Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-06-01
THE NEW RAILWAY ORDINANCE.
Passed Through the Joint Committees,
Last Evening,

Last Evening,
After a Session Which Lasted
| About Two Hours-Sixteen Mem
bers OF the Three Committees
| Present, Besides a Number of
City Officials and Street Rail-
way People-Council Called to
! Meet Thursday Evening in
| Special Session.
| The Council Committees on Streets,
| Alley and Grades, Ordinances and Rail-
roads met in joint session, last even
ing, in the chamber of the First Branch
OF Council, to perfect and recommend
| for action the ordinance submitted by
the Waeeling Railway Company, grant
ing franchise for single track on
Ohio street, between South Front and
South Penn streets, south ON South
Front to the State Fair grounds, paral-
lei with the State Fair grounds west
along new street to be presented to
the city, from South Front to South
Penn, and north on South Penn from
said new street to the place of begin
ming. The new line will cost the Com
pany, in the shape the ordinance now
| is, not less than $l2 900 or $15,0 900 Whicia
includes track, paving between the
| rails with fire brick, and the purchase
of ground for tie proposed new street.
On the part of the city, the gain will
be a new street running from South
! Front to South Penn, and the street
paving between the rails along the en-
tire route, to say nothing of the added
convenience to the public of having a
street car service daily in a section OF
the city which now has none.
Sixteen members Of the three Com
mntees responded to last nights call,
| the absentees being Messrs. Horkhei-
ner, Weisgerber and Williams. Mr..
| Connolly was called to the chair. In
addition to the committeeman preseD.
were His Honor, the Mayor, President
| Chew, City Solicitor Nesbitt, City En-
| gineer White, Mr.. George Hook, Mr.. A.
| IN. Jolly, Mr. William Erskine, Mr.. B..
| w. Peterson, Mr. l.. F. Stifel and sew
eral members of Council not members
| Of the Committee.
| 1t was early developed that the
Island members of the Committees
| were loaded down with riders and
| amendments, particularly Mr.. Baird,
who had a very considerable wad of
| things calculated to kill off the i'm
provement, and he fired in his ammu-
milton in the shape of amendments as
long as it lasted, at a rapid rate. The
! Committees, however, sat down upon
all but one of his amendments, the
| sole survivor, and perhaps the flttest
| being proposition requiring the Com
pany to pave between the rails OF It's
track along the whole route.
| After the ordinance had been read
| through a first time for information,
| Mr.. Baird asked that representatives OF
| the Railway Company be allowed to
| make any statement deemed important
| to them, and in reply to this invitation
| Mr.. Jolly addressed the Committees,
| stating, among other things, that the
| Company proposed to put down
strictly first class read, using sixty
| foot rails, nine inches deep and weigh
| ing ninety pounds to the yard, that
work would be commenced in about
ten days after the ordinance was pass
ed. and completed in about forty days,
| W
good daily service. In reply to ques-
ton by Mr.. Baird, as to what this lat
ter statement meant, Mr.. Jolly said the
| Company would put one car on the
rev loop for the present, and it was
| calculated it would make a trip to the
, city and return in about fifteen min
utes. Additional cars will be put on
if the travel warranted it, for naturally
the Company would desire to do all the
| business it could. Captain Otto asked
| of the second section of the ordinance,
as it existed, did not give the Com
pany a pei petual franchise on the pro-
posed new line, and it developed that
such would be the case. There was
some discussion upon this matter,
which ended in Mr. Baird offering an
amendment to section one making
| the franchise expire in September,
1912. when the franchise of the Citi-
zens' Company expires. Mr.. Jolly said
this would limit the franchise to four
| teen wears, and he stated emphatically
! that the Company would not go into
the enterprise upon any such ilmlta-
| ton. but it would accept thirty years.
ANY discussion upon the fourteen years
/, proposition would be waste OF time.
| Mr. Bairds amendment carried, but
was reconsidered on motion OF Mr..
| List. and after a good deal of talk the
period was fixed at twenty-five years,
ayes 9. noes 5. Upon further amend
ment by Mr.. Baird, ''The failure to use
any of the streets named in this Ordln-
ance shall constitute a forfeiture OF ali
rights to said streets, and the Com
pany shall run cars over the route on
the same schedule as is used on the
Bridgeport line" brought an another
discussion, during which Mr.. jolly said
one car would be run daily, which
would give approximately a fifteen
minute service. He also said it cost
about $4,000 per year to run a car, but
the Company would attempt to handle
all the business offered. The amend
ment by Mr. Baird was itself amended
by Mr.. Mcclure so as to provide for a
fifteen minute schedule every day III
the year, and in this shape was adopt
ed.
Then Mr.. Higgins took the floor with
an amendment as follows:
1T is a further condition of this grant
that the Wheeling Railway Company
Shall not charge more than five cents
fare for adults for transportation over
their line or the lines of the Citizens
Railway Company, from or to the ISL
| lO,, Il