Evening star., 1895-06-20

the Editorial business Depart
ments, according to tenor or purpose.
The closer the letter sent by General
Manager Schoepf to the District Commits
sioners yesterday in relation to the New
York avenue line is scrutiniZed the more
astounding appears the position therein as
sumed. Speaking for the board of direc-
tors of the lexington road. he says in eff
feet that they will not comply with the pro-
visions of the statute requiring them to re-
move their overhead wires from New York
avenue by July 1. 1895. because they have
not sufficient funds with which to equip
the road with an underground electric sys-
TEN. and because Congress has not granted
the company authority to issue additional
bonds. Had attention been directed to
the matter" Mr.. Schoepf says, Congress
would undoubtedly have given authority
for an increase of the roads indebtedness,
and therefore in the absence of such an in
timation there is lack of legislative au-
thorlty and therefore OF ability on the
part of the road to establish in lieu of the
present system other means of rapid traa-
sit. Whose fault Is that attention of Con-
gress has not been directed to this "embar-
RAISING restriction?'
The legislative history of the lexington
and Soldiers Home railroad is not favor
able to the company in it's present rebel
lous attitude. This company was char
tered on the 10Th of June, 1883. to run a
line from New York avenue and 7th str .et
into the country. and erected over that
route an overhead trolley system. April 80,
1870, Congress passed another statute eX-
tending the line to 18th and G streets, and
authorizing some suburban branches,
increased the capital stock, and provided:
THAT the authority of said company by this
act or any other ac. conferred to erect or
use overhead wires in its operation within
the city of Washington shall absolutely
cease and determine on July 1, 1893"
Thus the company had at that time over
three years notice that 1t would be required
to substitute the new system of motive
power on the line between the corner of
New York avenue and 7th street and the
city limits. But the directors of the road
whatever may have been their protesta-
tons. took absolutely no steps toward com
pliance with this express and unmistak-
able provision of the law, and in the WIN
ter of 1893, finding that the time for remov-
ing the trolley poles was rapidly drawing
to a close, they went before Congress and
secured, in an act approved February 13.
1898, an extension of this time to July l,
1895, thus making the total time of warning
given by Congress five years and two
months Again the time generously allowed
this dilatory corporation was frittered
away, and no steps of any kind Were Sc
riously and honestly taken for change of
motive power. although there was a dis
play of apparent energy and experimenting
with a novel method of magnetic propIl-
sion on North Capitol street. Accordingly,
calender, the agents of the road went once
more before Congress, and succeeded by
trick in securing the adoption of an amend
ment on bill, which Immediately passed
the House in the hurry of the last hours
of a District day. Incorporating the East
Washington Belt Line Company. This
amendment granted the lexington trolley
one year additional extension. Its motive
and effect were at once exposed in these
columns. and the effort to sneak the eXten-
sion through Congress finally failed so that
the road today stands as it did in February,
1885, required to remove the poles on the
1st of July.
There might be some show of reason in
Mr.. Schoepf's argument that the hands of
the company are tied owing to the legisll-
tive restriction on it's issue of bonds If it
should appear that the present emergency
had risen suddenly or that this restriction
upor Its debt-incurring capacities had been
placed by Congress in recent months. On
the contrary, the history of the road shows
that this restriction was laid by Congress
in the act of July 5, 1892, three years before
the period of the trolley on New York ave-
nue. was finally to cease. 1t further ap-
pears from a scrutiny Of the various acts
of Congress relating to this stubborn COM
hot hos tn
creased whenever Congress has been asked
to grant such authority, and there is abso-
lutely no evidence today on the statute
books or in the annals of Congress to show
that application has ever been made TO
either House for authority to issue more
bonds for the purpose Of changing the
method of transportation. Had the COM
pany shown much energy, enterprise
and shrewdness in an honest effort to OBJ
tain the right to raise more money as it did
in tricky attempts to secure an extension
of time, there would today be no such ''em-
barrassing restriction" as that which Man
ager Schoepf, with a gravity that can
scarcely be sincere, alleges to be the sole
excuse for what all the people in the Dis
trict of Columbia know to be a reckless
and impudent defiance of Congress and
the law, of the Commissioners and of pub
lie sentiment.
The correspondence passing between
Governor O'Ferrau of Virginia and the