The evening times., 1898-12-13
Object to a Platform Built by
the Pennsylvania Railroad.
DISTURBS DIVINE SERVICE
Text Of a Letter Sent to the District
C0mmi SiOnerS.
Contentious of the Railroad Com
pany- Business Mem Arrayed
Against the Present Scheme.

/ The people residing in the neighbor
| hood OF the Baltimore and Potomac
| freight depot are very wroth over what
| the railroad authorities in building a
| platfrom to facilitate its transportation
| including the loading and unloading OF
| cattle, al the corner OF Tenth and L
| Streets southwest. The platform in
] question is about four feet above the
sidewalk and is constructed of heavy
I timber. 1t is about eight feet wide and
| extends toward u line of railroad tracks
! which have been laid on the inside of the
| lot on which the platfrom Is built. Di-
| rectly across the street from the obnox-
| ious cattle receiver is the Ryland Chapel
| M. +. Church. and il Is the congregation
| of this church that has filed the protest
| against the action of the railroad COM
pany A letter 10 this effect was ad-
dressed to the District Commissioners by
George e. Barbour, one of the members
of the church and a prominent business
man in the southwest. The letter is as
follows:
To the Hon. Commissioners. d. G.
Gentlemen: | wish 10 know il | have the same
right as the r. X. Co. to put up siyfOot closed
fence To take in the entire parking, in front Of
my premises, run railroad track same, or 10
build an addition to my house, running out be
yond the line, distance of ten or twelve feet
destroying the view OF my nelgHh1rs, and OBJ
struC;ing the view OF the entire square. II |
am not permitted TO have the same privilege,
why should such permit be granted 10 the
Baltimore and Potomac Railroad al Ninth and ID
streets southwest. They have taken the entire
parking, running tracks the entire square on
parking, and are building huge platform Ia
front of Ryland Chapel NJ. +. Church, Tor the
purpose Of unloading all kinds of cattle | hay.
been informed by the managers of the railroad
that this is only done temporarily, but knowing
the way the railroad conducts business, | am
satisfied iii my mind that they would not 90 10
80 great an expense unless 1t were permanent
Al a citizen and property owner In the District
Of Columbia, ! again ask you, who are in au-
thority, if this is rightly At the present time all
church services annoyed by the shifting
Of the cars, and the loading and unloading Of
stock in front Of premises, and 10 bring this
nuisance At least twenty feet neafer our place OF
worship, IS great injustice, not only 10 the
members OF church, but to all the residents
OF this immediate neiShborhood, and would not
be tolerated in the northwest section of the city
But I suppose the railroad company is such
wealthy corporation that they can 90 they
please, and it seems 50 round our neishborhood
Now ii the Comm ssloneis have become 50 gen
eTous as to donate 10 the railroad company all
parking the north side Of ID Street, between
Ninth and Tenth streets southwest il Is adding
IIsllL 10 III granting prints
to the comfort OF citizens of this section.
The communication was received at the
District building December 3. it is claim
ed and no notice was talon vI 1t. Mr.
Rarbo,Ir a crai,, --IIru the attention of the
authorities to this nuisance but the sec
ond letter remained unanswered The
people want to compel the railroad COM
pany TO vacate the lot.
ii is claimed that the reason no answer
was made 10 Mr.. Barbour's letters was
because investigation proved that the
ground upon which the platform was con-
structed belonged to the railroad COM
pany and they have a perfect right to put
up any structure they may see tit proyid-
ed there is no law To the contrary. In
this case, ii is said. there was no public
parking at all, but simply a small grass
plot between the sidewalk and the tracks
running into the freight depot and this
only continued a short distance down the
street where high fence, together with
the freight depot completely shut off the
view Of the residents of the south side of
the street. The platform fas built. II is
claimed, by the railroad, for temporary
purposes only, and could never be used
for cattle during the times when services
are being held in the church for the rea-
son that it is violation of a city ordi-
nance 10 drive cattle of any description
through the streets between the hours
OF a. m. and 10 y. m. and there is no
place where Il herd Of cattle could be con-
veniently stabbed III the neighborhood
The platform was constructed to facili-
tate the transportation of horses and
mules, many thousand of which b long
ing to the Government. are To b. shipped
South in few days. The platform was
built TO enable the caretakers of these
animals to give them exercise Ii was
suggested n a Times I.
much more convenience to the pub ic
TO have the freight depot where il is now
situated than to have a church like Ry-
land Chapel where il now stands and il
was said that if either of the places were
to be moved il should be the church Ii
is very annoying, however, to have the
religious services Interrupted on all oc-
casions by the whirl and rattle of a train
of freight cars being sdetracked ana in
their fight against the railroad the peo-
pie of Ryland Church have the indorse-
ment of all Of the best element i'm South
Washington. Some of the leading busi-
ness men of this city live in the district
bounded by Seventh and Fourte enth and
and ID Streets southwest, and there are
no better residences in any section OF
the District.
The railroad occupies large part of
the ground in this locality and it is very
annoying TO the househoiders TO have
the continual ringing of bells and blow
ing off of steam that accompanies the
transaction of business in the freight de-
partment of large. railroad s, stem
The people in the Southwest will there
fore welcome any regulation the Com
miss'oners can promulgate that will
abate the nuisance.
When you see a man with q ruddy
complexion, healthy appearance and
smiling face tl,at