The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-03-15
1T CARRIED DAY.
Street Car Company Snatched
Victory From People.
Council by Six to Five Vote
Approves Part.
JUST AT MIDNIGHT.
Buchanan Street Change Voted
Amid Kisses of Women.
Exciting Scenes in Chamber,
Greet Verdict With Groans.

Accompanied by the Kisses of enrag-
ed women, the groans of discouraged
men, by a vote of to of the city
council, the Topeka Railway company
won the most vital point in it's battle
for rights in this city and secured the
extension of it's franchise to build lines
On Buchanan street between Seven
teenth and Twenty-third streets. last
night.
The right to build on this street was
the keynote of the whole railway stu
alton and all of the other lines in the
city dpended upon the action taken
by the council on this proposition. The
vote was taken at midnight-after four
hours of the sharpest and most bitter
kind of controversy between the repre-
sentatives of he street railway and the
PEOPLE residing on the southern limi =
of Clay and Buchanan streets in this
city.
the building Of this line on Buchanan
street were Blakely. Fink, Hughes,
Lannan, Simpson and Stanley. Against
it were Fraser, Howard. Jordan, Miller
and Tandy. Councilman Drew was put
of the city. Had he been here it is
claimed he would have voted for the
extension and the vote would have been
to 5. 1t takes seven votes to pass an
ordinance and the street railway peO-
PIE may need the absent councilman at
the final passage of the ordinance next
Thursday night.
The meeting last night was the most
bitter session ever held on this fran
elise. The council chamber was crowd
ed with standing room taken. One
third of the audience was wonderland
this accounted for the extraordinary
amount of noise and disturbance. 1t
was common thing to hear hiss and
I'D "a, dnd
in saying anything and sitting down be-
fore he was called down. criticised
questioned and ridiculed he was per-
forming a marvellous feat. Those VINO
attempted to speak in favor of the ex-
tension of the franchise were given the
most discourteous of treatment and
were condemned in all parts of the
room by the enraged people. The city
council and the mayor give members
of q council audience privilege to speak
but las- night no one asked for the
privilege or attempted to address the
mayor before they spoke. They jump
ed from their feet a half dozen at
time and all spoke at once.
Want No More Crowds.
From the sentiments expressed by the
counciImen last night 1t is evident that
no more crowds Will be asked or rec
ognized at a meeting. 1t also might
be stated that if the people in the au-
dience had not acted in such manner
last night the franchise ordinance
would have been lost It was stated
after the meeting adjourned last night
that the vote of one councilman
which would have gone against the or
cinance-was changed because he was
disguised by the disrespect OF the peo-
ME who came as representatives of one
of the prettiest and best parts of the
city.
BY granting the street railway the
RICH to build on Buchanan street from
~ ~ IND re
last night, the city council completed
the entire extension clause of the or
dinance. All of the other extensions
depended upon the passage of this sec
ton.
There was considerable sentiment in
favor of referring the franchise to the
incoming commissioners last night, but
it did not carry. Councilman Tandy
worked hard on this point and he was
supported by a number of the coun-
cilmen, but when it was stated by the
street railway officials that if the mat
ter was deferred the lines would not
be built for a year at least the Senti-
ment was found lacking in some of the
Tandy supporters.
Capt j. G. Waters and John Switzer,
prominent Topeka attorneys, spoke
against the ordinance last night. Mr..
Waters made a plea for the people
who have earned their homes with the
sweat of their brow and said that the
street railway wanted the ordinance in
order to ''blanket' the CITY DeIOre Ino
council form was abandoned.
John Switzer Speaks.
Mr. switzer was emphatic and ora
torical. He said: There is too much
disposition for people to come here
and not know what they are talking
about There are people who desire to
live on a car line and those who do
not desire to live on a car line. The
Clay street people wet the line where
it is and the Buchanan people don't
want They are the ones directly af-
fected. This city council is elected by
the people and the law says that the
people have a right to petition-the
council should listen to them. 1t
might be said that for every dollar
the street car company spends they
will get a dollar back-they are not
going to let four little blocks in this
part of the city block their entire
plans
Mr.. Switzer was applauded every few
words and he could hardly make him
self heard. When the people realized
what point he was going to bring out
they yelled, screamed, stamped their
feet and clapped their hands. If Mr..
Switzer had announced himself for
governor at that time he would have
been elected on the spot.
Councilman Tandy stirred up a panic
in the city council by making certain
insinuations last night and for awhile
it looked as though storm would
break.
'sI would rather be defeated for
commissioner than have my name
placed in the light that some of the