Birmingham age-herald., 1895-09-11
THAT DEPOT AT GERARD The Vexed Question Considered by the Commission. AN INTERESTING OPINION The Claims of the Petitioners Are Fully and
 Fairly Set Out, AS WELL AS THE ROADS CONTENTION The Decision Is That Local Conditions and the State of the Road Do Not
 Justify the Erection of
 Building.
WELL AS THE ROADS CONTENTION

The Alabama railroad commission re-
 turned to the city last night from trip of inspection over the Alabama Great Southern railroad to Valley Head, DeKalb county, and left early this morning for Meridian From Meridian the commissioners will go to their office in Montgomery and transact quantity of accumulated business.
 The commissioners held an executive session yesterday and rendered the fol- lowing opinion in the celebrated Girard depot case, which was investigated by the honorable gentlemen some weeks ago:
 Citizens of Girard vs. the Mobile and
 Grard Railroad company.
 The petitioners ask that the railroad commissioners issue a notice to the Mo
 bile and Girard Railroad company, re- quiring them to erect a passenger and l freight depot house at Girard, Ala, a point on the line of said companys rail- road. In support of the petition, 1t is ayerred that the population of Girard is about 3500, and that no depot facilities whatever have been provided for that point; that if a passenger and freight de- pot house was erected there the business would largely increase, and that it is tha duty of the defendant corporation to pro- vide suitable depot houses for the com fort, convenience and accommodation of the public.
 We have made personal inspection of the place in Girard, at which it is asked to have the depot house erected; and we also made personal examina- ton of the general situation in and about Girard in order that we could better un- derstand all the local conditions The place at which petitioners want depot house erected is now used by the rail- road company as flag station, and the passenger trains stop there for passen- gers to,.get on and off. This station is situated on the west bank of the Chatta- foochee riverg and about 100 yards or more above it. There is a covered bridge across the river, over which pedestrians erd wheeled vehicles pass as liberty, and free of charge. This bridge is a free pub lie bridge, open at all times, day and night, for the use of the public. Girard,
 Ala, is situated on the west bank of the Chattahoochee river, and the city of Co.,
 hlmbus, Ga, Is situated on the east side. There is a passenger depot house in the middle of Broad street, in the city of Co.,
 lumbus, where the line of this railroad
 crosses said street, which house is only
 two blocks distant from the river-the flag station being immediately opposite
 on the west bank of the river in Ala
 bama. Parties living in or near Girard
 may go across the river on this free
 bridge, purchase tickets at the Broad
 street crossing in Columbus. or 'they may enter the cars at Girard flag station and pay same rates as if they had pur- chased tickets
 Petitioners represent the population of
 Girard to be about $500. No evidence was
 offered to prove this fact, and we assume
 that it is an estimate, and proximately
 near correct The passenger receipts al
 Girard for the year ending June 30, 1894,
 were S29l and for the year ending June
 S0 1895, they were $S37 These are small
 receipts for so large community of peo-
 ple and tend to show that the facilities
 for passenger travel furnished at Phenix
 City, Ala, and Columbus, Ga, have
 largely met the demands of the people of Girard The statistical department
 of the railroad company is unable to fur ,nish us with statement of the freight receipts for Girard on account of that
 place being a flag station. It is insisted by the company that little freight Is
 shipped to or from that point, and the
 petitioners in substance admit this 10 , be true, and say it results rom the fail
 ure of the company to erect depot house at the Girard flag station. It is urged
 that if freights be consigned to Girard
 they would be discharged from the cars
 at the flag station and left there on the
 ground-that for this reason the freight
 for Girard coming over the lines of the
 railroad are mostly unloaded in the
 freight house in the city of Columbus
 and hauled thence by drays to Girard,
 distance of something more than one
 mile The merchants and traders in
 Girard as hown by the evidence, buy
 largely from the merchants across the
 river in Columbus, many of whom de-
 liver in Girard the goods so purchased
 Less than one mile north of Girard there
 is a passenger and freight depot house.
 on the line of the Columbus and Western
 T a,,1 ctt tn6 xrt hn
 porate limits of Phenix City, munich
 pality adjoining the town of Girard on s the north.
 K If a freight house was erected at the
 Girard flag station, the merchants and
 traders and other consignees in that
 place would have to dray the freight
 from this depot to their several places of delivery. The houses in Girard are scat
 tered over quite large territory, which is more or less hilly. and if depot house
 was erected at the flag station, which is down in the southwestern part of the
 town, the approach to it would not be easy. and all freghts would have to be hauled away on drays and wagons. So far as the freight Is concerned, it is practically question of the difference in rates for draying from the Columbus depot, the Phenix City depot and the Girard depot to points in or near Girard. The erection of freight house in Girard would not stop the expense of drayage. It would probably reduce the expense from the amounts paid for draying from the depot in the city of Columbus. Build ing passenger and freight depot house at Girard would cost quite a good sum of money, for building to be satisfac- tory to the people there would probably cost not less than $2500 to 5000. Nor would this be the limit to the expense, for the erection of the depot house would bring along with it the additional ex- penses of maintaining an agent and telegraph station. When we consider the small passenger and freight business done at Girard, and the uncertainty of g. future increase. for it is speculative, we cannot, with our knowledge of the finan- cial condition of this railroad corpora tinu. acnuired officially. in good cQu-