Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-12-15
Report Against the Pennsylvania
Railway Bill.
VIEWS OF MINORITY OF COMMITTEE
Why the Station and Tracks
Should Be Moved.
PLAN OF IMPROV EN- E n T

ltu d IIllHOIity lepolt, S-SiiS" W iiAiAi">--
and Mr.. Simms of Tennessee, from the
House committee on the District of Column
bia on the Pennsylvania railroad grade
crossing bill. The report says:
''rhe proposed bill provides that the
tracks of this road shall enter the city in
part through tunnel and in part over an
elevated structure. In order to obtain the
consent of the company to this change "a
matter which, we submit, is not necessary
it is proposed to give to the company four
teen acres out of the center of the mall,
twelve acres off of the area of Garfield
Park and other government lands, worth IN
all S1,25o.CH1.
The District of Columbia and the United
States are to pay all damages to private
property and all the cost of building APP
proaches where streets are earned uhuer
or over the right of way. the Two Items
being estimated at s25o0oO. In addition II
is proposed to appropriate $36S,oUo Tor the
building of a highway bridge separated
from the Long bridge, which is to De re-
built by the company. summing me COS
to the public of the proposed change 1t Is
as follows: -
borne by District and United states. sZ''oo,'
appropriation for new bridge, $56S,oCo total,
S2.212, 500.
Free Terminal Facilities.
compelled by a municipality to change the
grade of it's tracks to abolish grade cross
ings equity requires the city to bear por-
+ion Of the cost involved. While this may
he true where a road owns its right OF way
and has erected permanent lmproVeineh,S
thereon we respectfully submit IL Shouid
not be invoked in the present instance. Inc
tracks of this road now in the city OF
Washington are laid on public properly, lts
depot is located on a public reservation, II
crosses the Potomac on bridge lurhisneo t
it by the government at great cost. Inc
obtaining of suitable terminals in the great
cities is always the most serious ana most
costly question involved in railroad building.
Here are the three great Items OF expense
which any road seeking entrance TO thiS
city must meet all furnished free to TINS
road the use of which it has enjoyed Tor
nearly half a century. Under these clrcunl-
stances we contend il would be no harIshp
on the company for Congress to WlthdfaW
the rights heretofore granted and compel
the company to change the sfade OF NS
tracks.
ut would seem that the bare statement
of the foregoing facts in itself should be
sufficient to defeat the proposed bill. but
the unwarranted bestowal of the peoples
property upon favored corporation IS the
least Objectionable fea ture of the bill.
Appropriation of the Mall.
"Stretching from the Capitol to the mon
ument and thence to the White House lies
IL,
ington's reservations, designed by l. En-
FAINT and especially reserved by Washins-
ton to be the most beautiful of all the city
system of parks. This magnlhcent resef-
walton of 600 acres in the heart of the city
offers possibilities to the landscape archl-
tect the equal of which can be found in no
other city on earth.
"The reason the permanent Improvement
Of the Mall has been so long neglected is
due to the fact that in 1871, just prior to
the time Congress and the citizens of
Washington turned their attention to the
work of beautifying the nations capital,
the Baltimore and Potomac railroad OBJ
tanned permission to lay it's tracks down
9th street and occupy with its station
strip of the reservation $50 feet wide. This
prevented. and it still prevents, any per-
manent Improvement of this reservation.
This occupation and the improvements
erected are temporary in their nature, but
if the proposed bill should be passed and
the fourteen acres out of the center of the
park given TO the company, and they build
thereon, is proposed, terminal station
and improvements costing nearly or quite
5000, UUO, then we have surrendered for
ever all hope Of hereafter treating this
great reservation as Washington intended,
and with II goes the opportunity To maxi.
the nations capital the most beautiful of
cities.
I'VE respectfully submit this is part Of
the heritage of all the people, and should
be preserved for them.
Removal of Tracks Urged.
"By act approved June G. 1900, the chief
of engineers authorized to report to
Congress plans for the treatment Of this
reservation, and the sum of 81 900 was ap-
ptopriated to secure the services of a land
scape architect of conspicuous ability. That
report has just been submitted, and recon-
mends the removal of the present depot
and tracks of the company to point on
the south line of the reservation. We quote
from the report:
% H.,
the plan will be found in the new site as
signed to the Pennsylvania railroad station
now serious obstruction to the develop
ment of the new park. Its present locat ton,
if retained. would utterly destroy the har-
monious arrangement Of the ovals and
sunken transverse roads, which are the
distinguishing characteristics of the present
design The passage of trains through a
park, whether over or under or on the level
is always to be deprecated 1t destroys the
restfulness and isolation Of the place and
1t should be prevented by any arrangement
that is not absolutely inimical to the COM
fort and business necessities Of the public
lightning express is quite incompatible
with green garden and singing birds.
The proposed site for the station, it
Will be seen, is large and commodious and
situated directly in front Of the transverse
road at 7th street, which is made as wide
as Pennsylvania avenue, and only 1,60o feet
from its nearest borders. The station as
now situated. in the heart of the proposed
park, would completely destroy the unity
Of the park design: for it stands at the very
point where the loss would be the grea est
Under the new arrangement proposed every
advantage in the way Of electric cars and
convenient and commodious foot and car
rage ways could be secured, as they could
all be brought directly under the roof of
the station.
"I dwell thus strongly on the fmpor-
tance of new location for the railroad
station. because l believe if all parties gem
timely and patriotically in. crested in secur-
ing a really great park We're thoroughly
alive to the real merits of the question ii
would be readily conceded that the railroad
should be banisned to parts were it would
be invisible, IL not wholly inaudible, from
the main drives of the park, and especially
from the bridges over the transverse roads
Its removal is a serious necessity
This bin is strenuously opposed by the
chief of engineers in charge of public
buildings and grounds and we attach here
to his report to the Secretary of War ON
the Senate bill, together with the report
OF Col. Theo A. Bingham and Lieut. Col.
Charles ]. Allen.
I'VE submit the bill should be recommit-
ted to the committee with instructions to
so modify the same that the location of
the terminal station and tracks shall not
seriously interfere with the permanent Inn
nF ho oil