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No. 16,904. WASHINGTON, D. C., SATURDAY, JANUARY 5, 1907-TWENTY-EIGHT PAGES. TWO CENTS.
4
THE EVENING STAR
WITH SUNDAY MORNING EDITION.
Buts?m 041m, 11th 6trf?t led Pmniy'Ttnlt irtiu
Tie Evening St&r Newspaper Camp*ny.
TH50D0PK W HOTEfl, Prefldent.
m w--l n < ir_:v b-iiji
rrw igiK vuicr. tumor lunc.n^.
Cl'(t?c Office: Firet National Eank Euilding.
^ie ICrenlnj; Star, with the Sunday morning *?<11tlon.
fa delivered h? carriers, on their own account,
within the city at nO <^?ntR per month; without the
# ttanday morning edition at 44 <?enta per month.
Ht n.all. postage prepaid:
Pa'It. Sunday Included, one month. 60 cents.
Dally. Sundev excepted, one month, 50 centa.
Paturdaj Star, one your. $1.00.
one rear, f 1 fW>.
SUBJECTED
OFFK
Delving Into the
Railroad Dis*
Cotta I
TOM'S mum
' Continuation of the Examination
of Witnesses.
TWO IMPORTANT MATTERS
Contradictory Statements as to Plac
ing of Signals.
INTERROGATING AN ENGINEER
Part of Examination Conducted by
Assistant United States Attorney
?Commissioners Present.
The problems of the railroad disaster
at Terra Cotta station were
again subjected to the official probe
today before the coroner's jury, the
members sitting as inquisitors in the
home of the river-front fire com
pany. foot of 7th street. District
' Commissioners Macfarlarul and
West sat alongside Coroner Xevitt, j
and rendered material assistance in
the interrogation of the witnesses.
To the minds of some of the officials
who have attended the hearings
"and listened to the testimony
the two important matters to be determined
in the last analysis are:
Did not Engineer Hildebrand,
with Inrnmntivp o T \>ci Imvp flip nn
disputed right to pass Takoma Park
without expecting a signal there of
any kind, as the hour for shutting
down that station as a signal point,
6:30 o'clock, had passed?
Who was responsible for a "deadhead"
equipment train being allowed
to bowl along practically unheralded
upon tin- very heels of an accommodation
train, which was sixteen minutes
late, and which is required to
stop at all of the stations, larc^e and
small, fur the reception of passengers,
and at a time of the day when
the important change was being
made in the signal system which necessitated
the lengthening of the
blocks for the night service
Engineer Vermillion testified today
that he expected to find Takoma
dosed, or a "dead" station, after
. i . 1 ?? m r* m
passing me uoimie green at silver
Spring.
A noticeable feature of the inquiry
thus far lias been the contradictory
testimony of some of the witnesses
as to the placing of the signals and
the confused conditions which have
been shown to have resulted from
the present elastic block signal system.
At the of the fourth day of the
Inquest this morning Coroner Nevitt railed
to the witness stand B. L. Vermillion, enRlneer
of the local train. N". f*>. w*hii h was
Wrecked at Terra <"otta last Snnday. Witness
said he has been employed as eiiftineer
by th?* Baltimore and Ohio for ulxmt thirtysix
year?.
JJ?>r .. ?i? r,l i lltiu Ullj UUUUH' ? lid JUUT
eyesight? ' tlie coroner began.
"No."
"Have you been examined recently as to
your wight?"
"Yes?about a year ago."
Vermillion said he. with three other engineers
on the road, have been running
train fit", continuously for al>out five years.
Asked when he first saw witness said
be passed the* deadhead at Washington
Junction, but he did not know the extra was
to follow him toward Washington.
"When did you know 212U was behind
* you?" the coroner asked.
"When he hit me," witness replied.
Asked how much sleeD he had had hefore
taking his run Sunday Vermillion said:
"Plenty." Another question brought from
him a d? < laratton that he does hot use Intoxicants.
Questioning the engineer regarding
his various stops between Washington
Junction and Terra Cotta, the coroner
broug! t out the gradual falling behind its
chedule of train CO, until It was sixteen
minutes late at Takoma Park.
"Was It your business to find out at
Washington Junction whether the dead?
head extra was to follow you down the
line?"
"No. sir; it was his place to look out for
us."
Did you have any trouble seeing the lights
At stations?"
