The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-11-29
NO BAR TO NEW RAILROADS.
THE OBSTACLE To THE GEORGIA
AND ALABAMA To BE RE-
MOVED,


An Amendment TO the Railroad Law
Satisfactory to All Parties Agreed
TO by the senate Committee on the
Line of the Resolutions by the
Board of Trade and Cotton Ex-
change-Where Competing Roads
Cannot Agree the Railroad Com
mission to Fix the Route of Any
Proposed Parallel Line.
The difficulty in the way of the Georgia
| and Alabama railway building into Sa-
vannah by reason of the distance limit un-
der which railroads are prohibited by
law from parallelling each other has
been, or viii be, removed as stated in the
Morning News yesterday, by the pass
age of the amendment to the general rail-
road law, which has been agreed to by
! the Senate committee, and which is also
understood to be satisfactory to both the
Central and Georgia and Alabama people.
The amendment is on the line of the
resolution adopted by the Savannah Board
of Trade and Cotton Exchange. 1t provides
that whenever the conditions imposed by
the general law are impracticable by
| reason Of the physical conformation of
the country surrounding an initial or
terminal point, or by reason Of the num-
Der of railroads centering at any initial
or terminal point, and the railroad COM
panies interested falling to agree, the
general law shall not apply, but in all such
cases the location of any proposed new
railroad with reference to initial or ter
minal points shall be fixed by the rail-
road commission on such route as may
be found practicable and as will the least
interfere with existing lines. 1t also pro-
Vides that the power given to the railroad
commission shall only extend to fixing
and providing the location by which any
new railroad may have access to either
Of its terminal points and nothing shall
be so construed as to otherwise change
the general policy of this state which re-
quires the general direction and loca-
ton OF railroads sought to be construct
ed to be ten miles from a constructed
road
The matter was before the railroad com
mittee Of the Senate Wednesday, and
was discussed at length. The amendment
was carefully gone over by Receiver
Conner and Capt. Little representing the
Central, and by Mayor Myers and City
Attorney Adams, with the members of
tory to them. 1t will, it is understood,
be reported at once without any doubt of
its passage.
The amended section will read as fol-
BE it enacted, that said railroad com
pany, In selecting the route of the same
is 10 be built, and in selecting the gem
eral route and in constructing said road
| and another railroad is already con-
structed or route selected and chartered
npfWHan al ffts....
ton and location Of the railroad under
this act shall be al least ten miles from
the railroad already constructed or laid
out and selected TO be constructed, but
this section shall not be construed to
refer to any point within ten miles of
either terminus or to prevent said road
from running as near to each other FOR
the first ten miles from either terminus
as the interest of such company building
the new route may dictate. Provided,
however. that whenever the conditions
imposed by this section are impracticable
| by reason of the physical conformation
OF the country surrounding an initial or
terminal point, or by reason of the num-
Der OF railroads. centering at any initial or
terminal point, ana the railroad compa-
MES interested failing to agree, then and
in that case this section shall not apply
but in all such cases the location of such
proposed new railroad with reference 70
initial or terminal points shall be made
and fixed under the order and by direction
or the railroad commission of this state,
which shall locate said new railroad on
such "a route as may be found practicable
and as will the least interfere with sx-
listing lines. Provided, further That the
power herein given to the railroad COM
mission shall only extend to fixing and
! providing the location by which any new
! railroad may have access to either of
! its terminal points and nothing herein
/ shall be so construed as to otherwise
| change the general policy of this state.
! which requires the general direction and
| location of railroads sought to be con-
/ Structed, to be ten miles from a con-
/ structed railroad"
Mr. w W. Mackall of the firm of Chart
ton, Mackan & Anderson, when asked
about the bill, yesterday, expressed him
self as satisfied with it, provided all par
ties, acted in good faith under it. He
said, however, that no agreement had
been reached with regard to 1t so far as
the Georgia and Alabama railroad is cons
cerned as ii had no representative before
the committee when the substitute was
presented.
4 did not know anything about this
bill until to-day" Mr.. MackaI said Mr..
Charlton and myself read it then for
the first time. So far as we can see, il
seems to answer all our purposes. What
we want is to build into Savannah with
out interference from other lines and as
far as possible without interfering with
other lines. This amendment, if acted
under in good faith by the several rail-
roads will enable us to accomplish this
object. Mr.. Conner has assured us that
he has no intention or desire to prevent
our road coming into Savannah, and we.
feel now that under this proposed amend
ment we would have no difficulty in car
rying out our plans. If we succeed in
purchasing the branch road from Lyons
to Meldrim, 1t Will simplify matters very
much as in that case we would have to
/ build only seventeen miles, and from a
railroad standpoint alone, it can be read
lily understood that we would prefer to
do this. | suppose there is no question
in the mind of anyone now as to our de-
sire to buy or lease the Lyons branch
Ihat stipulation was a part of our re-
organization scheme, and we have the
money in bank to buy or build. as the
case may be. 1t is for them to say now
whether they care to sell or not The
whole situation with US is this: We want
to buy or lease, if we can; and If we can
not We want to build without being in
terfered with