The Forrest City times., 1914-05-01
THE UNION STATION
Mr. Editor:

was most timely and valuable, anC you deserve thanks from all who ad vocate this splendid improvement tc our railroad facilities.
 think, however, that much more aught to;be said to refute the argu. ments made by those who are oppos. ing, and if you will allow me the space 1 will try to show how little merit there is to their contentious.
 At the hearing of our petition for union station, by the Arkansas Rail- road Commission here in Forrest City, but little local opposition appeared, though it was invited and desired by the Commissioners, as well as by those of our citizens who had presented the petition and arranged the hearing
 The railroad attorneys present, from both roads, offered absolutely no ar gument whatever to show they should not build this joint station, but con fined themselves to telling us of the granduer of their two systems, and how hard up for money they are, and that they just could not afford to spend any money at all in Forrest City, though admitting that we were entirely reasonable in our demand for better passenger accommodations than we now have. They just plead pover- ty and begged that they be let alone.
 The Commissioners considered all of these things, and after sixty days, made the order that plans be submit ted within thirty days, and that with in sixty days thereafter, work of erection be begun.
 Now, here was sixty days in which opposition could have-and by all rules of fair play should have-been presented. That none was presented after the order for this union station had been secured; after the time when opposition vas invited, and should have been made; opposition develops. Here is this splendid improvement, ordered for our town, at no cost what ever to ourselves, which will advertise us to all the world as a progressive town and people, and which will pro- mote the comfort and convenience of all who patronize the passenger trains, of these two roads, in danger Of being lost to us through an opposi- tion that has recently been created, by officials of the Iron Mountain road MT. Morse, division superintendent of said road, has shown to many of our people plan of a cheap wooden building that his road offers as their seperate station, in lieu of their part 0f union station, and has led many to believe it will be new building: but there is plenty of reason to think Il will be the same old building they now have, heightened and otherwise somewhat improved
 MT Morse, accompanied by our local Iron Mountain agent, MT Bowers. presented to our business men peti- tion for their signatures praying the R. R. Commission 10 revoke their recent order for a union station, and to permit the Iron Mountain to fur nish us with the building as shown on their plan. A number of signatures were secured to this petition through direct appeals of MT. Bowers 10 bis friends, and by MT. Morses threat that his road would go into the courts to resist the order of the Commission. A few people signed il because they really think seperate stations will be better for our town than joint sta tion. A number also signed it because attorney Busby Of the Rock Island has hinted that his road might exer. else their right to buy the hotel and use It, or it's site, for union station. Other signatures were secured by a suggestion to the Forest City Grocer Company that they might be required 10 vacate their site.
 Mayor Scott has actively the union station because our town se cures the revenue from licenses to draymen who do transfer business from one station to the other and be. cause these negro draymen derive an income from this transfer traffic An other reason he offers is that passen- gers from one station to another will spend little money on their way through town. He is also impressed ny 1te plea of the railroad, that ,hey cannot afford 10 build Us 4uiou sta li"u ID cost s+0ooo 0j to s54uo0 0o. as eaey can get The meue5-aud Nr. Sc.tt thinks il 'yganny t9 force -Len ca do so, .lsJ because wei can.
 Now, to answer these 0l eetlons:
 Ii. Morse's threat 10 resist an order o' the Arkansas Railroad Commission. IS al bosn The higher officials of his road, Enow loo well from past experi- ences the power of the Commission, and that it is wiser 10 comply than 10 refuse, The Commission has full