Evening star., 1896-04-07
DISTRICT IN CONGRESS-
A Grade Crossing Bill to BE introduced by
Mr.. Mcmillan.
Satisfactory Agreement With the Bal
timorc and Ohio Road Reached
Favor Street Railway ExtensiOn.

t1mOrc anu Oh1O kN0ad NcaCheu-
Favor Street Railway Extension.
Within q day or two Senator Mcmillan
will introduce in the Senate a bill requiring
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company
to change the system ofstracks in this city
aid to abolish grade crossings. This bill
has been the subject of discussion between
the chairman of the Senate District COM
mittee and representatives Of the Baltimore
and Ohio road for some time and an agree
ment has about been reached between them
with regard to the chief point in contro-
versy. the time that is to be given the road
in which to make the improvement re-
quired. The bill will, in general follow the
lines Of that introduced two or three years
ago requiring the road t6scnter the city on
a single viaduct elevated from the street
sufficiently to give the street traffic free ac-
cess. beneath. The engineering details Of
this project will be left largely with the
engineer authorities of sthe District. and
the bill to lie introduced by Mr.. Mcmillan
will embrace the general outlines of the
plan. &
The railroad company vas addressed ear
ly iE the session with reference to the long
pending project for abol:Sbing grade cross
ings in this city, but for. some months no
y j
the road went into the hands of receivers
during the winter Mr.. Mcmillan again
wrote to President. Couen and called at
tentlon anew to the necessity of getting
some plan put in shape at this session.
Later Mr.. Hamilton. misrepresentation of
the road in all matters Waiting to legisla-
ton, called on the Senator and presented
the railroads propos:tionsE which was prac-
t!cally that embodied III TIE Sherman bill
Of two years ago. The railroad, however,
wanted more tine N which to begin and to
complete the operations than Senator Nc
Milan thought advisable to grant. On this
point there were several Consultations un-
I'll at last an agreement has been reached
and period has been fixed that is salts
factory to both sides.
Waiting for a Report.
Meanwhile the District Commissioners are
considering the bill for the depression of tho
tracks of the Pennsylvania road in South
Washington, and until report is received
from them no action OF course will be taken
by the committee. 1t is understood at the
Capitol that the engineers of the District
government and of the railroad company
are IN constant communication, and that
work Is being done in preparation Of a plan
mutually acceptable to the railroad and the
District government. Senator Mcmillan
said this afternoon that he was highly
grained at the prospect of securing legis-
lation on these two vexatious problems at
this session. The chief dfffieulty in the
past has always been to reach an agreement
with the railroad companies, and all propo-
sitions have been antagonized by the rep
Iesentatives of those great corpora tions
FRIENDS OF both roads are In decided evil
dence on the floor of both Hoase and Senate.
and 1t is practically impossible to secure
action unless there has been a certain
amount of "give-and-take" in the negotia-
tons and the preparat.ctl OF the bills
In this case the Senator thinks the rail-
road companies will be reasonable AS far
as the Baltimore and Ohio is concerned
time is of more moment than engineering
details, as the financial condition of the
road Is now such as to make it exceedingly
di1hcult FOR the company TO meet ordinary
obligations, let alone the Inauguration OF
an enterprise that will cost several million
dollars.
Favor Street Railway Extensions,
Messrs. Herman T. Walbridge and Chaplin
Brown called on Senator Mcmillan this af-
ternoon for the purpose of urging speedy
action upon the Commissioners omnibus
street railway bill recently submitted.
property that they own and represent
geological Park tapped by the proposed
system of railroads centerins at the Zoo.
and Messls. Walbridge and Brown urge
that the bill be passed to give access to the
property anu to settle the uncertainties
that now exist with regard to street rail-
way extensions in that vicinity. They said
that they did not care whether all of the
roads embraced in the Commissioners bill
we, were permitted to make these extensions.
but they especially desired that at least
one or the main reads OF the city should
be allowed to run a line through that sec
tlon, which is the land lying north of Co
lImpia road, west of 14th street and east
OF the Zoo. They were told by the Sena-
tor tnat the main difficulty in the way of
permitting the extensions suggested in the
commissioners bill is the present condition
OF Columbia road, which he thought to be
entirely too narrow to allow an electric
road to occupy it.
This road, Senator Mcmillan thinks. is
the main driveway north of the city, and is
the outlet for all vehicles driven north on
Connecticut avenue. There is now nendinp
project for the widening of the road by
setting the curbs back a few feet and it
Is possible that this work may go on ST.
multaneously with any street railway ex-
tensions that may be authorized along that
thoroughfare. If an understanding can he
reached on this point 1t is possible that the
Metropolitan road may he permitted to ex-
tend It's line from the present terminus at
the head of Connecticut avenue to the
junction of Columbia road and 18th street.
which Will give the company the desired
start in the direction Of the territory that
IS now unsupplied with transportation IA
cil1tles. The section of the road, however
lying between that point and 14th street
Is so narrow that it is unlikely that any
proposition to utilize the road for street
railway purposes Will be entertained by the
committee.
1t was intimated by Messrs. Walbridge
and Brown, who said that they were the
advance guard of a great host of property
owners who are eager for this legislation,
that in the minds Of many of the citizens
the street railway and the street extern
sion matters are so closely identified that
action upon the former will necessarily
involve action upon the latter, and it is
quite possible that the committee may be
persuaded to take up the question OF street
extensions with reference. to the street
railway matters now pending and to give
some attention to that problem, notwith-
standing the determination to do nothing
whatever with street extensions until the
courts haye finally acted upon the consti-
tutional questions involved In the high
way act.
To Remove Political Disabilities.
Senator Daniel today introduced a bill
removing the political disabilities of Col.
John Taylor Wood Of this city.
Judgments to Bear Interest.
Senator Pugh today introduced in the
Senate the bill Oh. r. 716o)s recently In
troduced in the House, providing that all
judgments in civil causes in the District of
Columbia shall bear interest, Mr.. Pugh
proposes two amendments, which will make
the bill read as follows: Judgments in
civil causes in the District of Columbia,
mi ri %n tho oko NP