"Tea?couldn't see them until we were
TO
UAL PROBE
Prnhlpms nf thfi
XXV 1 IIU V A VJUV
ister at Terra
Station
close up. because tlie Cos was unusually
heavy all the way down the line."
Saw the Double Green.
"What light did you see at Silver Spring?"
"The double green."
"How far could you see it?"
"About forty or fifty yards."
"What did that light signify to you?"
"That a ballast train or work train was
in the block, and using the cross-over at
Terra C'otta or at I'niversity."
"Is there any way of signaling you or
letting you know a train is following you?"
"No. The block stations are behind to
stop a train from coming into the block."
!1 ?U? ... lirrl. I ..
I UC UUU UH (9 I vvll llalllO ? UU
saw."
"One was hanging on a pole and the
other the regular target."
"Are you nearsighted?"
"No."
"Was there any one else in the cab with
you?"
"The fireman "
"Any one else?"
"Another fireman?Crockett?who got on
at Gaithersburg and was riding deadhead
down the line."
"Any one else?any other engineer?" .
"Yes?Engineer Anderson?who got on at
Takoma."
"What light did your fireman see at Silver
Spring?"
"He saw a double green."
"How do you know what he saw?"
"1 asked him what the light was over
there?it was on his side of the cab?and
he said "double green.' "
w nat ngnt uo you expeci 10 see at 1akoma
when you see a double green at Silver
Spring?"
"Don't expect to see any, because I would
think Takoma office was closed up. Sunday
night I thought maybe Takoma Park
had been ordered to close, because it was
getting near his time?
"Should you be notified when Takoma is
closed?"
"They are supposed to let us know somewhere
up the line."
"Did they do it Sunday night?"
"No."
"Do they often fail to notify you?"
"They generally do."
ShnrW TfnnpkflH TTim Tlnwn.
Asked about the wreck itself, Vermillion
said the first shock knocked him down, and
his tirst act was to open the throttle to get
away from the following train. He
couldn't remember whether the collision
occurred just as he stopped at Terra Cotta
or just as he was pulling away. Engine U120
pushed his train down the track a considerable
distance.
"I didn't know what hit me," Vermillion
said, "and my first thought was to get away
and save as many of the passengers as possible."
"How long after the wreck did you run
your engine into Washington?"
"About an hour and a half."
"Did you take the combination baggage
car ana smoKer witn your
"Xo; we couldn't get it loose."
'Why did you leave?"
"Because the water in the boiler was getting
low and I had to get somewhere to
draw the fire. My conductor and I walked
to University and the train dispatcher told
us to go."
"Was the relief train there and the doctors-.
before you left.
"Yes?lots of doctors."
Continuing, the coroner asked Vermillion
whether he heard the engine of 2120 whistle
at all.
"No." witness replied. "I didn't know
anything until the extra hit me."
"Is there not a whistle post at Lamond?
or Stotts station?"
"Yes?one there and one just above Terra
Cotta."
Failure to Heed Signals.
"Wire you ever suspended for failing to
heed signals or anything else?"
"About twice?I think?onee a good many
years ago, when a freight car broke loose
and ran with me. X stopped at Capitol
View, and they gave me thirty days for
stopping. I don't remember just what the
other time was."
Witness was turned over to Assistant
United States Attorney Turner, and the latter
asked Vermillion whether In his long
service on the Metropolitan branch he ever
remembered Takoma Park to be closed at
6:21 p.m., the time he passed Silver Spring
Sunday night?
"So."
"You have an Imperative rule not to run
by Improper signals?"
"Yea."
"And was not the double-green at Silver
Spring an improper signal when Takoma
Park was still open?"
"I suppose it was."
"Suppose you were running an eight-car
deadhead equipment train and passing Silver
Spring saw a double-green signal, how
rapidly would you pass Takoma station?"
"About twenty or twenty-live miles an
hour."
"How fast would you approach Terra
Cotta where the crossover Is located?"
"About eight or ten miles an hour."
von Rton nuirklv .it that
"Yes, within a couple of car lengths."
"Would an engine running eight or ten
miles an hour do much damage in colliding
with the rear end of another train?"
"Not much, 1 guess."
Juryman Ricketts asked Vermillion
whether he was acquainted with Hildebrand,
the engineer of the extra.
"Yes," witness replied.
"Did he make any hailing sign when you
passed him at Washing-ton Junction?"
"No."
