Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1895-01-28
TAKING IT AWAY.
Various Means Of Carrying
Off the Snow.
THE orrrs FORCES ARE AT WORK

a
Tho Railroads Transporting the Beautiful
Oat Of the Yards By the Car Load and
DaDPlns lt-Host Ohstruetine Storm In
Many Years, - After Evidence, Fully
Testify.
By order of Mayor Medill. Superin-
tendent of Streets Ward started with
men and teams this morning to clear
the huge piles of snow OF the princi-
pal streets. The blockade which.
outside of the swath cut by the Dav-
export & Rock Island Railway COM
pany. was complete, was attacked on
Second avenue first. and soon moved
down and carried down to the river.
After Second avenue had been lev
eled to q good sleighing surface, the
cross streets were tackled, and the
clearing away brigade then reached
out to adjoining streets until the
main portion of the city was put in
good condition for travel. 1t was a
big task, much more SO than people
in general had any idea of, and the
more the mass of the beautiful was
dug into the more it was realized
that the storm was, as said at the
time. the heaviest that has visited
US in years. The heavy downfall,
however. had its bright side. in real
ity as well rs in appearance, as it af-
forded opportunity for employment
for many men that would otherwise
have been idle, and the Davenport &
Rock Island Railway company,
which by clearing its tracks Friday
night and Saturday morning had
made it possible for business men
and people in general to reach the
business center. showed its
fairness of spirit by cooperating
promptly with the mayors sugges-
ton to bear it's proportion of the ex-
pense of removing the heaps from the
streets traversed by its track.
The Railroads.
The c., X. l. & P. and c., B. L. O.
railroads have been since Saturday
hauling the snow out of their respec-
tive yards by the train load and con-
veying it to places convenient for
dumping into the river. The rail-
roads, too, have found that q much
greater quantity of the flaky SUBJ
stance fell than was anticipated at
the time, and that all agencies of
travel have done well to get back
into their normal condition as soon
as they have.
The Davenport & Rock Island
Railway company is gradually get
ting the various lines of its system
opened. travel on its main lines be-
ing resumed Saturday night and
yesterday, while the Elm street
branch was started again today.
A Ridiculous Comparison.
A most ridiculous comparison is
made in the communication in the
interests Of the Moline Central of
Sufferer" in yesterdays Union. be-
tween the methods and equipment of
the Davenport 4 Rock Island Railway
company and the Moline Central, and
the attempt to apply to the Daven-
port & Rock Island railway system
the decision of Judge Gaynor COM
pelling corporations to operate their
property, in emergencies such as this
over which human hands have no
control, is as unreasonable as it
would be to have made application of
similar conditions to the Moline Gen.
trail at the time misfortune overlook
it when the Peoples Power company's
plant was destroyed by fire and when
the Moline Central was Frustrated
until the Davenport & Rock Island
Railway company was appealed to,
and responding. furnished the cur
rent that was needed until the
Peoples plant was rebuilt. The
comparison of fighting snow block
AIDES between the two roads is equally
absurd. The Moline Central has
reason to be proud of its success. but
it should not set itself up beside
system that has eight miles to its
one and Is cars to its one and under
circumstances when the storm tied
up all the street railroad systems in
its path including Chicago, Gales
burg. Rockford, Des Moines, ETC.. to
say nothing of the great steam rail-
roads. In the recent storm the Dav-
export & Rock Island Railway COM
pany has met with praise on every
hand for the way it has battled with
the elements on a system of such inn
mense proportions and in getting
things in anything like working
shape as soon as it has.