The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-04-09
SANTA FE SHOPS.
Two Committees Call ON Gen
eral Manager Nudge.
The Situation AS the Matter
Now Stands.


nothing undone to secure the assured
additions to the Santa Fe shop facili-
ties
These very large additional shops will
be constructed in Topeka if the real es-
tate for site can be secured at a rea-
sonaDle figure. If not, they will be con-
strueted elsewhere. That is the situa-
tior in a nut she'll Fer these shops the
Santa Fe has this year appropriated
$10T, 900 and is now nearly ready to be-
gin actual work on the erection of these
shops so soon as the site is selected.
By the first f1gu .es secured from the
property owners the $107, 900 would not
purchase the site alone.
Upon learning of the return Of Cen
eraI Manager Nudge to the city, Jona-
than Thomas, chairman of the finance
committee, promptly called the mem
bers together and as many as could be
secured went in a body late Saturday
afternoon to the general offices. One or
two Of the committee were out of the
city and could not be present. Those
who called upon Mr.. Nudge were Jona-
than Thomas, Col. J. D. Norton, H. c.
Bowman, Geo. NJ. Noble and Frank P.
MacLennan. Mr.. Nudge went over the
uarion to the committee. He stated that
the company had a large amount of
land at other points on the line, and
that the proposition was simply a bust
ness one with the management Of the
road I'm my own case said M.
Nudge, ''of course there is some senti-
ment, as I would like to see the shops
located in Topeka because I have been
here so long and identified with To-
peka, but with many others who have
this matter in charge it is purely
plain business proposition. The COM
pany does not feel that it could pay any
such price as that demanded by the
property owners. I have not gone over
the report carefully, and, of course, can
not say definitely just what I think
about these prices until I examine the
details. I base my statement on the
general summary of the situation given
to me by the gentleman who compiled
the figures for US after interviewing the
property owners.
IF we build in Topeka we must build
adjacent to our own shops. We could
not, with due REGARD to convenience and
| economy, build on land here away from
the shops we have The tract desired is
about twenty-five acres. OF course we
do not need all this land for the shops
we will erect this year, but we must look
out for the future The first thing We
intend to do is to put up an immense
| blacksmith shop; then there will be the
| frog and switch shops; next to them
| would be the locomotive erecting shops
| later. I will notify the committee in a
| few days when I have gone over the
| detailed reports, and will confer with
| you again"
| Mr. Nudge had just returned from an
! extended absence at Austin, Texas, at
| the hearing of the doubIe-header ques-
ton, faxx don 90 10 a
Austin dam which has just been washed
away. He remarked that it was a Won
derful piece of masonry about sixty-five
| feet high and 1000 feet long. He said
to his companion as they were looking
at the great dam, What would happen
| if this should give away?"
| Mr. Nudge discussed the Santa Fe
| shop matter quite freely with the COM
| mittee. He said that the company
| thought it should procure the land for
! $500 acre; that is the land itself; they
| did not want the improvements. He
| said it seemed rather hard to ask the
| company to pay excessive prices for real
| estate for which the company itself had
created a value by the improvements
| they had put in that locality.
| The committee gathered from Mr..
| Mudges conversation that the erection
| of these shops, which would be begun
| within a few weeks was one OF the most
| important moves the Santa F'e has made
in the way of increasing its shop IA
FOR a long time" said Mr. Nudge,
"our shop facilities have needed extern
sion.''
The Topeka people can rest assured
that these shops would bring several
| hundred skilled Workmen to Topeka
this xearfi as soon as finished, and they
will be the means, theStateJ ournal has
no doubt of bringing at least 700 more
men here in a few years along with the
locomotive erecting shops, making in
all a thousand employees additional; or
with their families, probably 5000 in
crease to the population OF topeka
This. aside from the large number OF
others who would come by reason OF
the first 5000
The citizens of Topeka should wake
up to the Importance Of this matter
and, while the relief of the famine
stricken people in India is a great thing
in its way, we have matters of vita
Importance Of our own to look after II
this community.
If we get these shops now we can give
more to suffering humanity later. Il
we do not get these shops we will be
| in a condition where we can not be SC
liberal with the less fortunate of this
country and the world in general.
The state Journal wants to impress
| it upon the business men and merchants
of this city that this Santa Fe shoI
addition is one of the most importan1
matters that has ever come before the
people of Topeka, and nothing must bt
| left undone to see that the Santa Fe is
given the necessary land at a reason
able figure. The property owners, OF
course, are entitled to consideration
but they, like others, must be reason
able.
Mr. P. T. Bonebrake, chairman of the
special committee appointed by the
| Commercial club to look after this mat
| ter in connection with his fellow com
nitteemen, called upon Manager Mudgt
this morning. This committee Informed
Mr.. Nudge that it was practically Ger
tain that $50, 900 If necessary, could pi
raised toward the necessary ground
Mr. Nudge announced that accordin:
to the report of the right of way agen
this would not be sufficient, as the esi
mated cost amounted to more thar
800 600, and the company thought tn
) ground needed here for these shop
should be procured for $500 per acre.
Mr. Nudge suggested that it would b