"Nothing which would Indicate to you
that he was coming down the Metropolitan
branch?'*
"No."
Question by Juryman.
Asking Vermillion further about the en
gineer, Anderson, Sir. Kicketts brought out
the fact that Anderson got on the train
at Gaithersburg, and at Takoma Park came
forward into the cab.
"Would an extra, using the oros9-over at
Terra Cotta, be expected to protect Itself?"
"Certainly," Vermillion answered. "A
flagman should be sent out to flag any
eastbound track."
"If you entered the block at Silver Spring
at 0:28 would you expect the station at
i.mutiiii 10 cio?e ueiore you got out of the
block?" Juryman Sanford Inquired.
"No?because Takoma is supposed to be
open."
Resuming his examination of the witness.
Assistant United States Attorney Turner
said: "How did you know you lost a moment
between Silver Spring and Takoma.
when you have said you didn't look at your
watch?"
"From newspaper talk. I suppose."
"What do you know about Engineer
Hildebrand?"
"He is a good engineer and a nice fellow."
(continued on Second Page.)
??
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IV-?
BEFORE 6:30 P.M.
TO WHITEWASH
THE PRESIDENT
Senator Lodge's Amendment to
the Foraker Resolution.
CHARACTERIZED BY PRESS
"Irrelevant, Impertinent and Incompetent."
INTENT OF THE SENATOR
Not Likely That the Senate Will
Adopt It When It Comes
to a Vote.
#
t
From the New York Time*.
To Senator Foraker's resolution directing
the committee on military affairs to inquire
Into the facts that leu to the discharge
of the negro troops at Brownsville,
Senator I.odge has offered an Irrelevant,
imDertlnent. and incompetent amendment
declaring-that the President discharged the
negro soldiers "in the exercise of his legal
and constitutional authority as commanderin-chief."
Senator 1-odge offers this amendment
with Intent to prevent any senatorial
investigation of the Pres.dent's action. He
evidently reasons that if his amendment is
adopted it will "whitewash" Mr. Roosevelt
and make investigation needless. It appears
to be his belief that the Senate will not
have the hardihood to reject the amendment
since that wouil Imply that the President
has committed an impeachable offense.
Therefore, the Massachusetts senator
thinks he has the Ohio senator "In a
hole."
If Mr. Foraker has not lost his wits and
the Senate as a body its sense of dignity
and Independence, Mr. Lodge will be disappointed.
The amendment can be rejected as
not pertinent to the Foraker resolution
without casting the slightest reflection upon
the President. It is not an Impeachable offense
to make a mistake. Judges on the
bench are continually making wrong decisions,
which higher coarts reverse. But
they do not thereby violate their oath of
office or render themselves liable to impeachment.
Congress passed an income tax
I cl VY , WHICH I lie BU|H rinc 1'jUI L UCflJlICQ IU
be unconstitutional, but Congress was acting'
within Its constitutional authority in
legislating: upon the subject. It was a mistake,
not a high crime and misdemeanor, to
pass a law that the judiciary department
declared unconstitution .1. In rendering its
decision the Supreme Court did not put
any "affront" upon Congress, any more
than In ordering an inquiry into the
Brownsville matter tnc Senate would put
an affront upon the President by rejecting
the Lodge amendment.
It would be a double affront to the President
to adopt the amendment. The question
of the constitutionality of the President's
action is not before the Senate. Unless impeachment
proceedings should be begun it
cannot orouerlv be taken up by that body.
A "snap judgment" upon that question
which Is not pending, would hardly have
been Invited by Mr. I.odge had he fully
realized the purport of his amendment. In
the second place, the offering of ,t is a confession
by one of the President's most conspicuous
friends and defenders that the
Hrownsville Incident will not bear inquiry;
that the President must be shielded against
the senatorial investigation. That admisslcu*
is so little in accord with the President'*,
defiant words that we must assume the
resolution to have been offered without his
knowledge. The foolishness of their friends
Is one of the chief sources of the troubles
of the great.
Demonstration by Mr. Purdy.
From the New York Sun.
tkn ? tkn 4# onmAm rt
ouypvee mat uic rnrigviiv 11 cuiiu-nnai
Irregular efforts of the Hon. Mil-ton D.
Purdy at Brownsville should result In
fixing upon a few of the soldiers of the
25th Infantry the guilt of riot and even
murder.
