Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 303, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 December 1917 — ELEVATION IS NOT OPPOSED [ARTICLE]

ELEVATION IS NOT OPPOSED

SAYS PRESIDENT KURRIE IN COMMENTING ON TRACK ELEVATION. Indianapolis has been conisderably wrought up during the past several days owing to the proposal of Monon railroad of postponing the work of track elevation in Indianapolis until after the war. President KuTrie has been attacked by the Indianapolis papers for the stand, but the attack is not justified, as the Monon is not opposed to the elevation of their tracks in that city. President Kurrie is a member of the state council of defense, and has made such a proposition on the theory that the work would be unessential to the prosecution of the conflict by the government, and because there is great need now for concentrating all efforts on essentials. Arguments will be heard by the state council of defense next Wednesday, at the state house.

Mr. Kurrie made a statement to the council. He said that he desired to clarify his position and present some figures, which, he said, may be of interest to the organization, which are opposed to the postponment of the work. “I am responsible,” Mr. Kurrie said, “for the. introduction of the resolution which was adopted by the council relating to this matter. There has been a good deal said about it in the press since that time. I think that the request of the gentleman from the south side is fair and should be granted. “Two issues have been raised. The newspapers have said, and while this is collateral to the issue at the same time it has a bearing on the public mind—the newspapers have said that the Monon from the beginning has opposed track elevation. The mayor of Indianapolis in his statement the first day the press gave this matter any space, stated that that was not the case, and I want to say there is not any foundation whatever for such reports.

“The Monon was the first railroad to sign the agreement between the city and the railroads for the track elevation program, and it signed it before board of public works signed it. The Monon has done what it agreed to. It has met every wish of the city, it has paid everything the city has called upon it to pay, and has co-operated in every way to help along track elevation.. “I received a telegram from the secretary of the local Chamber of Commerce; it was the first objection I heard to the postponement of the track elevation work. In that telegram he assumed —he did not state any facts—that certain conditions existed. ‘ls not all the steel on the ground?’ was one of the questions he asked, from which you would assume that he was charging that it was. “I made a reply as brief as I could and I felt that what I had to say about this ought to be said here first. I can show you that these gentlemen have not been correctly informed. The people of the south side need this improvement, the railroads need it, and it will be the best for all of us when we get it, and the Monon would not consent, if it was possible, to undo this thing under any circumstances. “The steel is on the ground for the bridges over Senate and Capitol Avenues, the track floor of the station shed and that is all. There is no steel on the ground for Pennsylvania and Delaware streets, or Virginia avenue, East, South or Washington streets, nor for the train shed track floor. Steel for Pennsylvania street, South street and the train shed roof are contracted for, but the Union Railway Company has been notified that the contract 'wjill not be filled because the government requires the steel for the building of ships. “There are 35,000 tons of steel yet to come in carrying out this work. That 35,000 tons of steel will build 250 miles of railroad and lay it with niney-pound steel. That will give some idea of what is to come. It would require 700 cars loaded to full capacity to bring it into Indianapolis. The masonry work west of the Union station is one-third completed, but practically none east of it has been done. For all the roads only about

10 per cent of it is done. “There will be’ about 1,000,000 yards of filling required for all roads. Less than 2 per cent has been done. It is proposed to bring in here in the next two years 1,000,000 yards of dirt in cars that can be used in the hauling of coal and other essentials. That dirt will run about 2,500 pounds to the yard. Loading the cars to full capacity, a thing which is never done, it will take 50,000 cars for the filling to be brought here. Those cars at one loading will hold 10 per cent of the coal burned in the state of Indiana in one year.” Mr.,.Kurrie read a number of other figures which, he said, supported the proposition that the congestion in the city would be dangerously increased if the track elevation work is continued at this time, ’ He declared that he did not believe it was the policy of the • war department and the government to have such work continue when it is practically certain that the work would hinder the movement of trains and the more essential work which the prosecution of the war requires. The Rev. A. B. Storms was ap-

pointed chairman of a committee to consider the policy of the state council on the question of national suffrage . for women, which was presented to the council some time ago by representatives of the Woman’s Franchise League of Indiana. The women asked the council to go on record as favoring the passage by the congress of the federel amendment granting full suffrage to women. George Ade, chairman of the publicity committee, called attention to a request that has been made to all state councils by the national committee on public information, asking that the council assume the direction of a number of war films, which are being issued by the government as . part of patriotic propaganda work. This work is to be carried on throughout the country on an extensive scale. Mr. Ade said. The question was referred to Mr. Ade’s committee for further report at the next meetinc. ■gr-.