The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-05-27
UNION DEPOT ID BE ON NORTH SIDE Motion and Whitfield Talk of
 Louisville Trip SAW PRESIDENT SMITH He Told Them Emphatlcally That the Louisville and Nashville Depot
 Would Remain at Twen.
 teth Street.
SAW PRESIDENT SMITH

1 T. H. Motion, a real estate man. re-
 turned to Birmingham yesterday from
 Louisville where he had gone to have
 talk with Milton H. Smith about the union station proposition and to induce,
 vile and Nashville railroad to make terms with the other railway presidents so that union station would not be built at Twenty-seventh street When Mir. Aloiton got through with his interview with MT. Smith he doubtless, from all accounts of his visit, felt like the proverbial thirty cents Mexican plugged What Mir. Smith said to him on the subject was, in the language of the street, "a plenty"
 When it comes to barrenness of results. the visit of MT Motion to Louisville knocks all other noted expeditions out of sight and almost out of memory. The King of France who with forty thous- and men marched up the hill and then marched down again wasn't a marker to Mir. Motion who went and saw but did not conquer
 Mr. Motion might have epitomized his visit by sending from Louisville Thursday night a copy of the message dispatched by another French King after the battle of Pavia. With him truly all was lost save honor, so far at least as the union station was concerned. MT. Motion came back to Birmingham a sadder if not a wiser man.
 Accompanied by J. G. Whitfield and Sam Earle of Birmingham ard Dr. Bald win of Montgomery, Mir Motion set out for Louisville last Wednesday. On the way mp he had visions of the railway lamb lying down with the railway lion, and of a little boy whose initials are TT. II. NJ" leading them into the land of Beulah. AS chairman of the committee he called on President Smith Thursday When the interview was over, he quietly folded his tent and hunted up the rail- to Birmingham
 Yesterday afternoon an Age-Herald man called on MT, Molton, and here is an ab- breviated account of the interview with him.
 Would you be kind enough, Mr. Mol ton, to state for the information of the public, what was the purpose and result of your recent mission to Louisville?"
 Louisville? Missslon? Result? Pur- poser" said MT. Motion, somewhat sur prised.
 "Yes"
 Well, who told you about that? see The Age Herald says that I was in Louis- vile and saw President Smith,"
 "Is 1t not true?"
 Tt Is true. but how did your paper know 1t, and why did you print it2'
 Tt is one of the duties of the modern newspaper to report the comings and go- ings of important personages of the city, and especially when the visits are made on subjects of public interest"
 well, l have nothing to say about the visit"
 You saw President Smith, did you not?"
 "Yes"
 Did he encourage you to believe that the union station will be kept at Twen- tieth street?'
 He didn't give us any satisfaction. Wouldn't tell us anything definite. Couldn't get anything out of him.. Do you think he will transfer the 1 Louisville and Nashville station to Twen- | ty-seventh street?"
 He will not. On that point, and that | point alone, he was most emphatic. Un- | ,4 xyi1 Ia md 1 Nashville leave Twentieth street. To re- I grets that the other railways may go l elsewhere that the town will have two 1 stations and that one of them will be at point so distant from the trade cen ters and so inconvenient for the public"
 He regrets that, you say?" l "Yes, he deplores it greatly" | '"Does he regret it enough to negotiate with the other railways and grant them concessions that will encourage them to stay at Twentieth street?" "Oh, no-not that exactly! He doesn't want to make any concessions, but he de- plores the change--deplores it greatly" MT. Whtifield's Statement. | G. Whitfield who accompanied MT. Motion. made this statement regarding | the trip.
 | "The new union station will be built at Twenty-seventh street There isn't a | shadow of doubt about it. The thing is settled-nothing can change It. The other railways would probably go in for a Twentieth street union station, If they could be part owners in it and in the contiguous property. The Louisville and Nashville won't let them in on those terms. The Southern wants to be an own CT not a tenant. It's not in the renting business. President Smith won't make terms with the other roads on the part ownership basis. Therefore, the other roads must either play second fiddle to the Louisville and Nashville if they go to Twentieth street. The other roads, and especially the Southern, don't take kind ly to the second fiddle role.
 "President Smith treated us courteously, showed us all the correspondence on the subject with the various railroads and