Suppose that this tardy investigation
should also demonstrate that others of
the enlisted men of the 25th -were guilty
of an Insubordination and collusive" attempt
to shield the principal criminals by
concealing facts of whtch they had knowledge.
If that should happen, and the guilty
soldiers were yet in the service of the
l.'nited States government, the course of
Justice would be clear. The rioters and
murderers could be turned over to the civil
authorities for trial and punishment under
the provisions of article 59 of the Articles
r\t War
The accessories after the fact and the
obstructionists of military justice could be
tried by court-martial under article 62 of
THE BLOCK SYSTEM.
ililiii i li i
the Articles of War and punished according
to the discretion of such court.
This orderly procedure is impossible, for
the simple reason that the guilty soldiers
have been removed from the Jurisdiction
of military authority by President Roosevelt's
action in advance of anv real inves
tigation of the facts.
This seems to us to be the plain common
sense of the situation: If Mr. Purdy makes
a case now he will only illustrate the fact,
that a case could have been made at an
earlier stage of the proceedings, relieving
Mr. Roosevelt of the unpleasant "necessity"
of punishing innocent along with
guilty.
If Mr. Purdy fails to make a case now
he will illustrate the fact that tlie guilty,
if such there are. have been punished in
the absence of even the insufficient evidence
now adduced and the innocent punished
along witii them.
And whether Mr. Purdy makes a case or
fails to make a case, the fact will remain
that the outcome of his investigation
throws not a sunbeam of light upon the
main question, the constitutional right of
the President, without u lawful trial, to
assume the guilt of all and to act on that
assumption.
RELIEF FOR CLEVELAND.
uas Supply Partially Restored?Much
Suffering Reported.
CLEVELAND, Ohio, January 5.?The
natural gas supply, which was completely
cut off in this city early yesterday, following
the blowing up of both mains leading
from West Virginia to Cleveland, was partially
restored this morning. The East
Ohio Cias Company, succeeded in repairing
the break in its twelve-inch main shortly
after daybreak, thereby giving consumers
in this city a very limited supply of fuel.
It is tliougnt that the big eighteen-inch
main will be repaired before night. Both
mains blew up almost simultaneously yesterday
morning in a celery swamp in Summit
county.
There lias been great suffering for more
than twenty-four hours among the !.">,(100
consumers of natural ffas in Ihis eitv who
in many instances, depend entirely on the
gas for fuel. One death, that of Mrs.
Honora Foley. Shafford road, has already
been reported, as a result of lack of neat
in her home. Physicians sta'e that many
deaths from pneumonia and other ailments
caused by exposure to the co.'d, will inevitably
follow.
Since early yesterday many hotels and
restaurants have not been able to supply
patrons with warm food.
The temperature continues below the
freezing point.
MRS. BURKE S MEMORIAL.
Motor Car to Replace the Herdics
and Reciprocal Transfers.
The memorial of Mrs. Margaret Sullivan
Burke, favoring an amendment to the bill
pending in Congress extending the tracks
of street railways to the union station, so
as to make mandatory the continuance of
the present free transfer system between
the Metropolitan Coach Company and the
Washington Railway and Electric Company,
presents in a strong way reasons why the
coach company wishes to substitute motor
ears for the present herdlcs. Mrs. Burke
states that the company in which she is Interested
would at once proceed to place motor
cars of the latest type on 10th street
if it could be assured of a continuance of
a free transfer system with the old Metropolitan
railway line. An amendment to the
pending union station bill, which is favored
by the owners of the Metropolitan Coach
Company, obligates that company to equip
I Its line with motor vehicles within one year
after the passage of the act.
n " s -V^S
H
Hi
^ksih
. Senator Blackburn of Kentucky.
(Photo by Staff Photographer.)
AFTER 6:30 P.M.
HURLED BOMB IN
nnii/rn niTw mm/
UIMtH III! HAM
ANDJIU.ED TWO
The Thrower is Torn to Pieces
and Accictant f.ochipr
uiiu nuuiuiuiii vuuiiivi
Loses His Life. .
TRIED TO BORROW MONEY
Assassin Wanted the President to Let
XT i m urtttfl T?i rrn T1tAiin<inJ
xxxiu iiavt nvc xuuuaauu
Dollars.
