The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-08-14
Queer Complications at
Apex Over Righ of Way.
WORkMEN ARE JAILED
fhe Seaboard Road Wanted TO Move
Its Tank to Mr.. Hunters Land and
When Forbidden Tried to do
so Anyhow With Result
Track Was Blocked.

bound, which leaves Raleigh at $3.50
o'clock in the afternoon arrived at
Apex, Iourteen miles from Raleigh,
Yesterday il was tagged some two
hundred yards or more east OF the
station and held up for more than
three-quarters of an hour by reason
IF a huge Water-tank which repoSed
squarely across the track.
What water tank was doing on
4 railroad track is a natural enquiry
and one the answer of which involves
IN interesting story
1t seems that the Seaboard. which
has maintained at Apex station one
OF the immense iron Water-tankS
which are placed at intervals along
the road. decided that "a more ia
yorable location would be about two
hundred yards east OF its then loca-
ton the point selected being on land
owned by Mr.. A. y. Hunter. one OF
Wake county'S representatives in the
asst legislature.
Accordingly arrangements We're
commenced week or ten days ago
to move the tank. but Mr.. Hunter
objected and it is said that it was
found on investigation that the ROAD
had no proper title to a right of way
over the land on which il was pro-
posed to place the tank. This fact
Mr.. Hunter pointed out to the road
matter was referred by the roads
agent to headquarters, and the dis.
pute, and the tank, rested where they
were
Yesterday morning, however, a
foreman and four section hands com
menced to tinker on the tank. With
crow bars and small derricks they
slowly "histed'' the immense struc-
ture from it's foundations. slipped it
over on the track and. bringing down
locomotive, slid the whole thing
slowly along the rails until it was
oppoSite to the point selected by the
road FOR its location and commenced
to laboriously Shift il off the track to
it's intended site.
BY this time 1t was early afternoon
and the work had been going on
since morning and Mr.. Hunter had
not figured in the case. When the
big tank commenced to clear the
track, however, he came forth and
forbid the men to proceed further.
They laughed and Mr.. Hunter went
away. He soon came back. and it
was seen that he had not been idle
during the day With him were two
constables and they had warrant
charging Foreman Crast and his four
helpers with forcible trespass on Mr..
Hunters land. The warrant was
served the men arrested and the
work stopped while the whole party
went before Squire Bunne for the
preliminary hearing.
The trial was soon over The evil
dence was plain that Foreman Crast
and his four helpers had gone on
the land after having been forbidden
TO 90 so and that they had persisted
in the tresDass The magistrate rend-
cred his verdict of guilty In hurry,
fined the defendants according to the
terms of section 1920 of the Code.
None of them were able TO pay and
all appealed. Whereupon the magis-
trate fixed their bonds at $50 apiece
No bondsmen appeared the defend
ants did not have the money. and the
railroad men were put in Jail in de-
fault OF bond.
Thus it was that when the Sea-
boards south bound train arrived it
found the track blocked and no a<-
parent way of getting past the OBJ
struction. The situation was one of
the greatest seriousness to the road.
Already freight trains were arriving
northbound and more were due. to
say nothing of the time and mails and
money that wou6 be lost on the fast
passenger trains in both directions
should the blockade continue all night
AT the point at which it was thought
to place the tank there is a side track
but even that was blocked by the big
tank. The only men who understood
the work were in Jail and the road
was "up against it,
What the frantic agent and the no
less frantic conductors and the more
than frantic foreman teiegraphai to
headquarters Will never be known
or the comments that headquarters
sent back in reply. During all this
time Mr.. Hunter remained serene and
obdurate. 1t was his land. he said,
he would use it as he would. he had
given warning.
After a while however Mr. Hunt
er relented--a little bit. He per-
mitted the tank to be moved so that
it barely closed the side track, per-
hitting the trains to slip by. This
was accomplished at about half-past
six, and traffic was resumed. The
main track is still blocked. however.
the side track cannot be used for the
purposes for which it was laid and
there is no way FOR the engines to
water at Apex.
What the result will be no one
can say though a lawsuit is among
the foregone complications which will
result. While there is no deed TO the
right of way the road will probably
claim that it has acquired the right
by long usage. and Mr.. Hunter will
doubtless reply that the road has been
using no part of his land except that
actually covered by the road bed.
In the meantime the tank is still
roosting on the track waiting for
somebody TO give in and the trains
are slipping cautiously by the obstruc-
ton on the side track.
Have you heard it? Wei it is won
derful the work The Kelley Institute
at Greensboro is doing. Write for a