Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-07-16
TESTIMONY BEGUN
IN RAIL SIDING FIGHT
Evidence Being Taken in
Rockville Before Examiner
in Chancery.
BY WILLIAM J. WFIEATLEY.
Staff Correspondent of The Star.

Stan Correspondent OF the Star'
ROCKVILLE, Nd, July l6.-Takoma
Parks fight to GUST the Baltimore o.
Ohio Railroad from the use OF one OF
the towns parks, alongside the railway
right of way, as an unloading point Ior
heavy freight, went into announcer Stage
Yesterday, when the taking OF testimony
began before Kenneth Lyddane.. ex,
,aniner in chancery, here. railroad
officials. including several former agents
Of the company at Takoma PARK, -. ",
occupied the stand all day yesterday,
President Daniel Willard of the Baltl-
more 81 Ohio and w. I. Bishop, In
dustrial manager of the company, nave
been summoned to appear on WedneS-
day. for examination in connection WIN
the controversy. The railroad preSl-
dent, it is alleged, wrote letter to the
town officials saying that the company,s
the people did not want the siding steps
would be taken to adjust the matter.
However, he said, 1t is asserted that In
view of the fact that an election, at
which the siding was an issue. was 70
be held, action would be deferred 10
see the results. The siding opponents
won, but the railroad still continues TO
use the siding. 1t is probable that ne
will be examined on this point.
Admitted Town ownership.
Mr.. Bishop, according to the record
in the case, sent letter to TaKoma
Park institution as far back as 1873
owned the property and that the rail-
road company had no authority to
grant a permit for the erection OF
building on the park site.
The testimony now being taken, ana
which is expected to require four days
to present, will eliminate ON Friday IN
the presentation of arguments by both
sides on the motion of the town to dis
miss the temporary injunction granted
by the Montgomery County Circuit
Court restraining the town or its Of
ficials from in any way interfering with
the carrier In its use OF the land. even
restraining the municipal corporation
from enforcing a criminal ordinance
prohibiting the use OF the park lanos
by vehicles.
a district Zoned as residential, ana
dumping of heavy freight into steel
bottomed trucks from early morning
until late at night and on Sundays, it
Is said, has 50 Tiled citizens that they
are up in arms, some Of them even say.
their homes if the practice Is allowed
to continue.
Volume Increased.
Henry W. Routenberg, assistant d.
vision engineer OF the Baltimore district
Of the railroad. was the first witness
yesterday. He testified that the volume
of freight for Takoma has increased
materially during the past decade, but
could not say just how much. He as
serted that freight consigned to Ia
koma, D. c., was frequently placed on
North n o md to
ing it at the latter point 1t was held
out until there was vacancy on the
District siding. He also admitted that
the North Takoma siding has been
heightened 243 feet within the last few
! years.
Efforts were made yesterday by j.
Bond Smith, corporation counsel OF Ia
koma, to get into the record the letter
purporting to have been written by Mr..
Bishop admitting ownership Of the
property to be vested in the town, but
on objection of railroad counsel. VIII
liam Stanley Of Laurel and william F.
Prettyman Of Rockville, 1t was rejected
because Mr.. Routenberg could not iden-
tify it.
when M. w Phillips, who was station
agent at Takoma, D. c., from 1903 to
1908, took the stand, and railroad coun-
sci on direct examination began ques-
tioning him as to passenger traffic at
North Takoma during that period, coun-
! sci for both sides had a long wrongle, the
lawyers for the town objecting on the
ground that passenger traffic was not
involved in the suit. After all the argu.-
ment, and the witness answered, he said
he didn't know anything about the pas
senger traffic. He testified that during
the fve-year period he was there only
about is cars were unloaded at Nortn
Takoma and that the track was not
used for storage purposes.
Use Of Siding Heavy.
The railroad company at the present
time finds much use for the North Ia
koma siding, according to the testimony
of Harry Silverman, who has been the
station agent at Takoma from 1919 to
the present time. He asserted that the
North Takoma siding was used when
space was not available at the Takomas,
D. c., siding, where there are two rail-
road and one private Sidings.
He produced the car records OF the
station, but could not tell from them
what cars sent to the North Takoma
siding had been consigned to the Dis
trict point He cited figures as to the
number Of cars each month which were
spotted" on the North Takonla siding
from 1925 to the present time. He did
testify, however, to his belief that not
more than S per cent of the total num-
Der of cars sent to the North Takoma
siding were consigned there, the 30 per
cent representing cars which were
spotted" there as q matter Of operating
convenience for the railroad. He said
also that the figures indicated that the
! Vine street siding, in the District, was
not used to its maximum capacity. Lo-
cal consignees at Takoma Park. he said,
refuse to accept their freight at the
North Takoma point.
Counsel Objects.
Objection of railroad counsel was
made to interrogations by town counsel
of Mr.. Silverman as to the possibility OF
extending the Vine street siding to take
care of the traffic now placed at North
Takoma as matter OF railroad con-
yenience.
Naming list of consignees of freight
who used the North Takoma siding, he
asserted that there was only one who
preferred It, He admitted, however,
that it might be better for local con-
signees to have space at the District
siding. Iaterrogated as to the method
of unloading the heavy freight, and the
hours of unloading, he said that it be-
gan about 1880 in the morning. Asked
IF he had ever heard the noise at Ia
korna, D. c., made from dumping the
/ heavy material into steel-bottomed
trucks at North Takoma, he said he
never had, as there Is lot Of noise in
Takorna, D. C. Smith concluded:
"There must be, If you couldn't hear
it, for it can be heard xor several
! blocks"
! c., from 1908 to 1919, and now en-
L.