The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-01-05
DRUMMERS PROTEST
DON'T LrKE PnoPosnp CHANGE or
 SCHEDULE.


 Tell selma Merchants te Allow Western
 sf Alshsma te stick to Proposed
 P1ep--Many Cttinens
 sigs S'ctitien. -.5t Advertiser Bureau.
 s. Selma, Jan. {.
 That change of schedule on the western Railway of Alabama continues to be the theme of much controversy here,- The question has been widely discussed by . large number of citizens since the meeting of the Board of Di- reotors of the Commercial and Indus trial Association Tuesday afternoon. at which J. P. Billups, general passen- ger agent of the Atlanta and West Point and the Western Railway of Ala bama, was present
 At that meeting 1t was practically agreed that the night train which had been scheduled to leave Montgomery at $40 D. m., and which would arrive here about 10 p. m.. should be changed The meeting decided that It would be better If this train should be changed so that 1t would leave Montgomery about o'clock each afternoon and reach here about { o'clock. By this change 1t was argued that the mer- | chants and business people would be able to get their eastern mail at 5 o'clock each afternoon and have time to answer the same that night and get I these answers of on the early train the next morning.
 | At that meeting the question of get | ting the eastern mall here and not to cause eastern travel to lay over several hours in Montgomery was the principal issue discussed. The connections of the many other trains which arrive in Montgomery late in the fternon and ! which nearly evt y day bring to that city Selmians who are just as anxious to get home as those who are return ing from New York was mentioned. But this side of the question was quick iy disposed of by not being considered and it was agreed that If these trav- ellers did not reach Montgomery in time to take the early afternoon train that they should stay in Montgomery until the next morning, 1t made no dif ference how anxious they were to get home that night
 l To the meeting of the Board of Di- rectors of the Commercial and mdus- trial Association Tuesday afternoon. Mir. Biliups left this matter to he set tied by the people of Selma On those grounds the question of the change of schedule took on different phase this morning and 1t Is believed that 1t will now be left as 1t was originally fixed by the officers of the road.
 | There are a large number of citizens of Selma who belong to that class of business men called 'drummers." MaLy of them travel the entire State and leave Selma early in the week and invariably return to Selma Friday might on the train from Montgomery Many of these men who only travel local territory are often caught close to Montgomery on Friday afternoon and 1 go to that city and come to Selma on 1 the night train. .s/
 Since the question of changing the time of the night train leaving Mont gomery has come up, these citizens have taken a hand in the matter. This , morning the local lodge of the United Commercial Travellers circulated a pe- tItion among the business people of the l city. The caption of this petition was
 As citizens of Selma, Ala. we the undersigned merchants and business fmen respectfully petition the officials i of 1.-the JsAtlanta and West Point and Western Railway of Alabama to adopt the schedule as proposed by them namely. that the afternoon train shall leave Montgomery at S:10 p. m. That I this train, which Is a through train from Atlanta to Selma, shall carry a parlpr car"
 | lne peIltiun was 5t6Hcu Dy every business man to whom it was handed by the representative of the United CommerciHi Travellers. The sign CTS of the same embraced the principal business men of the city and 1t was this afternoon forwarded to the officials of the road.
 l In speaking of the proposed change of the schedule of the night train this morning a we'll known travelling man said that to have that train leave Montgomery early in the afternoon would do Selma more harm than good. He travels a large section of the State nearly every week and generally ar rives in Montgomery on an afternoon train and comes home that night. He thought 1t would be foolishness to keep away from the city a number of men twho with their families make Selma itheir home for tie sake of a few let iters each afternoon which contain in- | voices and bills and which probably they would not get until the next morning. Even if they did get them that afternoon 1t would be after their stenographers had gone home and the same could not be answered until the next day.
 This comemrcial traveller said that | if the schedule of the night train was changed that 1t would be more to his advantage to move his headquarters to Montgomery. There were others. he said, who would do the same thing and in that way the city would lose sew eral families who each year spend Iar1a apoounts nf rnOneY here.