The National tribune., 1909-09-30
SIXTEEN TONS OF EAGLES.
The Washington Union Station and the
Subterranean Sheds at Kansas City.

The Washington Union Station and tht
Subterranean Sheds at Kansas City.
Did anyone ever hear tell of an eagle
that weighed four tons? Well. we have
them here in Washington. four OF them
and they weigh four tons each. They
are sculptured from solid blocks o
Igranite and are magniicent-lookine
fereatures. nearly eight feet high, and
measure nearly IL feet from tip to tip
They will adorn the front of our mag
nificent new white marble Union Sta.
tion, and will stand on tall pedestaIs ir
front of the state and carriage entrances
of the depot. They were designed by
Augustus st. Gaudens. 1t took a small
army of men to unload the eagles from
the flat cars. and took truck for each
eagle and four hourses to each truck.
1t is estimated that it Will take at least
two weeks to place these tremendous
Birds of Freedom in front of the sta
ton.
AS is well known, Washington has
the most magnificent Union Station in
the world. 1t is built entirely of white
marble and white granite and looks like
a great marble palace. The waiting
room is one of the wonders of the
world, with its gilded dome nearly loo
feet from the marble floor and it's tiers
on tiers of mahogany benches. 1t is
almost beyond powers of description
to tell of the tremendous distances in
that more tremendous building.
The concourse is of magnificent di-
mensi0ns. and 1t is said that it would
provide shelter for the standing army
of the United States. suppOsing that to
be 10000. While the Union Station
seems a little out of the way to old
timers, who have long made use of the
Sixth Street Depot and the little old
bunty shed which the Baltimore e. Ohio
Railroad dubbed station, because
those two stations were almost in the
heart of the city. The new station,
while little out, is reached by every
street car line in the city, and when
you are there you are there. Strangers
coming into the city find it a tremen-
dous convenience to be able to walk
right from one train to another If they
are obliged to transfer. and if they must
wait they find great pleasure in going
about the depot and examining into all
its beauties. The street car men are
all very obliging, and it is not at all
difficult for strangers to find their way
about the city. The street car lines
run by every hotel OF prominence in
the city. and If strangers will tell the
conductor at what hotel they desire to
stop they will be put off right at the
door.
This is in charming contrast to the
black hole Of Calcutta called a Union
Station in Kansas City. Mo. OF all the
dark, unhealthy. insanitary. low-down.
ornery places that human being ever
got into the Union Depot at Kansas
City reaches the limit. Some Is years
ago the people of Kansas City began to
howl for neC Union Station. At that
time there were little depots scattered
around over the town, and when you
got into Kansas City. supposing you
were going to transfer directly to the
lines over which you had bought your
tickets. you found that you were car
ried by little old omnibus or dinky
horse-car line to some gloomy hole in
an outlying spot, where you had to wait
anywhere from IL to "a hours to catch
the jerk-water train. After the people
had been grumDiinS for from five to 10
years for the new Union Depot the rail-
roads decided to move their lines and
run them to the hole down under the
bluffs, and resOlutely said: 1--WE now
have Union Station" They also add
ed 10 or 15 feet to the length of the
station and announced tremendous inn
From that time to this
The people of Kansas City have semi
annually raised their voices tC demand
4 new station, but they have never got
.en it. A wOman's life is not safe in
that station 1t is painted gloomy
brown on the inside from one end to
he other. and you cannot recognize
,our best friend from cut-throat when |
you get inside. The lighting of it Is
. hA t1tl L..
'melled for half mile. The depot off |
'ials are arrogant, untrustworthy. ig-
lorant, illiterate, impudent men, and if |
t Is possible to give misinformation !
hey seem obligated to do it. The only |
iecent people that anyone will find |
tbout the whole bloomin' place are the |
negro porters and messenger boys. They |
eally and truly do try to help the poor, |
agged-out women and children who |
ire forced by unkind fate to spend any |
ength of time in that miserable hole.
The Union Station is located in the
'ery lowest section of Kansas City,
morally and every other way. Just
lcross the street from it is a half mile
# the very lowest doggeries in the
Whole State of Missouri. 1t is so near
he State line of Kansas that that sec
ion of the Missouri town has to pro-
'ide whisky of the Jersey lightning /
ariety for both sides of the State line
t is not an unusual thing to see dozen
oisterous men in the station pestering
he poor women and little children and
reating most unseemly disturbances.
he police of that section of the city
eein to be put there for their incom-
etence, and inability to control the in
ipient riots that are all the time oc-
urring around the depot and in it.
little children are trampled down by
hese brutes and often seriously hurt
teiined women are insulted every hour
n the day by the wel1-dressed brutes
{ the town. who are permitted to saur-
er thru and ply their trade 1
1t seems incredible that great, beau
iful. wealthy city like Kansas City will
ut up with this sort of a Union Sta
ion. Kansas City is always asking for
Iational conventions and is always try
lg to put herself alongside of St Louis.
and Boston in the way of
and accommodations for
he travelling public. She falls so far /,
hort of being able to accommodate the
ublic at the Union Station that one
-ould think the travelling public would
re of going that way. 1t could Just as
asily go by the way of Omaha in trav-
ling west, and it will there find a .
irge, light. clean station. admirably ,
ept. with long. wide. sheltering train
neds and plenty of sunlight and fresh
ir Anybody who goes by way of Kan
as City to any section of the West or
outh certainly must do it because he
oes not know that he has much bet
sr chance of getting thru alive if he
oes some other way. Kansas City is
ist now talking of a great Worlds Fair !
long about 1915. She might just as
IN