The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1909-11-29
KIRK TALKS
On MOOT
QUESTION
Gary Railroad Man in
Speech in South Chicago
Declares That Electrified
tion in Chicago Is Not
Feasible.

Superintendent John ". Kirk OF the
Chicago. Lake Shore & Eastern rail-
road, in charge Of the Kirk yards at
Gary. was one Of the speakers at the
meeting of railroad employees at Union
Labor hall. So1th Chicago, yesterday
afternoon at which resolutions con
deming the present agitation for the
electrifcation of railroads in Chicago
were vassed
Superintendent Kirk took the view
that identification was not desirable
in Chicago for the reason that there
are too many railroad yards in the
heart Of the city to make the use of
electric locomotives feasible.
He pointed out that at Bridgeport.
Ill, which is the Chicago city limits.
the United states Steel company has
a plant in which there are ten miles of
track and eighty-fve turnouts. At the
North Works of the Illinois Steel com
pany there are five miles of track and
sixty five switches and turnouts and at
the South Chicago plant there are sew
enty-four miles of track and 749
switches and turnouts
Makes EIectrihcatiOn Hard.
Mr.. Kirk points to the great Difficult
" of electrifying the terminals within
the city limits of Chicago when it is
necessary to do so much switching
within these limits.
MI Kirk, however, pointed out that
if Chicago did take steps to eIectrify
nj
ing all of the yards and shops Of
twenty three railroads entering Chfca-
go through northern Lake county into
the Calumet district.
Whether or not this would be an adj
vantage is a mooted question. 1t would
make Of Lake county a net work Of
tracks and yards that would cut it into
a thousand pieces.
The investigation of coke as a
smokeless fuel, recently ordered by the
Chicago city council was commended
as proper solution of the smoke nui-
sance. The attempt to force electri-
tication upon the railroads was de-
nounced by some of the speakers as a
conspiracy for the sole benefit of the
electric power trust"
Pass Resolutions.
A committee was appointed to pre-
sent the resolution to Mayor Busse OF
Chicago. The meeting was attended by
railroad employees and several officials
The speakers were Alderman John r.
Emerson, John Kirk. S. NJ Fitch. H
w. Lee. Frank Edwards, J. Fred Sheehy
and others. Otto Banner an engineer
on the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern rail
road presided.
Part of the resolution adopted was
as follows
Smoke Is at the present time an alb
solutely essential feature of industry
of work and the advancement of civil
ization. Before smoke is suppressed
by law it must in all Justice be proved
that this can be done without loss and
without injury to the work that smoke
now accomplishes.
Granting that the city has power to
suppress a nuisance and granting for
a momer& that smoke is a nuisance the
city may have the right to stop the
smoke. but we submit that it is clearly
beyond its statutory powers to die
tate what method shall be adopted
If it were necessary to go further
into details it could be shown that
electricity is a mysterious force. still
in its infancy, about which little is
yet known, that it is very dangerous
unreliable and not practical for general
railroad and switching purposes"