Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-07-24
Waves Injunction. Paper as
Contractor Starts to Set Off
Dynamite Charge.
ROAD CLOSED ONLY
WHERE MEN ARE BUSY
Stone Span Declared Unsafe Wren
r
Engineers Refuse to Re-
move Explosive.

mission to close the Lee Highway to
permit widening of the right Of way
today met with a series of setbacks In
sequence resembling a motion picture
melodrama.
Hurried efforts of the highway en-
gineers to effectualIy close the road bv
dynamiting the Spout Run Bridge, near
Lyon Village, were foiled at the last
moment when a sheriff, Injunction
papers in hand. sped to the scene as the
foreman was attaching his wires and
prevented the blast.
The engineers, however, won a partial
victory, for the dynamite-planted bridge
has been adjudged unsafe for traffic.
which might cause a vibration which
would set of the explosive, and has
been barricaded.
Bus Given More Time.
The bridge was to have been blown
up yesterday morning. Edward Cos
tigan, president of the Washington firm
of Corson & Gruman. contractors. who
were awarded the job of widening the
Lee Highway from Key Bridge to the
Glebe road. has been given orders by
the Virginia State Highway Commission
to 60 ah.ad with his operations. He
agreed, however, to give Leon Arnold,
president of the Washington. Virginia
q Maryland Coach Co, "a hours in
which to arrange his bus route sched-
uleS
Instead of rearranging his schedules,
however, Costigan declared today, Ar
| uold filed a writ for an injunction to
prevent the closing of the road, and the
injunction papers were issued last night
by Judge George L. Fletcher at War
renton, Va.
The highway engineers went to work
long before dawn today. planting their
dynamite under the bridge in prepare
ton for the blowing up of the old stone
span, which they had announced would
| take place at 9 O'Clock this morning
All Buses Stopped.
Working rapidly. they got the charge
in place and then notified Commons
wealth Attorney William c. Cloth that
the explosive was in position. Cloth
ordered that the road be barricaded at
Lyon Village and on the road leading
to Thrifton to prevent traffic entering
the danger area. Cloth further notified
Mr.. Arnold that If his company oper-
ated buses over the bridge pending the
touching off of the charge that he did
so at his own risk. All buses were
stopped.
With the charge set and barbados
in position, Foreman w. NJ. Gaines pro-
ceedcd to connect up the wires with
which he planned TO set off the charge
and blow up the bridge
Then, like a movie hero. came Sheriff
Howard B. Fields. armed with the in
junction papers. in his automobile With
a Squealing of brakes he drew UP near
the doomed bridge just as Gaines was
attaching his last wire. Running up 10
Gaines the sheriff served the papers
and ordered him 10 suspend his opera
tons inStanter. The bridge was saved
Road Can Be Used.
Nothing daunted by the injunction.
however, Robert T. Mount, resident
State engineer, declared that the high
way was closed officially and that any
person operating over It did so at his
own risk. BarricadeS were erected at
Glebe road and at RoSslyn and at either
end of the dynamite-laden Spout Run
Bridge barricadeS were erected across
the full width of the road. making il
impossible for vehicle of any kind
TO approach the bridge.
Mr. Mount nac@ 1t clear, however.
that the Lee Highway although barri-
caded. was not closed completely. Sec
tons where work is not actually In
progress may be used by motorists liv-
ing along the highway or as an ap-
proach . detours opening from the
Lee Highway around the Spout Run
section, he said. This makes available
several detourS, among them Park Lane.
now regularly used by many motorists,
and cross roads TO the Wilson Boule-
ward through Lyon Village.
The only section of the Lee Highway
which Is absolutely closed TO traffic To-
day is for short distance about three
quarters of mile west of Lyon Villags.
The Lee Highway buses are MAKING
three-nlile detour. turning OF the
Lee Highway at Virginia avenue TO VIII
SON boulevard, thence 70 Cherry Valley
street and TO Cherrydale. where they
resume their former route along the
Lee Highway.
Hopes to Have Road Opened.
Mr. Arnold said that he hopes 10
have the road opened by court order
"AN4AAA - AkGStASA bAb SSlt0 tkastN TIC NNNN
not desire TO run his htsSeS over the
bridge while the dynamite is In place.
Attorneys CrounSe and Hedrick Of Clar-
endon, counsel for the coach company.
which is leading the fight against the
closing OF the road, looked over the
situation at the bridge early today and
then departed Since that time Mr..
Arnold has been unable 10 set In touch
with them to ascertain their next move
move,
A number OF complaints have been
received by the bus company from Ioso-
pie living along the Lee Highway against
the enforced rer0uting of the buses,
MIR. Arnold stated. He has pointed our
to the compliments that the company
Is making every effort possible 10 force
the state Highway Commission to keep
the road open
The copy OF the temporary injunc-
ton served upon the CogSon II Ciru-
man foreman also was served upon Col,
III, O. Shirley. chairman OF the Virginia
State Highway Commission, later in the
morning. Both iniuneticns are returns
able August at Alexandria and viii
be heard before Judge Howard w.
Smith,
Must Wait Until Saturday.
After an unsuccessful effort to hava
the contractors for the Improvements
OF the highway remove the dynamite
from under the bridge. counsel for the
bus company decided this afternoon
that the only thing they could Go
'oaO a'd On raa' ;. Column y