The Washington herald., 1908-01-31
TRACK BILLS PLIGHT
Poor Measure Runs Gantlet
of Many ReformerS.
TUNNEL IS NOW PROPOSED
Dreamy Members of House Com
mittee Have Plan 20 Safeguard
Careless PedestrfanS-Little LfkeH-
hood that Bill, when II Passes the
House, VIII be Recognizable.

The Union Station trackage bill. which
passed the Senate about ten days ago,
was the subject Of consideration at the
weekly meeting yesterday of the House
District Committee. No decision was
reached on the bill.
The subcommittee on street railways
was authorized to prepare a tentative
universal transfer amendment along the
line Of that which was introduced in the
Senate by Senator Hansbrough, and
voted down BY the Senate by an over
whelming vote on the day on which the
trackage bill was passed. The amend
ment viii propose the Issuance Of uni
versal transfers upon the payment of
full cash fare only. II will probably be
drawn up by the subcommittee at a meet
ing to be held to-mOrrow. and will be
submitted TO the full committee at a
meeting to be held on Monday next
when the trackage bill will again be
taken up
Should the amendment he adopted by
the committee. it is probable that sew
eral of the proposed extensions author
lied in the Gallinger bill viii be stricken
out in the report Of the House commit
tee, which is expected 10 be submitted
to the House in time for the bill TO come
up for passage on the next District day,
February TO-
The Troubles Multiply.
Troubles are multiplying, indeed. for
the track bill in the House committee.
Objection was made yesterday to the
proposition contained I'm the Senate bill
providing for four tracks on the station
rlaza. The objecting members expressed
the fear that adult Washingtonians and
visitors to Washington supposed to be in
fun possession of their faculties would
be endangered by the four tracks inter-
vening between them and the city.
To this the answer was made that IL the
tracks on the plaza were limited to two.
minor accident on one set Of tracks would
tie up the whole street car system as re-
CARDS the station, whereas with four
tracks this danger would be obvlatsd.
Others conceived the brilliant idea that
the tracks might be put in a tunnel under
the plaza. thus providing Washington
with a real metropolitan subway and
! presumably placing The city In the same
/ class with New York. To the rescue OF
these dreaming statesmen. however. came
/ several more practical members, who
suggested that the tunnel proposed would
have 10 be put somewhere near the cen
/ ter OF the earth, as Il We're owing to the
/ present existence OF a tunnel in that
! neighborhood which is used by the steam
/ roads.
| The tunnel advocates had apparently
/ believed that the electric cars could be
! demat erialized where the tunnels would
run into each other and that the street
! cars could pass through the railroad
J trains by a sort Of metempsychosis.
Senator's Are Pessimistic.
Altogether. it Is believed that the tracks
/ to the station may be authorized by the
/ House about the year 390S. according 10
/ the present outlook Then there VIII be
time enough to get into consultation with
/ the Senate and discover whether that
body viii. if il recognizes its bll sub
nit 10 the alterations which will prob
ably have been made. The belief on the
Senate side Of the Capitol is that the
process through which the bill is likely
to pass in the House will be somewhat
/ similar TO the petrihcation Of a tree-it
Z viii appear the same on the outside. but
the component matter viii bear about as
/ much resemblance 10 the original article
as stone does TO wood.