. therefore the gen
eral public got the benefit of the franchise:
and, in fact, the street railway companles
there have argued that they were the public
and that the people who lived along the
streets had nothing at all TO do with the
public.
The Condition In Boston.
THE consequence has been Mr. Chair
man, in our city that street after street
| road after road. franchise after franchise
| right after right, has been surrendered for
nothing. taken away from the general pub
lie and put in the hands of these companies
that claim that because they carry the
public therefore they are the public. Then
| they have been consolidated into one vast
| corporation, and that great street railroad
! corporation has got the public by the
| throat. 1t is considered as having the city
government by the throat, and the legisla-
4 ture by the throat, doing exactly what IL
peases at all times and in all places; and
| when the public attempts to regulate IT,
when the public attempts to control it,
when the public attempts to give competi-
tive franchises. when the public attempts
to put IL under any sort of control then
| that vast octopus, which has got the public
by the throat and is choking it, brides up
/ and We the nlhlip