The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-06-03
Advertiser Bureau

yrba fact came to light today that TOT ,ha mast two years the Louisville ana Nashville Railroad Company mas pau ro tares on the splendid steel bridge thev have recently built and wnlcn spans the Alabama River at the easts.h s,I outskirts of the city of Selma ine hridge was completed about two years ago and since then tralhs haNe 'e running over 1t daily. .,
 It is through no fault of any oinciei of Dallas County that this tax mas not heen paid. For-the past two years the assessment on this bridge has been turned in by the tax assessor or pal- las County. For the past two years the State auditors office has mace re turns to the tax assessor or Daiias County hut the returns for neither wear shows that the taxes were paid on this bridge as they were given In to the State auditors office by the tax assessor of Dallas County.
 whether there is any reason why the Tpuisville and Nashville Railroad should not pay this tax on the prlage or whether 1t is just case Of negi- pence on the part of the State auditors otfice is not known, but the tax asses sor's books of Dallas County show that the tax on the bridge has not been paid since the bridge was put In operation about two years ago. Instead a small sum is being paid on the old bridge be- tween Selma and Montgomery and over which no trains are run now.
 It is estimated that the new bridge os the Louisville and Nashville which spans the Alabama River at Selma cost nearly S2O0,000. It took about three years for the Louisville and Nashville to build the magnificent bridge. Many thousand dollars were expended befofe the structure was completed. Consid-
 Ii. exrV aVfo ting A foundation for the pivotical pier. The coffer dam for this pier was washed away once or twice by high water, and work was delayed upon 1t for months at time.
 Equally as great trouble was experi- enced in the building of the rest of the bridge, high water interfering several times, washing away rafts and machin- cry and causing the several contractors considerable trouble. Besides this two IivEs were lost in the building of the bridge, but finally the contractors con ouered and today the bridge spans the Alabama River as a lasting monument to perseverance and energy.
 Made His Escape.
 Richard Thomas, prisoner on the city chaingang, made his escape from that brigade this morning and left the city before he was caught. Thomas was one of the negroes who was con victed in Police Court last week for breaking into the store of Charles Northrop in East Selma and taking therefrom a quantity of merchandise and groceries. He was fined $45 or ninety days and was working out his fine this morning when he made his escape.
 About o'clock this morning Thomas, who was working with the chaingang on North Church Street. called little negro boy to him who was passing and asked the boy if he would carry a note. The boy assented and Thomas gave him a note to P. c. Keipp. who runs A gun and repair shop on Dallas Street. The note to Mir. Keipp asked him to send by the boy a good pistol and was signed by Captain John shan nahan, street superintendent, or at least Keipp thought that Captain shan nahan had signed the note.
 The pistol was given to the boy and he carried it back to where the street hands were working. few minutes after the pistol had been delivered to him Thomas, with a shack on his leg, made a break for liberty. He ran down Church Street towards the railroad and l just as he reached the railroad track a running about twenty-five miles an hour. Thomas grabbed the train and landed upon 1t safely and the last that was seen of him was as he waved his hand at his pursuers as the freight train sped on towards Meridian.
 Some time this morning before the street hands went to work 1t Is thought that Thomas got hold of the scrap of paper and wrote the order to Mir. Keipp for tha pistol signing Captain John Shannahan's name to the order. MT. Keipp not knowing the difference de- Iivered the pistol to tho boy, thinking that he would deliver 1t to Captain Shannahan. Captain Shannahan wrote no such order and if Thomas is cap tured he will have to answer to the charge of forgery cs well as running away