PATRONS AM) OTHERS INJURED
Two of Those Hurt May Die?Institution
is One of the Strongest in
the Country?Gave Name of
C. E. Williams.
Shortly before noon today an unknown
man hurled a bomb in the
Fourth Street National Bank, at 4th
and Library streets, Philadelphia,
Pa. The resulting explosion tore the
bomb thrower to pieces and killed
W. Z. McLear, the assistant cashier.
Several other employes of the bank
and patrons were injured.
Two of those hurt may die. The
bomb thrower had demanded money
from the president, Richard E.
Rushton. When this was refused he
took the missile from under his coat
and hurled it at Mr. Rushton.
A slight fire followed the explosion,
and tenants in the Bullitt building,
in which the bank is located,
fled from their offices.
ti_ 1: ! _ 1 _ i - i j
i ne punce were quicKiy on nana,
and they placed the vaults and the
securities of the institution under a
heavy guard.
PHILADELPHIA, January 6.?Demanding
a loan of $5,000 and falling to get It, a
man who has not yet been identified dropped
a bomb In the Fourth Street National
Bank today, blowing himself to pieces, Instantly
killing Cashier W. Z. McL?ar and
Injuring six others, one or two of whom
may die. The only clue to the Identity of
the bomb thrower was a bunch of keys
found in a portion of the clothing, attached
to which was a plate Inscribed "R. Steele,
Garner, Iowa."
The Fourth Street National Bank Is the
largest financial Institution In the city and
occupies the greater portion of the first
floor of the Bullitt building on 4th street
between Chestnut and Walnut streets In
tho heart of the financial district. The
explosion was terrific and It caused tremendous
excflement in the crowded build-,
lng and the street.
Looked Like a Bussian.
The explosion occurred a few minutes
before 12 o'clock, at a time when the bank
is usually well filled with persons In a
hurry to transact business before closing.
No one saw the unknown man enter the
bank except E. F. Shanbacher, the vice
president, who was passing out of the
building on his way to luncheon. He noticed
the man was poorly dressed, looked
like a Russian and carried a small parcel.
The man walked straight back to the rear
_ &
of the bank and asked a clerk to direct
him to the office of the president. Richard
H. Rushton. What took place in his office
is best told by the president himself:
"I was very busy when the inan entered
my office, and I asked him to be seated for
a moment.
"He was very poorly dressed, had patches
on his shoes and his entire appearance
made me a bit curious. While he was waiting
for me to finish the business I had in
hand at th?-> mnwnn* t ?*: ?
? ...v iwmvxt x uay^ciiru in nuiiix
that he looked at me very curiously. (I
asked him his business and he gave his
name as G. E. Williams and said he wanted
a loan of ?5,000. He did not look like a
man who could make a loan of that amount
and I asked him for collateral."
"He said something About an insurance
policy and that it would mature in from
one to five years. I was then convinced
the man was a crank and decided to dismiss
him at once, not for a moment thinking
there was any harm in him. I told
him he would have to see the cashier and
directed him out into the banking department.
At the same moment I called my
colored messenger. William Crump, to see
that the man was quickly taken out of the
building. As I turned to continue my
work at the desk there was a terrific explos:on
and I thought the build ng was
coming down. The man had not time to
reach the cashier, the explosion came too
soon."
Bank Badly damaged.
The explosion devastated the interior of
the big banking room. Glass and wooden
partitions were wrecked and leveled to the
ground as though a cyclone had swept
through the place. Desks were ruined and
Iron bars were twisted?in fact, there was
hardly an object left intact in the room.
Of all the persons in the room, at least six,
all of them clerks, were hurt, two of them
probably fatally. Three of the injured were
sent to the hospital. The explosion threw
every one in the blinking room to the door
and for a moment they were dazed. Many
of them not knowing what had happened,
<i.ki n-uiiiig tnai tne build inp, which is an
eight-story structure, was falling, made a
rush for the door, Mr. Rushton among them.
The roar of the explosion brought the tenants
on all floors to their feet and a general
rush was made to the elevators and
the stairways.
As the excited people came out there
was a rush from the street to rescue those
who it was thought had been caugtit In
the explosion. In the meantime an alarm
or fire was sent in and firemen were quickly
on the ground. There being no fire in the
place the firemen and policemen ordered
everybody out, and a strong guard was
thrown about the building.
Blown to Pieces.
After President Rushton had recovered
himself he told what happened, and a
search for the bomb-thrower was made.
At the moment it was supposed he had
not been killed, but in taking out the body
Of Cashier McLear, and looking for other
dea.l, portions of a body were found that
plainly indicated that the man had been
blown to pieces.
