The Savannah morning news., 1901-03-14
TO KEEP THE MULE
THE PARSONS WILL NOT SUPPLANT
HIM WITH ELECTRICITY.
THE CHANGE WOULDN'T PAY.
so OFFICIALS SAID of THE MONT
GOMERY CAR LINE.

Delegation Waited Upon President
Parsons and second Vice President
ParsOns-President Parsons Told
the Gentlemen That Too Much
Money Is Being spent on other
Portions of the $. It. a 1. of III. Sys-
tenn to Admit of substituting EIec-
tricity for the Mule-Cidzens May
| Consider a Purchase, as Company
Is willing 10 SelI-COunty to Shell
the montgomery Road.
The Savannah, Thunderbolt and Isle of
| Hope Railway Company will not improve
its mule car line between Sandfy Station
and Montgomery That was the announce
ment made by President George Parsons
| and Second Vice President Henry Par
sons yesterday morning, when commit
tee interested in securing better service
waited upon them.
Although they will not improve the
| property, the official said, the company
| viii sell il. They so stated 10 the COM
mittee, but made no formal offer. They
were requested to submit figures, and it
is possible that a company of suburban
residents personally interested in having
better facilities for communication with
their summer homes will be formed
Mr. Julian Schley, Mr. DeLoach of At
lanta and Capt. Walter E. Coney visited
the Messrs. Parsons at their offices on
Bolton street az Il O'Clock. Mr.. Schley
is the owner of property at Beaulieu and
Capt. Coney represented the Union So
ciety, in the interest of Bethesda, one of
the points reached by the mule line.
The delegation was advised that the line
from Sandfiy to Montgomery has never
been remunerative to the company, and
that, equipped with electricity, it would
be operated at loss The company Mr..
Parsons declared, has no intention of equip
ping the line this summer because of the
OUTLAWS it is making upon more onfportant
portions of the system, and the impression
was left with the delegation that the i'm
provement would never be made as long
as the property is owned by the Savan-
nah Thunderbolt and Isle of Hope Rail-
way Company.
1t urged by the visitors that the
equipment of the line with electricity
would be followed Immediately by the
upbuilding of Montgomery and Beauleu.
They enumerated several gentlemen who
have already determined to establish
summer homes at one or the other of the
places, and said they knew of others who
would do so if they could only gain the
assurance that the mule line would be
supplanted by one operated by electricity.
The argument was without effect. Pres
ident Parsons said in reply that there is
not enough unimproved land fronting upon
the water at the two places to afford
sites for summer homes in sufficient num-
Der to produce enough business to make
the line pay. Back from the water front
there is plenty of available land but it
is not desirable for summer homes, Mr..
Parsons thought, and would not be so
used.
If Mr.. Schley can find that there is
sufficient confidence in the ability of an
electric line between Sandhy and Mont
gomery to defray operating expenses and
yield some return upon the investment,
it is proba Bile that he will organize a
company. President Parsons offered to
sell the track the cars and the terminal
property at Montgomery, where there are
more than 100 lots.
The question of picncs at Beaulieu or
Montgomery was brought up, but Mr..
Parsons did not think that such pleasure
parties would furnish enough business to
justify the company i'm substituting cleo
that the residents of Montgomery mad
made that place in a measure undesir-
able for picnic parties because they had
run their enclosures all the way to the
waters edge, making the river front I'M
available for outings.
To this the reply was made that gates
have been put in. leaving the enclosures
open. Besides. it was urged, the COM
pany had been sending great parties of
colored people out for picncs, with the
result that rows among them were the
rule, rather than the exception, and Mont
gomery. as a place for the development
of trouble at colored picnics, has become
notorious.
Finding nothing of satisfaction in the
interview with the Parsons, the deega-
ton called on Chairman Dale of the Coun-
ty Commissioners. They wanted to urge
the paving of the road from the Mont
gomery Crossroad, near the county farm,
to Montgomery and Beaulieu. The gem
tlemen found no trouble there. Mr.. Dale
advised them that the board had already
| determined to pave the road with shell.
The work will commence within a month