Evening star., 1939-12-10
Fifty Years Ago
In The Star

Persistently pursuing its policy OF
protest against injustices and damages
inflicted by the rail-
ALUM N9o'"s' roads upon the District
RoiIroods half century AGO
Sought The Star made the
following editorial comment In its issue
of December 7, 1889:
Congress has lavished upon the local
railroads privileges worth millions OF
dollars at the expense of the people OF
the Capital and the people of the
United States. 1t has disregarded in
fractions OF the law by the railroads,
the miserable accommodations provided
for the Capital and the Disagreement of
the parks and streets in the vicinity of
the Capitol Building. 1t has suffered
the railroads to occupy public streets.
seized without the authority of law, to
put streets legally occupied to unauthor-
lied uses, and to destroy life and prop
erty while in the act of violating the
laws regulating the speed Of trains, the
protection of crossings and the obstruc-
ton of streets within the city limits.
Not only has it permitted the rights of
the local community to be trampled
upon, but in the engagement at the
Eastern Branch Bridge it even suffered
the forces of the United States to be
ignominiously put to flight. The whims
Of these spoiled favorites of the National
Legislature have been gratifled even to
the extent of permitting one of them to
kick Uncle Sam. In the full enjoyment
of these extraordinary privileges the
railroads now say to the Nation: Unless
you confirm our illegal holdings of Gov
ernment property, quit this talk about
use the public streets as freight yards
and to hold ourselves above the laws of
this petty District, whose people are
grumblers, not voters, and are only fit
to be killed at unprotected grade cross
ings, we will cut off the Capital of the
United States from railroad facilities,
we will refuse to deliver freight to it, and
we will starve it out even if we tempo
rarily injure ourselves in so doing. They
address to an indulgent Congress the
same sort Of threat which Punchs bad
boy aimed at his doting grandmother:
Well granny, I've eat the cherries you
gave me, and now if you don't hand
over sixpence I'll swallow the stones!'
Might not an energetic spanking by
Uncle Sam improve the morals and man
ners of these spoiled pets Of the Nation?
1.-THE position assumed by the railroads
is almost certain to force some action
by Congress. The injuries inflicted upon
the businessmen of Washington have
been indicated in the interviews pub
lished in The Star. The growing busi-
ness of the city requires corresponding
enlargement of railroad facilities. Exist
ing conditions must be improved both
for the benefit of the city and of the
railroads; and especially in view of the
extraordinary requirements of exposition
year, 1892. But it will be lasting dis
grace to the National Legislature If 1t
complies with the demands Of the rail-
roads, backed by the threat which has
been made, and disregards the appeal
of the city for check upon the railroad
encroachments upon public property, for
the removal of grade crossings within
the city limits, for the selection of per-
manent station sites and the erection of
creditable structures thereon. and for
the compulsory observance by the rail-
roads Of laws designed to protect the
lives and property of citizens of the
District"