The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-07-11
Railroad Company Wants a
Section of States Land
Badly for Its Double Track
Road System.
MATTER Is REFERRED
TO ATTORNEY GENERAL
Property the Panhandle Would
Like to Secure Cuts Off
Quite a Slice of Hospitals
Land.

vania Railway company have made
proposition to the Eastern Indiana
Hospital for the Insane to obtain a
strip of ground whereby sufficient
room will be obtained to permit a
double track being laid past the in
stitution. The matter was received
by DIR. s. E. Smith. superintendent.
last week. He has done nothing upon
the subject but refer it to the attor-
property and the state will have to
protect its interests in the transac-
ton. 1t is expected the matter will
receive further consideration next
week.
The land desired by the railroad
cuts off quite a large section of the
garden ground. This lies nearly en-
tirely in the low land bordering Clear
Greek to the east. Because of its fer
tility and excellent irrigation. the
land is one of the most valuable Sec
tions of the farm. About two acres
will be required by the railroad. II its
plans. as now contemplated are ad-
hered to. DIR. Smith said last evening
that at this time the matter is only in
its infancy and he was not prepared
to discuss 1t at length. He has not
made a thorough examination of the
prospectus of the company and does
not comprehend the proposition In all
Its details.
Company Confident.
The railroad company does not an
ticipate any serious difficulty In Sc
curing it's additional right of way
through this county. The plans have
been made out so as to avoid as many
curves as possible. This fact no doubt
accounts for the company's desire to
secure a strip of ground from the hos
pital that is wider at the east end.
On the Ratliff farm. Just west of the
asylum land is a very sharp curve.
By securing sufficient ground be-
tween Clear Creek and the small
branch on the Ratliff premises known
at Wyatt's Creek, that sharp curve
could be reduced greatly. The curve
lis the most dangerous point between
Centerville and Richmond. Several
minor accidents have occurred at this
point and one disastrous wreck. The
place is at the top of a considerable
slope and trainmen have to be care
full about the control OF their trains
when passing here.
The county commissioners have not
decided upon the course they will
pursue relative to the demand of the
Pennsylvania for sufficient ground to
permit double tracking. The commits
sioners are waiting upon the county
attorney, who is making an extensive
Examination Of court rulings upon
similar cases. Upon the face OF the
thing, however, 1t seems the county
will not be able to evade the issue.
There is no doubt but that the con-
tract between the commissioners and
the railroad made in 1886 was enter
ed into with good faith and this would
make 1t difficult to avoid.
Were shortsiohted.
The commissioners OF that date.
now are regarded as having been
somewhat shortsighted. but there II
no insinuafion that they did not act
as they believed was for tho interests
OF the county. The county farm had
W nave q 6O0IC0 V2 WoeS4 ~AA1Q tuG
springs on jackson hill were the best
place to obtain 1t. II is but fair to
the then commissioners to believe
that they had no expectation tho
double track system ever would be In
stalled. They were influenced by pub
lie sentiment, which maintained the
hill is underlaid with a strate OF
quicksand and 1t would be impossible
to cut 1t down any further The only
point upon which these commission
ers are criticised 10 that they did not
place time limit on the contract into
which they entered It was specifi-
cally provided that no lapse of time
should be regarded as annulling the
contract. Besides having the right
under the contract to construct q sec
ond line OF track, the company IL per-
mitted to take from the county farm
what land 1t may need to alter the
elevation Of fho rozdhod