Evening star., 1896-12-01
History Of the Strasburg-Harrison.
burg Branch.
WHAT R0B'T GARRETT INTENDED FODO
J. Pierpont Morgan Violates a Vir
ginia Law.
OW Ms p A ALLEL ROADS

no PiSNiouSly lOTeSn2QOWeQ IN Ihe Star.
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company
at Il o'clock last night surrendered that
part of its system between Strasburg and
Harrisonburg. Va, to it's owners, the
Southern, which henceforth unless ar
rangements to the contrary are made Will
operate it.
The immediate effect of this change OF
proprietors was to throw considerable
number of Baltimore and Ohio empIoves
either out of employment altogether or to
relegate them to the place of extra men.
which at pest is in most instances a very
precarious means of livelihood
The future of the Valley road between
Harrisonburg and Lexington is the sub
ject of much discussion in railroad circles
and among the people most directly in
terested. 1t is generally believed that the
severance by the Baltimore and Ohio of the
DIVISION as mas taken place, leaving that
company In control of its Valley lire of {.
piece at each end, but with the Southern
controlling the central portion, will a.
though this state of affairs may be but
temporary, be of great disadvantage bot
to the operation of the Baltimore and Ohio
and the business men of Baltimore.
Conversation by Star reporter with a
number OF gentlemen whose financial sym
pathies are with the Southern Railway
Company leads to the conclusion that ii is
n matter OF regret on tnclr part that the
Baltimore and Ohio found itself in a posi-
ticn where it felt compelled to ask tn
United States court at Baltimore, in whose
charge the Baltimore and Ohio now is to
allow IL to cancel the lease of the Stras-
burg and HarriSonburg road, and, il Is
believed, tnat If there could be some ar
rangement made with the Southern by
which the Baltimore and Ohio could con
t1nue to operate or rather resume the op-
GRAFTON Of its trains between Baltimore
anu Lexington such wOnli
be hailed by them with pleasure.
Where Spencer began.
1t is singular coincidence that the road
which last night passed under the au-
thcrity of President Samuel Spencer Of
the Southern was the same upon which
he began his remarkably successful career
as a railroad man. 1t was here that h
entered the service of the Baltimore and
Ohio member of an engineering party
employed by the late President John W
Garrett to survey the route for an exten-
sion OF the road from Harrisonburg to
Lexington.
At the beginning Mr. Spencer occupied
the humble but responsible position of rod
man, but in a little while his ability and
faithfulness attracted the attention of Mr.
Garrett. and the latter promoted him t.
the office of civil engineer Mr.. Spencer's
rapid advancement on the railroad ladder
as is shown by the fact that in less than
twenty-five years he has risen from one
OF the humblest places in the railway
ranks to the head of one of the greatest
railway systems in the world, is too well
known to the reading public to require rep
etition here.
The purpose of President Garrett in leas~
ing the StraSburg and HarrSonburg road
from the predecessor of the Southern and
of the Richmond and Darville, the OLD
Orange. Alexandria and Manassas Rail
road Company. was to give the Baltimore
merchants through the Baltimore and
Ohio Railroad Company, an outlet to the
south, and with this end in view he in
1873 leased the Strasburg and Harrison
burg.
During the half dozen or 50 years imme-
diately following the close of the war Mr..
Garrett secured the ownership of the Win
chester and Potomac railroad, running
from Harper'S Ferry to Winchester, a dis
tance of thirty-two miles, and built the in
tervening distance of eighteen miles be
tween Winchester and Strasburg. He
also secured a charter to build a line from
Harrisonburg to Salem, Va, which event
ually was constructed to Lexington, but
which has remained the valley terminus
of the Baltimore and Ohio for many years.
MIR. Gnrrett's Plan.
In order to secure continuous line from
Harper's Ferry to Stanton, which wa
for a long period the southern terminus of
the Baltimore and Ohio's line, Mr.. Garrett
in 1878 leased the valley branch of the
Orange, Alexandria and Manassas road he
tween Strasburg and Harriscnburg, for a
period of ninety-nine years at what was al
the time considered very fair rental, but
hich has since been found to be too bur
densohe for the company to carry, and a.:
tie result of which they have surrendered
the lease.
1t was the intention Of Mr.. Garrett to
push the completion of the Valley road
from Staunton to Salem, distance of not
quito 100 miles, with the vigor for which he
was distinguished, and had he been able 10
acpOmDliSh his nllrnOSp there would have
been opened up for trade to the merchants
Of Baltimore a section of territory whicl,
also abounded in coal, timber, clays for
various kinds of manufacturing purposes
and many other things that could have
been secured freight for the railroad.
Unfortunately, however the panic of 1919
Put an end for the time being to the fur
ther development of Mr.. CARROTS pet idea
and it was not until 1881 that through sub
scriptions from the three counties through
which the line passes from Harrisonburg 20
Staunton, and the taking by the city OF
Baltimore of 81 100000 of stock of the pro-
posed road. that Mr. Garrett was enabled
tc extend the Valley road to Staunton.
There was, however, meanwhile consid-
cradle grading done on the route between
Lexington and Salem, and much of it was
made ready for track-laying, but Mr. Gar
retts death about ten years ago put stop
to the enterprise and 1t now lies in a prac-
tcally abandoned condition.
Whether it will ever be completed is a
question that cannot be answered at this
time. Some persons believe that an ar
rangement will be made between the South
ern and the Baltimore and Ohio by which
the former company will run solid trairs
from Washington to Lexington and the Bal
timore and Ohio resume the operation of
their service between Baltimore and Lex
ington.
Owns Parallel Lines.
The surrender of the Strasburg and Har-
risonburg by the Baltimore and Ohio to the
Southern presents remarkable feature in
the fact that for distance of fifty-one
miles Mr.. ]. P. Morgan is the owner of two
parallel lines, the Norfolk and Western and
the first-named road, and so far as is
known there is no similar state of affairs
in the United States. 1t is understood that
the laws of Virginia forbid ownership of
parallel lines of railway, but it can hardly
be alleged in fairness that mir. Morgan is
a vioator of the acts on the subject, when
one of his companies has been forced
against it's will to take possession of it's
heretofore competitor.
There are some persons who are usually
we'll informed on such matters that believe
that an effort will be made by the people of
the unfinished Valley Line. between Lex
ington and Salem, to get Mr.. Morgan suf-
ficientlv in the much II asired opl