Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1906-08-23

A few weeks ago the business men
of Shepherdstown made another at
tempt to have telephone placed in
the Norfolk & Western Railroad sta
ton at this place. A petition was
written and signed by perhaps all the
shippers in the community, and was
forwarded to the Superintendent Of
this division of the road, E. A. Blake.
Mr.. Blake's reply was one that fails
to do him credit. He refused to put
the telephone in, on the ground trat
it was a useless expense That it
would be of no service to the railroad
or its patrons When such firms as
W. N. Lemen g. Son, G. T. Hodges,
and practically all of the business
men of the town urgently ask for tue
telephone, he says it costs too much
cant stand $24 year. And
compels the patrons of the road to
walk to the station, outside of the
corporation limits, to find out the
simplest matters relating to their bus.
mess, and prospective passengers have
to phone to Charles Town to ascer-
tain Just how late their train may be.
There's not business man in this
county that would turn down the Pc
tition that Mr.. Blake rejects, and if
that official should be retired to pri-
vate life, Observer doesn't believe he
could successfully conduct peanut
stand. We are quite sure he couldn't
with his present ideas ofaccommodat.
ing the public.
F. E. Blaser, superintendent ofthe
B. & o. Railroad, seems to have the
same idea Of pleasing the patrons Of
his road that Mr.. Blake has. A Pc
tition was recently forwarded to him,
asking that a telephone be placed IN
the agents Office at Shenandoah
Junction. His curt reply was that
the road could not assume this ex-
pense." What the blazes is the mat
ter with Blaser, anyhow? Does he
want the people to pay the present
high freight and passenger rates and
foot the running expenses too2
Another style of railroading for
which we presume Mr.. Blake is re.
sponsible is the manner in which the
Norfolk & Western doesn't carry the
mails. If the Western Maryland
Railroad happens to be triAe late in
reaching Hagerstown in the morning,
the N. g. W. never thinks of waiting
for it, and masses Of mail and express
matter and often passengers are left
standing there until the next day.
This is a serious matter to the people
living along the line of the road, and
the postal authorities will be asked to
investigate it. If the N. & W. ran
any risk of losing a reputation for
having it, trains on time, we wouldn't
complain about this-but it doesn't.
1t sometime looks as if the officials of
the road deliberately and with malice
atorethought miss the connection.
Last Sunday morning the Western
Maryland train was IS minutes late.
Instead of waiting for it, the N. & w.
ran its train six miles south of Ha-
gerstown and kept it on side track
for FIVE hours until wreck was cleared
up. The persons responsible could
not but know that the wreck would
delay the train, for the accident had
occurred seven hours previously.
This looks like stupidity inexcusable
or an almost criminal disregard Of the
comfort of the people.
If Observer were judge with au-
thority to enforce his orders, he would
sentence Mr.. Blaser and Mr.. Blake to
solitary confinement, with nothing to
do, in the old howell at Shenandoah
Junction, used by the B. & O. and the
N. & w. as joint station, until a
new and respectable depot were built.
1t is scandalous that the great num-
Der of passengers using these roads
should be compelled to occupy such a