Los Angeles herald., 1907-02-28
RAILROADS WAR
WITH COUNCIL
PASADENA LEGISLATORS WILL
HAVE FIGHT OUT
To Meet Representatives Of s. p, Salt
Lake and Santa Fe, and Have
Argument over Crossing
Protection
Pasadena Agency
n North Raymond Avenue,
Phones: Sunset 1907. Home 2l24.

PASADENA, Feb. 7.--When the city
council meets tomorrow morning at Q
o'clock with the representatives of the
Salt Lake, Santa Fe and Southern Pa
cifc railroads to consider the matter
of establishing gates to guard and pro-
tect all crossings there is expected to
be war.
That the railroads have won in the
battle for time has been evident since
last Tuesdays session, when Messrs.
Halstead, Garvey and Van Cott, repre-
senting the Salt Lake, Southern Pacific
and Santa Fe respectively, secured an
extension of time before the second
reading Of the ordinance aiming dras
tic legislation at the three companies
would be ordered.
The representatives of the railway
corporations at that time expostulated
with the city fathers and told the
councimanic body that the ordinance,
If passed, would entail the expenditure
of many thousands of dollars and that
1t was entirely too drastic to be in
keeping with common sense.
The argument was one sided, as 1t
was in no way entered into by the
council, but this fact did not hinder it
from stretching out over a great por-
ton of the session and causing a special
adjourned session for the afternoon. In
view of the fact that it looked like
dragging through the remainder of the
day the councilmen decided to give the
railroad representatives a second hear
ing on a day that would be all their
own and which could not be taken up
by the consideration of other smaller
matters.
Tomorrow the fight will begin in
earnest and the parties who will repre-
sent the railway corporations will en-
deavor to pursuade the council to with
draw some of the more strenuous meas
ures of the ordinance They will claim
that the ordinance includes crossings
and asks for the stationing of flagmen
at these crossings when there is no
necessity for it at all, and they will
seek to prove this by showing that no
accidents have occurred at either of
these places. This does not in any way
mitigate the fact that at the Union
street crossing of the Santa Fe there
have been several disastrous accidents
and that others were narrowly averted
Nor will 1t so impress the council if
they steer by the course they have al
ready mapped out.
The recent accident in which dead
wagon was hurled into a ditch by a
Santa Fe train, two horses killed and
two men escaping death by miracle, has
stirred the slumbering executives and
it is now thought they will turn a deaf
fr1en
who seek a modification of the proposed
ordinance which will compel the guard
ing of the city's traffic against all pos
sible danger from railway trains.
AT the session to be called tomorrow
1t Is expected that the Los Robles street
petition against asphalting that avenue
Will be granted or declined according
to the report of the city engineer who
is now under Instructions from the
council obtaining data to prove that
the list of signatures attached to the
petition does or does not comprise
majority of tho frontage along the ave-
nue.. 1t is thought the petition will be
declined on the latter grounds.
The engineers report was not ready
Yesterday and it was expected to have
been completed today