El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-05-19
A UNION DEPOT.

With the growth of the city north
ward and eastward the question OF
taking care of the railroads ard
preserving the beauty and SAFE ty of the
streets becomes exceedingly important.
When the city was small it made com.
psratively little difference where the
railroads ran or how much they cut up
the streets. The benefit to the city
from having the railroads build to Ell
Paso was so much greater ethan any
private property interests affected
that the people were d.spcsed to go to
any length in order to give the rail-
roads every possible facility.
But the lack of definite plan. which
should have been determined upon
many years ago, has resu!tedin cutting
up the city in q way that is ur.i. h ly ,
inconvenient, and damaging to property
interests The one fact that we have
here five separate railway stations, one
of them across the river, for the &C
commodation of only seven different
railroads, is sufficient to give to
strangers and trapsients q poor i'm
preston.
The question of adopting at once
some definite plan to control existing
railroads and future railway projects is
one that CONCERTS the railroads them
selves in several ways. 1t
is true that to build a
union depot and the necessary tracks
- handle the business would involve
considerable expenditure by the rail-
roads. On the other hand the facility
In making connections, and the in
creased prestige that would be given
every one 'of.the r .-o- q" tn's -cc"u
would balance the cost of the improve
ment.
However, the matter is one that con-
Germs the people of the city in general,
far more than II does the railroads.
Ouly one argument has ever been
brought up against a union depot on
behalf of business men, and that is SO
himsy and absurd that it can hardly be
called an argument. A few have held
that by forcing transients to go from
one end of the city to the other to
change care, we compel them to see the
oity and probably patronize some Of
Its stores. AS a matter of fact. a
mo ment's thought will chow that, I'M
der present circumstances, If close con-
nee lions are to be made the traveller is
whirled through the streets in bus
from one shabby old shed to another
sha bby old shed. He is not given any
opportunity to pstronize the stores or
saloons, and his Impressions as gained
from the railway stations must be de-
cidedly unfsvorable..
If, on. the sother hand, the traveller
has few hours time.between trains, a
considerable.portion of his time is tax
en- up by the bother of looking after his
tic kets, baggage transfers. and person
al luggage, while he ia continually in
doubt as to the. various depots an / as to
the leaving time of the trains OF the
various. roads.
Over against present conditions
place those that would result from the
esta blisbment Of. q suitable union de-
pot. The traveller coming in on any
line would be at once reliably informed
"a to the leaving time of any connect
ing train;. the exchange of baggage
checks would take but moment, and
leaving his personal luggage at the
depot, he.would have more time by at
least an hour. than he has now, to
spend in seeing Ell Paso, and this time |
would be entirely free from worry or
unc ertainty.
For our own people the improvement
would be of Undesirable value. All |
oar lines would center at the union
station, which would be easily Access
sib1e from any part of Ell Paso or It's
tri bu tsry districts A large part of the
switc hing and running of trains would
be removed from the heart of the city
10 some other point. The north and
south streets east of Campbell would b.
opened up. The value of every bit of
property mort b Of the Southern Pacific
track would be greatly enhanced, and
the value of sproperty on st. Louis