The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-10-28
Little Likelihood That Interur.
ban Franchise VIII Pass.
Company and Council Can Not
Agree on Terms.
DIFFERENCE is GREAT.
Blanket, Freight, Guarantee
Features Stumbling Blocks.
Talk of Carrying Contest Into
City Election.

There is small hope of compromise
between the city council and the pro-
posed Manhattan electric railway peo-
pie on the terms of the franchise which
the company wants, and indications are
now that the company will refuse to
accept what the council is willing to
give. The railway people absolutely
refuse to put up any cash guarantee 10
build the road. and insist upon
! blanket franchise over all of North To-
peka, and the right to run freight
trains at any time. day or night. With
these conditions. the council will turn
down the project.
/ Failing to get a franchise, the rail-
way promoters threaten to go into the
next spring election and work TO defeat
the councilmen who oppose them. Said
one of the men interested in the COM
pany today:
I'VE realize that we are up against
a fight, and that the streets and walks
committee is against us. If the COM
mlttee turns us down, we will carry
the fight into the council. If the coun-
ell is against US we will not give up the
fight by any means. We will go right
ahead with our work outside of town,
and when the time comes we will see if
we can't change the membership of the
council a little"
That the interurban line realizes that
| it has desperate fight on hand is indi-
Gated by the fact that a petition is
now being circulated in North Topeka
asking the city council to grant the
company franchise such as they have
asked for. This petition is said to be
meeting with very general approval,
and it will contain great many sig
natures when it is presented to the
council. No effort is being made to
circulate the petition on the south side
OF the river. North Topeka people be-.
lleVe that they should have the right
to say what sort of a franchise the
council shall grant for that part of
| town.
Mayor Bergundthal is one North To-
peka man who opposes the granting of
the franchise in the form which the
especially opposed to allowing the COM
pany to run carloads of cattle or hogs
or anything else in freight cars on its
| lines during the daytime, if the line is
built through the residence portion OF
town. If the company will build down
the Union Pacific right of way. 1 don't
care what they haul But nobody wants
| freight trains going past their home
every hour or so. Let them haul freight
in compartments of the passenger cars -
! Councilman Weber. chairman of the
streets and walks committee, is also OPP
fpoSed to the franchise IN its present
form. He says: Il think it is very
doubtful whether the council will pass
such a franchise
Councilmen Griley, Wolf Tincher and
Snyder are all reported to be opposed to
the franchise in its present form. Some
object because they think the company
! should designate the streets which it
wants to use; others insist that a cash
guarantee bond must be put up with
the city as an evidence of good faith
while others are making their fight be-
cause of the freight car clause of the
franchise.
L. S. Dolman, the attorney for the
| company, who is doing much of the
work toward securing the franchise
said today:
We will have petition signed by
North siders to present to the council
in behalf of our request for franchise.
It is already signed by over 200 people,
and go far no one has refused to sign
We will stand firmly for three things
first the right to run over any street
we please. If we were obliged to name
the streets we want the city railway
would at once build on those streets
for the purpose of keeping US off. Second,
we must have the right to run freight
cars. That is the principal business of
an interurban line. and it is foolish to
object to it. Third, we can't afford to
put up a cash bond, simply because we
don't know whether we can raise the
money to build the road, and think we
will risk enough in having the prelim-
mary surveys made at an expense of
SO 600 Topeka should encourage us.
and not throw such obstacles in our
way We hope to be able to get a
franchise under these terms, but if not,
then we don't want a franchise