Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-08-14
BACK TO ROCK ISLAND
Order Issued for First Step in Re.
turn of c r. !. & P. Ter
minaI From Natick.
WEST BOUND TRAINS MAKE UP HERE
New Arrangement Announced to Go
Into Effect at Noon
Sunday.


prediction made by The Argus some
months ago to the effect that the
terminal business of the Rock Island
road, which was taken from this
city to Moline over a year ago, is to
be moved back to this city, is to be
realized, at least in part. Beginning
next Sunday all west bound trains
will be made up in the local yards,
instead of at Natick.
This is the arrangement that held
for time when the removal to
Natick was being made. The ter
minal business was taken away by
degrees and so it seems that ii is to
be returned. If arrangements are
again made for doing half the
switching here it is safe to assume
that all of it will be done here as
soon as the facilities now wanting,
but which circumstances plainly in
dictate are being planned for, are pro-
vided.
Since the consolidation of the Pc
oria and the b., c. II. & y. with the
Rock Island and the terminal bust
ness of the two roads has been CEN
tralized largely in the upper yards
in this city, a return to something
like the old-time activity was noted.
About siXty-five engines run into the
local yards and are kept portion of
the time in the roundhouse there. There
are about as many, in fact, as can be
handled there with economy. So il
will be necessary for all the through
freight engines to be kept at Natick,
as now, and they will be run back to
that place light.
What Change Means.
The change will bring to this city
several switching crews and an en-
CINE will be kept at work on the
"hill," as the place at the east end
of the yard where the most of the
work is done, is called. Those of the
trainmen affected who live here will
have things handler, and it may be
that some of the families that left
the city will be induced to move back
at once. Economy in expenses will
be effected in that number of
switchmen will be laid off as the re-
suit of the change, but four switch
tenders will be put back at places
that have been deserted since the re-
moval to Moline.
this latest move on the part of the
Rock Island management is only the
logical result of the experience the
company has had with the Natick
yard. While it is somewhat longer
than the one in this city, there is lit
tie, if any, more room there than
here and trains cannot be made up
with anything like the facility with
which they can be put together here.
This has kept the Rock Island man
agement longing for a chance to get
the terminal back to this city and
doubtless for this reason negotia-
tions with the Burlington are being
pushed as rapidly as possible. With
the track room that the Burlington
now has the Rock Island would have
one of the best yards on the system
and one that would handle all the
business that runs in here.
Preparing for Kansas City Service.
Another thing that probably is
having weight in hurrying up the inn
provements of the Burlington in the
slough is the necessity of providing
more and better track facilities for
the new through Kansas City service
of the Milwaukee, which it is expect
ed will begin in October. Yesterday
a number of officials of the Milwau-
kee were in this city and Moline and
General Supt. +. c. Rice, of the Bur-
lington, was also on the ground and
the situation at the east end of this
city and the west end of Moline was
thoroughly canvassed. From the
fact that the roads engineers have
now staked out the line of the out
side of the embankment in the slough
it appears that construction work is
soon to be undertaken in that vi |