Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-08-30
RAILWAYS AND MARKETS
UTILIZATION OF STREET CAR LINES
BY GARDENERS.
Possible Medium for TranspOrtatfOu
Of Products From the Farm
to the City.

An interesting phase of street railroad de-
veopment in the District, which has been
In such active progress during the past
year or two. is the probability of these
lines influencing the material interests of
the District in new way. Up to this time
the attention of the officials of the Wash
ington Traction Company has been directed
principally toward completing the equip
aeAt of the roads and providing facilities
for the passenger business. 1t is now the
purpose to ascertain in what way the roads
carr be utilized as a medium for connecting
the markets of this city with the producing
regions about this center of population.
Large quantities of milk are brought into
the city by wagons. following. in this re-
Spect, the custom that has prevailed from
the time when the method of transporta-
ton was extremely primitive. In the same
way vegetables and what is known as
garden truck, and other supplies Of coun-
try produce. are still dependent on the
horse and wagon to reach the Washington
market Until the electric lines were built
there were no other mediums except in those
sections penetrated by the steam railroad
lines. Now. however, large areas of coun-
try which have been comparatively isolat-
ed have the means of rapid. cheap and
easy communication with the city, and the
question is. how can these means be utiliz-
ed in the trade which has been In active
operation for years past?
A New Question.
1t is a new question in local street rail-
road management, for until the recent pur-
chase of all the lines in this District except
one, and placing them under one control,
suburban roads were not as long as they
are now, neither were they as numerous
Now what two years ago was thought by
many to be mere idle gossip, the building
OF an electric road between this city and
Rockville, Nd. eighteen miles away has
beer realized, and the road is In operation
In the same way Forest Glen some eight
miles away. also in Maryland has modern
electric street railroad connection with the
city, while Berwyn. beyond Hyattsville
Md, and the region about Marlboro Nd
have modern facilities for reaching the city.
Truck Farming.
In some sections near here little or no at
tention has been paid to truck farming
and this is believed to be due not to the
unsuitable character of the soil, but to the
difficulties Of marketing the product. If
that is the case it is believed there will be
will create market for farms. More and
more the country tributary to the city will
supply the local market with produce of
various kinds, and in this way the city and
the country will become mutually helpful
1t Is thought by street railroad officials
that the suburban lines can be used to carry
freight. and that this kind Of business il
properly looked after, will furnish an i'm
portant Item in the yearly receipts 1t is
not proposed to run freight cars over the
city lines, but. as in the case of the steam
roads, the freight depots can be located
some distance from the center of popuIa-
ton and the produce can be distributed
from these points.