Evening star., 1926-03-27
Business and Civic Leaders
Unite in Fighting Proposal
Declared a Menace.
DEFENDED AS ASSET
TO NATION IN WARTIME
Maj. Gen. Ely and Rear Admiral
Knight Uphold Span-Rail Heads
Against New Route.

Business and civic interests Of the
Capital City, of Montgomery and
Prince Georges counties in Maryland
and OF Arlington County. Virginia.
united in expressing opposition to the
proposed railroad bridge across the
Potomac River above Chain Bridge
at hearing today before the sub
committee on bridges of the Senate
commerce committee. The hearing
was on a bill which would give the
Washington and Loughboro Belt Line
and Terminal Co. authority TO build
the structure.
After hearing the opponents Of the
measure, who dealt largely with the
menace to the residential develop
nent and the Identification of the
so-cslled metropolitan area of the
National Capital. Senator Hiram
Bingham of Connecticut, chairman
of the subcommittee, reminded the
spokeSmen that the chief interest OF
the committee in the consideration
of the measure was in connection
with the navigation of the river and,
secondarily, in connection with river
obstructions. Such matters as were
being presented to the committee, he
pointed out, should more properly be
presented to the Interstate Com
merce Commission. if that body de-
cided to go into the merits OF the
project as a railroad connection aftef
the bridge is authorized.
Thomas NJ. Pierce of st. Louis,
Mo, speaking for the proponents OF
the measure, said that the question
of local interest affected was not a
proper one for the committee 10
consider, but only the matter o.
bridging a navigable stream. lie de-
tailed the proposed belt line project
and pointed out to the committee
that the bridge would not interfere
with the plans to erect a hydro
electric project in this area. he
said that the Army War College had
approved II in furtherance of war
plans and that the Agriculture De
partment had no objection TO It
Mr.. Pierce said extensive study
had been made and that the inter
ests of the Government would not
in any way be affected.
Upheld as Defense Asset.
Mr. Pierce was followed by Rear
admiral Austin NJ. knight, U. S. N,
retired. 1860 Columbia road, who told
the subcommittee that traffic was
being congested here because of what
he termed the bottle neck made by
the roads converGing into TWO tracks
across the Highway Bridge, and
quoted what purported to be re
port of the Interstate Commerce
Commission, saying that relief was
needed. He said that his personal
interest in the project grew out of
his interest in national defense. and
added that he was president of the
Navy War College, where such mat
ters were studied.
He was questioned by Senator
Bingham regarding the proposed
hydroelectric plant and pointed out
that it would be constructed by the
Government and that the Army engl-
neers had no objection to the bridge,
The project, he concluded. is a nation
al project, and is not to be minimlZed
as a local matter, although he said in
the laying out of the railroad. 1t had
been so done as to cause as little dam
age as possible.
Mai. Gen. Ely, commandant of the
Army War College here, was next put
on the stand on behalf of the propo-
nents He made it very plain at the
outset that he was not spokesman
for the War Department. He said the
project was brought to the War Col
lege, and the officers there were asked
whether or not it would be an asset In
wartime. He spoke generally of the
congestion at ports of embarkation
during the war. Generally speaking.
he said, any belt line around a city
is an asset in case of war. He said
he was not familiar with the conges-
tion here during the war, and he was
not familiar as to the conditions that
might require such line at this time.
Cites Many Opponents.
J. Bond Smith Of this city. on behalf
of the Montgomery County Civic
Federation, spoke very strongly
against the proposed measure, point
ing out that the proponents had got
ten away from the real proposition
involved The real reason for the
federation, he told the committee, was
20 combat this belt line menace. He
said it was perfectly idle to talk about
it from the standpoint of a bridge
only and futile to intimate that it
was great national project. He went
at length into the history of the
charter of the company granted by
the Corporation Commission of Mary
land, pointing out that it had not
held an organization meeting since it's
charter was issued, according to the
records of the Corporation Commits
sion of Virginia.
| He said it is not an operating road
| has no railroad terminal or warehouse
| facilities or any property of any kind
except naked franChize. He read
| letters from the presidents of the big
railroads passing through Washing
| ton. saying that they were opposed to
! the belt line, pointing out that this
| indicated there was no need for this
| facility at the present time.
| The shippers and handlers of per
ishable food products in this city are
all opposed to it, he continued, and
the National Association of Commits
sion Merchants is publicly on record
against it. This all indicated. he said.
that there was not any need for a
belt line railroad to skirt the Capital
City and infiict irreparable damage to
the plans for making a great, bea uti-
full National Capital. Such a rail
road, he said. was entirely incon.
sistent with these beautiful plans.
Many Others Present.
Arthur E. Seymour, secretary of the
Washington Chamber Of Commerce:
Charles J. Columbus, secretary of the
Merchants and Manufacturers Asso-
ciation, and Thomas Everett, presi-
dent of the Bethesda. Md, Chamber
of Commerce, also expressed strong
opposition to the measure.
After these people had testified, {.
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