Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-12-20
THE RAILWAY BILLS
Both Passed by the House of Repre-
sentatives.
BONUS FOR THE B, AND 0. CRITICISED
Description Of the Practice mother
Cities.
FOR THE B, AND 0. CRITICISED
OF THE cos s

The Pennsylvania and Baltimore and Ohio
railway grade crossing bills We're passed by
the House late yesterday afternoon. The
bills We're passed practically as reported by
the District committee. An amendment Of
fered by Mr.. Cowherd to reduce the cash
gilt to the Baltimore and Ohio to $1,On,OOO
was voted down-I1 to ~.
The bills now go to a conference commit
tee for final adjustment. Mr.. Baocock made
the promise the floor Of the House yes
terday that everything which the topogra-
ply of the country allows will be done by
the conferees to lessen the hardships upon
the citizens of lexington proposed by the
location Of the round house.
The Pennsylvania grade-crossing bill
brings the line from the navy yard tunnel
to the terminal straight up Virginia avenue.
Some streets are carried over the tracks and
others carried under the tracks the cross
ings at grade being abolished The terminal
occupies the greater portion of the mall be
tween 9TH and 7th streets, and the railroad
tracks Will use squares 462 and 4G} between
9th and 9TH streets and Virginia and Mary
land avenues. Sixth street will be opened.
The tracks will enter the mall over an ele-
waited structure. with space underneath for
an east and west street, to be known as
W
improvements and changes in Southwest
Washington. The railroad company is to
construct a new Long bridge, and the gen
eral public Will use a bridge TO be built
above the railway bridge.
The Baltimore and Ohio bill brings that
railroad on a viaduct along Delaware ave-
nue. northeast to street, where the depot
is to be located. between North Capitol and
LIST street northeast. The engine house
and Senate stables are to be removed and
the property used by the railroad. The two
branches Of the Baltimore and Ohio will
unite at the Intersection of Florida avenue
and Delaware avenue, and the routes east
ward of this point are somewhat changed.
Mr. Ccyyherd on the II. and o. Bill.
After The Stars report closed yesterday
Mr. Cowherd of Missouri took the floor and
sad:
MIR. Chairman and gentlemen Of the COM
mittcc. | want to say in full frankness that
| do not believe that the objections to this
bill are as serious as those we raised against
the Pennsylvania measure. The main OBJ
lection to this bill so far as l have been
able to gather from study Of the
measure. is the appropriation of one million
and a half of the peoples money for the
carrying out of this Improvement, and there
is also some objection TO locating the shops
ANA yards III the y, marked on the map,
at lexington.
II will say frankly that If gentlemen pro-
pose to give over s2.O00,OUO of the peoples
money to the Pennsylvania railroad for
Improvement that is not needed the same
reasons might constrain them to give mil
lion and a half of the peoples money to
this roo 1 for an Improvement that is
needed. | am opposed to both projects: and
if the committee Of the whole will bear with
me | think | can show conclusively that
million and a half of dollars, charged
one-halt of the expense attributable to the
cost of this elevation. is at least s75O,O00
more ttan 1t should be.
Sharing Cost With the Railroad.
Permit me to say in the beginning that
l want to controvert the statement made
by the gentleman from Iowa that in mod
ern cities of the United States today the
rule Is to charge so per cent to the city
state and 30 per cent to the railroads
There is no such rule. 1t was done in one
or two instances In Philadelphia; but those
in the main We're cases in which the city
by previous ordinances had got itself into
such a shape that it had to take anything
1t could get.
In Connecticut and Massachusetts there
is law regulating this matter; but in Buff
faio, n. Y. the city did not pay single
not pay anything in Rochester,; they did
not pay anything in several Of the cities
named III the article which I hold in my
hand published recently in The Washing
ton Star l have not time to go over all
the cases noted They did not pay any
thing in Chicago, notwithstanding the fact
that the Santa Fe road had paid millions of
dollars to buy land upon which to run its
tracks to the center of the city-the amount
being If l remember rightly, something
like $2o,00O,OOO. They compelled them nm.