The escape of President Rushton was almost
miraculous, for the damage is greatest
in his office.
Vaults All Open.
Details as to what actually lioppened
when the man left the office of President
Rushton differ, as no one can be found
who saw the man drop the bomb. The door
to the office of Cashier Mcl.ear is only a
few feet from that of President Rushton,
and the man must have dropped the deadly
missile between the two rooms. Cashier
McLear was sitting at his desk at the time
and his body was badly mangled. The bomb
thrower's body was torn to pieces.
At the time the explosion occurred all
the vaults were open, books were piled
on desks and papers of all sorts of value
were lying on desks preparatory to being
put away for the day.
rresiaent Kusntons Statement.
President Ru.shton after the explosion
rushed to the eighth floor of the building
from the street floor, to the rooms of the
Down Town Club, a dining organization.
He was very much excited, trembling like
a leaf. He told the following story:
"A man who gave his name as G. E.
Williams, shabbily dressed, giving 110 place
of residence, came into my office and
asked me to lend him $.">,000. I was busy
looking over some papers on my desk at
the time and paid but little attention to
what the man said. He sat there looking
at me very curiously until I became suspicious
that he was a crank, and asked him
to excuse me for a minute while I went
Into another office. As 1 left the man he
arose ana went over 10 tne cashier's window.
I noticed liim talking to the cashier,
but I do not know what he told him. The
explosion followed next.
Great Excitement.
"I did not see the man throw the bomb,
but I have every reason to suppose that lie
did throw it. The man was killed, I am
given to understand by the police. My cashier,
William Z. McLear, was killed outright.
"The explosion caused great excitement
among us all. Glass flew from the smashed
window and fell In a shower over us and
four or five women among the employes who
rushed to the door. I understand that six
or seven people were injured, but I do not
know how seriously."
Mr. Rushtou Jeft the Down Town Club and
returned to the first floor. On his way down
in the elevator, accompanied by several ofll
cials of the bank, the seriousness of the
tragic scene from which he had Just escaped
overcame him and lie was unable to
say anything more. His friends summoned
a carriage and sent him to his home.
Windows Blown Out.
Not only is the entire interior of the bank
wrecked, but the large windown looking
out on a small side street were blown out.
The explosion scattered all the books and
papers of the institution that were not
within the vaults at the time. Some of
them were blown out of the windows and
were returned by those who found them.
As soon as the excitement of the explosion
had subsided policemen and uninjured
cierns were set 10 wotk searcmng [tie
wreckage for al! papers. It probably will
take days before the bank officials are able
to tell how much of the valuable documents
in the bank's custody were destroyed,
as the whole place was strewn with torn
bits of paper.
The detective bureau is at work In an effort
to Identify the man who was the cause
of the tragedy. The only thing found that
probably belonged to him was a bunch of
twenty-five keys, on the ring of which
was the name "R. Steele, Garner, Iowa."
President Rushton described him as a tall,
dark man, apparently a foreigner. The
form of the bomb is not known, as neither
Mr. Rushton nor anv one else saw it A
small piece of a tin box was found among
the wreckage, but whether this was a portion
of the deadly missile, or a piece of a
tin box such as is used In banks, has not
yet been determined.
Steele Known in Des Moines.
DES MOINES. Iowa, January 5.?A man
named R. Steele is known at oamer, Iowa,
as a driver of a patent medicine witgun.
At darner today it was said that Steele
was supposed to be at Klemmie, a few
miles away from Garner.
William Crump, the messenger, was terribly
injured. Both his eyes were blown out,
his scalp torn off and his fare so mangled
that he was unrecognizable. He was taken
to the Pennsylvania Hospital. There the '
physicians learned from him that he saw
the man raise his arm to throw something, i
Crump Jumped at him, but he was too late.
Wrecked by Dynamite. i
EL. PASO, Tex., January 5.?Nine buildings
were wrecked and much mining ma- <
chinery destroyed in Lowell, Ariz., near |
Blsbee. last night by the accidental ex- ,
plosion of dynamite in a mine storehouse.
So far as reported no lives were loai.
All the windows in town were broken. i
J
Weather.
0 ??? .
Fair tonight and tomorrow;
warmer tomorrow.
HOW RAILROADS
INlMt mis
Commission Continues Its
I
Probe in New York.
m
SIT IN CHICAGO MONDAY
Evidence Showing That the Carrier*
Haul by Lonerest Routes.
