The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-11-15
ALL IN A MIDDLE
City Railroad and Washburn Dis
agree About Location of Tracks.

| With the street railway company
| again, and the railway company is
threatening to abandon its line north
OF Fifteenth street on College avenue,
and build a new line running east
from College avenue on Fifteenth.
This is one of the principal things
at this time. He will decide while
! here whether the new line on Fiji
teenth street shall be built, or whether
| the railway company shall accept the
terms of President Plass and the
Washburn trustees, and place the
street car tracks on College avenue
| north of Fifteenth on grade.
At the present time, all work on the
reconstruction of the College avenue
line has been suspended. The pave
nent from Fifteenth to Seventeenth
mas been torn up, and the bricks are
piled high beside the right of way but
IN progress. North of Fifteenth on
College avenue, where the street car
tracks are in some places as much as
three feet above grade on a sort of an
stuck into the ground. The new steel
for the track has been distributed,
but the street railway company seems
to have decided to take no more steps
until the controversy is settled
1t Will raise great protest if the
railway company makes any change
IN its present line. People on Fiji
teenth street will kick on having their
lege authorities will object to having
the tracks taken off from College
avenue north of Fifteenth. The col
lege owns most of the land on that
part of the street, and it would in
terfere with its STABILITY if the car
line should be removed.
1t rather looks as though the college
holds trumps in the case, and that the
street car people would have to cut
down their embankment on College
avenue, and put it's tracks on grade.
There is said to be in existence an
agreement entered into between the
college and property owners on College
avenue, and the old street railway
company by the terms of which the
college and the property owners gave
the company a bonus of S., 900 to build
to the college on just the route which
is now in use. The college will demand
the enforcement of this contract.
A few days ago some of the street
railway officials went out to the col
lege and tried to persuade the college
authorities to allow them to see this
agreement. They said they did not know
exactly what it provided, and would
like to read it over. But President
Plass was a little too foxy for that,
and he refused to give The street car
people a glimpse of the document.
Il have the document in safe keep
ing" President PIass is said to have
stated, land at the proper time it will
be produced
OF course President PIass may be
bluffing, but there is equally good
ground to believe that the street rail-
way is bluffing, too. 1t may be a game
of bluff on both sides. The street rail-
way is really not especially anxious to
pull its tracks off from College avenue,
as that street promises to be a very
choice residence street throughout its
whole length But it does not want to
have to go to the expense of cutting
down its embankment on College ave-
nue., and putting its tracks ON grade.
So long as the tracks stay in their
present position, however the north
end of College avenue is worthless as q
residence street, for it IS practically
impossible for vehicles. The street
railway company may be trying to
bluff the college into allowing its tracks
to remain where they are.
L. E. Myers was asked today what
the Street Car company is planning to
do about the matter. He did not seem
disposed to do much talking on the sub
ject, but in response to numerous ques-
lions said:
I'VE have considered this Fifteenth
street route from the first, and are still
considering it. I don't know what we
will do If we go from Fifteenth, 1 do
not know whether we will turn north to
connect with our Huntoon street line,
or whether the Huntoon street line will
be abandoned, and we will connect
with the Quinton Heights line. 1t has
not yet been decided what we will do.
I don't know when it will be settled -
C1ly Engineer NcCdOo Will cOnpel the
Street Car company to put it's tracks on
grade on College avenue if it continues
to use that street. He said today:
LAS far as the scost of the work is
concerned, it would cost the company
more to remove that embankment on
College avenue than it would to build
on Fifteenth and then turn north to
reach Huntoon street on either Null
vane, Garfield or West streets 1t
would have to do lot of eXcavating
on these three streets to come down to
the ordinance grade, and it would be
unfortunate to have the tracks on any
of those streets for the further reason
that they are narrow. College avenue
is 100 feet and the other streets are
only 60 and 90 feet"
The Washburn college authorities are
afraid of only one thing. They are
afraid that the street car officials will
go before the council and get the coun-
ell to grant them permission to leave
the Colleve ave. tracks where they now
are. Pres. Plass attended the last coun-
Gil meeting for the purpose of repre-
senting the college in the matter, but
nothing came up before the council fol
action. The street railway officials have
also been f1ocking around the city hall
rather thick, and there is evidently
some sort of a deal on foot.