Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-01-29
PRESIDENT ROSS DIssENTS
Unable to Agree to Order for Removal of
Brown Electric System.
Matter Settled After Careful Consid-
and Minority Reports.

The decision of majority of the Dis
trict Commissioners that the Brown under
ground electric system, as operated on the
Capital railway line, shall be discontinued,
reported in yesterdays Star, was not by
any means unexpected. In fact, the de-
cision was foreshadowed by The Star sew
eraI days ago.
The matter was not, however, disposed
of by the Commissioners until after full
discussion of the whole question. Mr..
Ross was unable to agree with his asso-
ciates. believing that the promoters of the
Brown system were entitled to further
extension of time in which to perfect, il
possible, the complained of system.
President Ross Views.
Said Mr.. Ross in his report:
II cannot acquiesce in the action of the
other members of the board. 1t is only a
short extension that the company asks for,
to make changes, which, it asserts. will
fully remove all objections that are now
made to it. 1t seems to me that this SEN
tence is too severe, when there can be no
appeal. 1t will mean that the company
nust give up it's road within the city
limits. Under its charter from Congress it
was allowed until last May to install an
underground system. The time has passed
Of horses Is prohibited. The company will
thus lose its franchise. This is a hard
ship against the residents Of the territory
through which the road runs as well, and
1t is difficult for people who have never
been deprived of rapid transit, once at
tanned, to understand how much it will be
felt. 1t will only be appreciated by the
Anacostia people themselves. In addition
to the through route to the end of the
Capital Traction line, the company also
q fran Sfo IN hot Hnn in
travel for one fare over the whole system.
THE Johnstown company, which controls
the Brown system, also certainly deserved
that further time should be given it, it
system here will mean much more to it
than the mere loss of the money involved
in this contract.
1.-THE railroads at least should have been
given the right to use this system tempo
rarily until Congress could provide for the
of some other. This could be
done in a few weeks but it could not be
done instanter.'
The Majority Report.
In support Of their position in the matter
Commissioners Wight and Black authoriz-
ed the following statement:
Under the terms of the charter the Cap
ital Railway Company was required TO
have the road completed with an under
ground system by May 2S. 1897. They pro-
posed. in March, to put in the Brown I'M
foreground system, system totally I'M
known in Washington. AS quickly as pos
siDle the Commissioners made such an IL
vestigation circumstances would admit,
of this system, as then installed in Johns
town. Pa. On March 81 they issued a per-
init to the Capital Railway Company to in
stall this system. and as it was untried in
any city under conditions existing in Wash
ington, with the full assent of Mr.. Randle,
president of the Capital Railway Company,
the installation was permitted under the
express agreement that, If after a trial Of
sixty days it should prove to be unsatis-
factory, it would be entirely removed and
the streets restored to their original condi-
ton without cost to the District.
The system broke down very speedily,
and as Installed at first cars were never
operated over 1t on regular schedule. In
September on the representation that the
lay only with the style of box in
use, and on the further representation that
a1te. long experimenting box had been
devised which would be in every way salts
factory. authority was granted to continue
TO equip with the new style of boxes and to
continue with the experimental use of this
system. This was again with the distinct
provision that should it. after trial, prove
unsa tisfactory, 1t would be removed and
the streets restored to their original condi-
ton.
Conditions Accepted.
1.-The conditions in every case were ac-
test. having been at first, indeed sug
gested by him. Various extensions were
granted to this permit, so that the new
was not completed until No
vember g. and under the terms of the per-
NIT the trial was not to exceed ninety
days from November l. Cars were not
operated over this system until the end
of November. Since that date they have
been run, as the Commissioners have been
informed, with some regularity over a
twenty minute schedule. During the en-
tire time since the LIST of December there
has been scarcely day when it was not
necessary to renew broken boxes, and
men have been employed by the company
tc look out for these boxes,
be alive-that is, boxes through which
electricity was found TO be esca ping-and
to renew the broken parts.
Numerous instances were reported to
the Commissioners of minor accidents to
horses due to these live boxes, and the
Commissioners satisfied themselves by
reports from the police department and
by an investigation made by one of their
Inspector, that boxes were found alive
after the passage of the car in number
of instances, and that these constant re-
newals of broken boxes We're being made.
1t is an admitted fact that the contin-
uance of the system in the streets of the
city Is absolutely inadmissible if any of
the boxes are left alive after being I'M
covered by car in its passage Such
boxes constitute menace to life and
limb, even though the current of cleo
tricity escaping is of low voltage since a
very small amount of shock is quite suf-
ficient t. startle a spirited horse, and
may lead to disastrous runaway.
What the Company Admits.
1T is admitted by the company itself
that the present system of boxes is I'M
and they ask for more time
for experiments. The Commissioners hav-
ing given from March 81, 1897, to January
Is 1885, for this purpose, the majority
think that that is all, If not more than,
their duty 10 the District OF Columbia
will justify. The majority of the board
does not deem that the question of the
charter or the charter rights of the Capi-
tai Railway Company under these new
conditions Is matter to be considered
inasmuch as this possible action of the
commissioners must have been foreseen
by the Capital Railway Company when
they made their proposition in the first
place to install the Brown system, with
the express proviso that 1t should be re-
moved Il 1t should prove unsatisfactory.
and therefore the Commissioners believe
that the Capital Railway Company has
probably made provisions for this contin-
gency"