Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1917-10-29
ST. MARY'S R. R.
GIVES Up GHOST
Jitney Bus Competition Causes De-
mise Of w, B and c.
BUILDING PLAN FAILS
Washington, Potomac And Chesapeake
Railroad Company
ftAII In"

The little old one-engine road down
in st. Mary's County that operates
under the imposing appellation. Wash
ington. Potomac and Chesapeake Rail-
road Company. is about to give up the
ghost. In the language of the street.
il is all in" according to reliable re-
ports, and its doom has been sealed
by nothing less than an enlarged edi-
ton of the now popular jitney bus
The people of Southern Maryland
are deploring the passing of the his
toric railroad, the only one that has
even enriched St Mary's with its i'm
posing presence, and they lay the
blame on the modern gasoline-pro-
PEELED conveyance that has captured
practically all the passenger business
between the national capital and
Leonardtown.
Right OF Way Main Asses.
Notices have been sent out calling
attention to meeting Of directors
scheduled to take place in Baltimore
on October 81, when the question Of
dissolving the road will be decided
and the disposition of its principal as
set of value, the right OF way of the
company into the District of Column
bia, which carries with it the priv
ilege of using the terminal facilities
OF Union Station, viii be determined,
This right of way may be of great
value at some time in the future, ac-
cording TO those familiar with the sit
uation, but at present it is estimated
to be worth 5000, for which sum it
will be sold, il is said, to Henry w.
Watson. of Philadelphia, who owns
practically all the stock of the road
For road operating on a short
haul this right of way would be of lit
tie value, according to w. Bernard
Duke. president of the Seaboard Bank.
a native of ST Mary's, and who for
years has been fighting for better rail
road facilities for that territory, for
the reason that the head tax on pas
sengers assessed by the Terminal
Company for the privilege of using
the station, would be prohibitive.
Makes One Trip A Day.
He said that the passing of the old
read is mainly due to the lack of earn
ing capacity that has formed the one
big stumbling o'clock to the progress
of the road. With its one engine and
coach, loaned by the Pennsylvania
Railroad. the companys schedule is
limited to one trip a day over the p
miles of its length between Brandy
wine, Prince Georges County, and
Mechanicsville, St Mary's County,
which run is generally made in two
hours, barring the occasional delay in
order to shoe a COW or two off the
tracks. This is slow moving, consid-
ering the fact that the bus line makes
the trip twice a day in much less
time
Mr. Duke holds some interest in the
road and was proposed as director,
but never qualified He has on more
than one occasion taken up the mat
ter of improving the railroad line, but
without success. 1t is said that Wat
son has spent considerable money on
the road, it being reported that he paid
$4,000 for the last purchase of the
corporations bonds, while in clearing
the title something like $4,000 was
expended.
Building Plan Fails.
Some time ago there was "A report
to the effect that a corporation was
considering the construction of rail
road line in that section to run as far
as Indian Head. If this should be the
case it would be likely that the right
OF way of the Washington, Potomac
and Chesapeake Company would be
required
n good many years ago the Wash
ington, Potomac and Chesapeake was
chartered to operate between Wash
ington and Point Lookout. The line
was never completed, the only sec
ton built being the q miles that now
exist.