River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1915-09-16

Still laughing, Allison telephoned to
| the Offices of the Midcontinent rail-
road and dashed out to his runabout
just in time to see Tim German drfv-
| ing around the corner in his liveried
| landau. He found in President Ur-
bank of the AIidcontinent, spare man
! who had worn three vertical creases
| in his brow over one thwarted ambi
| ton His rich but sprawling railroad
| system ran fairly straight after it was
we'll started for Chicago, and fairly
! straight from that way point until it
became drunken with the monotony Of
the western foothills, where it gangled
and angled it's way to the far south
and around up the Pacific coast, arriV-
| ing there dusty and rafting, after
/ thOusand-mile detour from it's course
! but that road had no direct entrance
into New York city. 1t approached
from the north, and was compelled to
circle completely around, over hired
| tracks, to gain a ferryboat entrance.
! Passengers Injured to coming in over
the Mdcontinent, which was we'll
equipped road otherwise, counted but
| half their journey done when they
came in sight Of New York, no mat
ter from what distance they had come.
"Out marketing for railroads today,
Gil?" suggested Allison.
Il don't know" smiled Urbank. y
might look at a few"
Here they are" and Allison tossed
him a memorandum slip.
Urbank glanced at the slip, then
he looked up at Allison in perplexity
He had a funny forward angle to his
neck when he was interested, and the
| creases in his brow were deepened un-
| til they looked like cuts.
Il thought you were joking, and I'm
still charitable enough to think so.
What's all this junk?"
Little remnants and job lots of
railroads I've been picking up" and
Allison drew forward his chair. Some
! bought outright, and in some | hold
control"
IF you're serious about interesting
the Midcontinent in any of this prop
erty we don't need to waste much
| time" Urbank leaned back and held
| his knee. There are only two of
these roads approach the Midconti-
nent system at any point, and they
are useless property so far as we are
| concerned; tne L. and c., in the East.
and the Silverknob and Nugget City,
| III the west, which touches our White
| Range branch at it's southern termi-
/ 10
those"
/ You landed on the best ones right
away smiled Allison. However |
don't propose to sell these to the Mid
continent. propose to absorb the
| Midcontinent with them"
Urbank suddenly remembered ALI
sons traction history and leaned for
ward to look at the job lots and rem.
nants again
This list isn't complete" he Judged,
and turned to Allison with a serious
question in his eye.
Almost" and Allison hitched a
little closer to the desk. There re-
mains an aggregate of three hundred
and twenty miles Of road to be bui,t
in four short stretches. In addition to
this, have a twenty-year contract
over a hundredmile stretch Of the IN
land Pacific, track right entry into
! San Francisco, and this" he disDlavad
to Urbank preliminary copy Of an
ordinance, authorizing the immediate
building Of an eight-track tube through
Crescent island to the mainland Pos
sibly you can understand this whole
project better if | show you a man )"
and he spread out his little pocket
! sketch.
If it had been possible to reverse
| the process of time and worry and
wearing concentration, President Ur-
bank Of the Midcontinent would have
risen from his inspection Of that
map with a brow as smooth as
baby's Instead. his lips went dry.
as he craned forward his neck at
that funny angle, and projected his
chin with the foolish motion of
goose.
"A direct entrance right slam into
the center Of New York;" he ex-
claimed, cracking all his knuckles vio-
lently one by one. 'Vedder court!
Where's that?"
That's the best part of the joke"
eXulted Allison, with no thought that
Fedder court was. at this present mo-
ment church property. It's just
where you said-right slam in the cen
ter Of New York; and the building
! into which the MidcOntinent will run
/ its trains will be also the terminal
building of every municipal transpor-
! tation line in Manhattan! From my
/ station platforms passengers from
! Chicago or &ae far West will step di-
rectly into subway, l., or trolley.
i When they come in over the line
which is now the Midcontinent, they
will be landed, not across the
river, or IN some side street. but
/ right at their own doors. scattering
from the Midcontinent terminal over
a hundred traction lines!" His voice,
! U,bi bo6 hooup ~, Io iIG no Of