Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-04-18
WHAT SHALL WE
DO To BE SAVED
IF the Railroads Continue to Hit
Us In the Tender
Spot.
HAVE TO NAIL THINGS DOWN
Rock Island Superintendent
Here On Yard Removal--Dav-
exports Good Licks.
HAVE TO NAIL THINGS DOWN


! far as the railroads in Rock Island are
concerned, is not interrupted it may
| become necessary for a committee on
public safety to nail things down over
night to insure their being in place
the next morning. There is no tigur-
ing on where the policies now being
carried out will end if the city of Rock
! Island does not soon act in the
interests of self-preservation. 1t is
ali well enough to say that it is no
use, that ths railroads will do as they
please anyway, and all that, but in
the meantime neighboriDg cities are
getting in their work. Even were
the fact to be conceded that railroads
are absolutely Indifferent to the in
terests of localities-and The ARGUS
does not wholly agree with such
view-there is certainly nothing to be
lost by trying, and nothing to be
gained by listlessness. At all events
ad Joining cities are not sitting idly
by and permitting circumstances to
shs pc their fates. THE ARGUS spoke
last evening of the movement that the
Times had started in Davenport to
have the Rock IslandSt. Louis
railway Postcilice run extended
from this city to the Iowa side. and
of the further move to rearrauge
runs on the Milwaukee road to favor
that city. No sooner were the sug
gestions made than the proper organ
ization took the matter up in Oaven-
port, with the results that a repre.en-
tative of the pos,office department is
in the three cities looking into the ad-
visibility of the extensions. If they
so into effect they will cause Rock Is
land the loss of 10 families to Daven-
port. Aud yet, under the same rule
that is being applied in the interest of
the wideawake city across the stream,
Rock Island ought to seek the extern
sion of the Observation-Disclosures r.
p. o. run to this city. This would
bring eight families from Davenport
to this city.
The Rock Island Terminal Removal.
Supts. G. l.. Nichols. of the Illinois
division; w. j. Lawrence, OF the Iowa
division and w. IL. Given, of the
Southwestern division, of the Rock
Island road, arrived in town last
night to confer personally on matters
pertaining to the removal to the Haw
thorn yards.
Supt. Nichols left on No. ~ today
for Chicago. While in the city he
stated unofficially that everything
will in all proba bility be arranged for
the removal of the entire freig bus
mess of the road to the Hawthorn
yard Sunday, April % Gen. Supt'
A j. Hit will be here next Monday,
at which time the exact date of the
change will probably be fixed.
For over a year The ARGUS has
been urging action in this city such
as might avert the loss of the division
train crews of the Rock Island road
by reason of the new yards and ter
minals recently constructed at Mo-
line. At the outset it was positively
denied by those who assumed. at
least, to be in a position to know,
that the change would not involve a
serious loss to Rock Island, and it was
insisted that only the Illinois division
men would be affected by the change.
But with the development of the COM
pany's plans it has become apparent
that the Iowa division freight crews
may be as much involved as the Hi
come to light that the matter
may not stop here-that the pas
senger division may likewise be
shifted and that if it does not go
to Moline it will be sent to Daven-
port. 1t may seem little late now
to make any move in the city's inter
ests as far as its relations to the Rock
island road are concerned and yet
the fact remains that the introduction
Of switch engines would save to this
city the crews that are now threat
ened with change of quarters Moline
has no accommodations for the men,
even should they be sent there. and
this despite the fact that so much of
the endeavor that has been made
since the change was talked of has
been in the interests of real estate
speculations in the vicinity of the
new yards.
Men Want to Remain Here.
The men affected are not anx-
ious to move. Many of them have
just finished paying for homes here,
and all of them have greater or less
attachments for Rock Island that they
are not DESTROYS of severing. They
are willing to put up with some in
conveniences as far as they are con-
cerned, if they may be permitted to
retain their residences in Rock Island, |
but they cannot be expected to disre-
gard the wishes of the company or to
put hemselves in positions where
they will not be subject to the COM
pany's call at all times, of course. |
Hence. If it is insisted upon. they |
must move 10 Moline. But they have !
not gone yet. and the question now is
as to whether Rock Island has sufli-
cient vim to at least make the effort |
to induce the company to permit
them to remain here. We have been
assured that the Rock Island will
fully recompense in other ways its !,
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