WHERE PACIFIC LINES CONTROL
Consolidation Said to Have Lessened
the Volume of Transcontinental
Business.
The interstate commerce commission,
represented by Chairman
Knapp and Commissioners Lane
and Ilarlan, continued todav at the
Federal building its inquiry into the
so-called "Ilarriman lines," acting
upon its general order for an investigation
of the railroads of the country
to discover whether or not there
are combinations or agreements existing
which are in restraint of trade
or violate the acts relating to interstate
commerce. Today is expected
to be the last day of the commission's
sessions in New York at this
time. Adjourning this evening the
commission will meet next Wednesday
in Chicago, where it expects to
hear tli<> testinmnv < f :i miinhrr nf
prominent officers of the Harriman
companies.
Special I>1 Kpu! h to The Star.
NEW YORK. January Frank B. Kellogg,
chief counsel for the interstate commerce
commission in the Investigation it
Is conducting into the Harriman railroads,
said this morning before the inquiry was
resumed in roonj 0t>. in the Federal building,
that with the exception of the ex?mination
of Mr. Harriman, which has lieen
postponed because of his .illness, ihe commission
would, lie thought, be able today
to flhish the testimony which for the present
it is to take in New York city. On
Monday the commission will sit in Chicago.
E. T. Jefferv, prAldent of the Denver
and Rio Grande railroad and of most of
the Gould roads west of Denver, was the
first witness today. He gave his residence
as New York city and his business as the
railroad business. He said he was president
of the Denver and Rio Grande railroad.
the Rio Grande Western railroad, the
Western Pacific, the Rio Grande Southern
and other Uould lines. He lias been, he
said. In railroading for fifty years. He
started as an apprentice In the Illinois
Central and when he left that road he was
general manager. Mr. C. A. Severance conducted
Ills Investigation for the commission.
Q.?Ton are familiar with the railroad
situation in the west? A.?Yes.
Q.?The Illinois Central forms a connecting
link between the Southern Pacific ?t
Xew Orleans and the Union Pacific at
Omaha? A.?Yes.
Q.?What connections has the l>e:iver and
Rio Grande at Denver? A ?Connections
with the Burlington and other friendly
railroads, which exchange business on
equal terms.
Q.?What connections at S;ilt I.nke City
and Ogden? A.?The Oregon Short Line
and the Southern Pacific and the San Pedro.
The witness said that the Western Pacific
was now constructing a line from
Salt Lake City to San Francisco.
Mr. Gould Interested.
Q.?Is Mr. Gould interested in the Western
Pacific? A.?Yes.
Q.?What interests of the Denver and
Rio Grande and Rio Grande Western was
it necessary to conserve by building the
Western Pacific? A.?Those roads' trancontinental
business, which had been cut
Into when the Southern Pacific was acquired
by the t"nion Pacific.
Mr. Jeffery submitted a report formulated
by the Denver and Rio Grande's directors,
giving the reasons for the new road's construction.
Prior to this. Mr. Jeffery stated
that there had been a general shrinkage In
the Denver and Rio Grande's receipts after
the close alliance between the Southern Pacific
and Union Pacific.
The witness then read from the annual
report of the Denver and Ri? iirande for
the year ending on June MO, 11)05, how the
project of building an Independent road
from Salt I-ake City or Ogden to San
Francisco had been planned, because the
Denver and Rio Grande had been disappointed
in the hope of getting closer relations
with the Southern Pacific, after the
Union Pacific had acquired control of that
road.
air. {severance inen continued:
Q.?Prior to the acquisition of the Southern
Pacific by the Union Pacific had the
two roads been competing lines on coast
business? A.?Yes, within certain . mlts.
The business tha-t left Chicago over the
Illinois Central, bound for the cast, had
been competed for by the Southern Pacific
and the Union Pacific, said the witness, as
had also business bound westward from
New York city, and other farther eaRtern
points. I should hesitate to answer that
question also.
Q.?I gather that the acquisition of the
Central Pacific by the Southern Pacific led
to the construction of the Western Pac. -c
by Mr. Gould? A.?Yes. that is substantially
true.
Q.?And tiie building of the Western Pacific
railroad isn't considered an unmltlrnte>l
evil? A.?No: I consider it a rood
thing for the west.
Q ?You now that the Central Pacific Is
the Southern Pacific's connecting link be