New-York daily tribune., 1858-04-26
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE.
LAWS ADVERSE TO STEAM CARRIAGES.


that may undeceive the friends ofmpsovemeut N city
ocOmotIOD.
A gentleman who is interested in city property re-
Gently advised ire 10 apply for perm.ss.6n 10 run a
-,e e,m-csrrage in this c for time sufficient tc ss-
CERTAIN whether It would be agreesbe TO the public
and economical Offering Il invest = 600 in i If far
irs we're thus cured. ! applied The Mayor as.
med me Of bis good will and cent nv petition 10 the
A Aldermen, who referred Il 10 q Committee which
Committee applied to the Corporation Counsel f)r hs
oDtirp The Counsel reported that the law in .el,-
on 20 stsge routes parsed last year by the Legi.la
ure trohio5 such permission unlese two thirds of
the esd ITS en- route consent 70 il, and, when
crsptfd the franchise be sold TO ths highest bid
Ger. This ia prohibition to me; and q. the gentle
man is interested in city improvement rsther than IN
the general introduction oi steam carriage nav
deurive Inc Of the means which, ia addition 70 waa.
can otherwise obtain, wotld etab.e me 10 build JAS
senger carriage.
steam carIsge, bui this las beea lefu ed as beng
Leyond the law.
am thus in the p'edicamept in which Hancock
wss placed n London, IN 1888. Gordon his trsa;ise
on ocOmo.lon, says:
MI Hancock was summoned before magistrate
for not working under haokneycoach plate aud was
fued Ii q mgated peusly Tne stage coach act EN-
brsoed oil stsge .cosches except steancosches-the
Latter beirg excepted to encourage them. Tee hack
nev.coscn set embraced all other public carriages
within certain distances OF London. Thus ne WAS
pre n,ed from running as s.sSe-coach. although
appl!oa,on wa made ~ the Stamp Oihce. He wss,
there. my pre- eDCe, refused rdCKLey-c)scl
plate ID ffcuilIes and ds.ploutmeuis the con-
sequence snd this csi5ge ceased 70 ply tJr passea-
geIs.
sb, Ut lie powe:s that be, mt me- just sier | hal
l,e1sd the opirin of the Counsel al told ne lhI.
il wts usclsss 20 attempt anyhI IL the ca.e pr the
,uuibus eu1 railway q CntrsctoTs would not alo"
steam carriage 20 rur, even II Saou!d obtain per
uissiCr He could not give explanations, but ae en-
~ stc,v euC reps dy advised me MT 10 .O:s tune
and mo1cy n s'Iile sgainst slch ifilnences. What
part these NY ,terious powers may have taken 10 the
nsssare of tie S age Roas Act OF last year ID no.
kIow: but if they had drawn up the petition, AMI
their agents had canvsssed for the signatures, and
their lobby members had drawn the bill and helped
through the Legislature It could not have been more
ective 10 prevent the establishment ot lines t. com
pete with those now running. II appears that the
city routes are mcnopoies OF the presen. companies,
ard likely 10 continue so, until civilized men direct
public sffairs. Urtil then cizers VIII Be pscke,1i
eighty and sometimes huJdred, in AZ: they will
ride in omnbuses that smell strongly OF the stable
thew viii pay for cutting up the Broadway pavement,
20 as to increase It's and dirt; they VIII have DIR.
ard roie and danger increased VITA the increase oi
traffic, ard they Will have no improvement thst th'
wire-pullirg power can prevent
Tn6er these circumstauces | trust II will not be
de ened i'll proper or me to appeal TO tuOso Who are
willing ana able to incur LIBERAL haIaru ior Toe pup
lie good alone If there be no improvement; Dut also
cr their own prcit II the new paa s better than tae
Therefore respectfully invite liberal friends Of i'm
proyement 10 aid me IA forming CLUB, 10 pfouo-e
Ills Lye1top. The first step will be to 0uld large
cara,e In which the members ride al all times
and if il wtlks well, then many will be oult IS msy
be REQUIRED No fares will be TAKEN aud the Carriages
viii be strictly private therefore thsy W.! n2t oo
subject 10 oppressive laws such as IN ormer years en-
sbled horse Joe KEYS and coraw legislators 20 prevent
Il Introduction If motive power that would not
ctrsume the produce Of IA 4, and such as now
threaten 10 make this city tributary to existing iran
chises" Such carriages will be intermediate tetS Seen
ordin1ry private carriages and public carriage, hsv:
ing the comfoI' OF the ollner, with the cAeapnes. OF
tie latter. Members will be agreeable TO each Other
~ thev will not continue members and they will net
be aurCy,d by iEdec rces that render puOhc cay
RACES often disgusting They VII not ride with p'ck-
packets ror Will they be crowded to suoca,on, tide
without eats ard be detained by many stoppages.
Without detention to inske change, and with engines
capable Of running up bill at the highest speed
allowed, AID .. stopping and starting quick
w. the time If riding may be reduced one nan.
lie weste steah will warm the carriages and the
draueht Ei ventilate tEem ana they will so to the
sce8alks 20 receive srd set do@a their passengers
stead of requiring them to 20 through uud anu OK
pose themsey to danger from passing vehicles.
If, az believe, small carIlsge' ca1 WoiK adyant- ,
ag.on.ly maIy ss are wanted will be built and dis
o. sed Of ss may be d, cded by the club, or by the
L. mbers who pay for them.
Re.iie, running privae carriages, subject 10 no re-
- ANT uples the decide that eey are lou
r6ua We can run stages Om one county INTO another
Say ilcm Westchester nto New i0rk, who W license
T1s will enable tie club 20 mske mohey II Tue lu'
yeDflDn l. SuCce.-luIf
of success may be kept secret for tune, and De oi ad
vantage. cu -
Jegisiatiye obstacles ard not defects of the car
,,oes prevented the general Introduction OF this IN
v4Stou in England twenty-five years ago. But De-
cause II did not then come into USE II s terref that
il was not capable of competing with morse power
Ard from this infeeDce many Jump 10 the c0ac"S~"
hat il lever can come INTO genefoI use We're true
that in -33 steam was more expensive tGau hoise
uoy.r we might Low rcasonsbly try II; because III
lS3 the average cost oi locomotive lauiase on to
New.Yors railways was but sixth oi what II "as IN
1898 on tie Liverpool and MsDcheste! kahway, ior
tie sane smnunt OF treffic at much lower speed, al
tbopgh tie Ercish engines were a nearly new ani
the Anne rcsn engines Of ali ages ana therefore Iuotg
likely t. need costly repairs But tae iho:t celeo @ 'eu
engineers believed that the pOut oi proub Lou peon
ATTAINED Telfcrd Macadsm, hscrel, ROAD construct
ors approved the enterprise; snd Msnderay riep S
Roberts of the irm Of oberp u koOers' Jonn ocoIs
Russell +. Hills of Deptiord ana otheI lneonani'a
engineers built steam carriages ana were cOnndent
that noihiDg was wanting TO their success Dut !oer
10 use til. IN Ia competition with horses but tue lo
were prohibitory. The Loros rejected TWO onlo "
sbate then the road trustees heaped the road VIII
,tonvs to break them co sn; tn; mag stIate' were
called upon to enforce oppressive laws asau'e
ard the low arts Of horse;jockies were constantly eA
ored against them, Until the patents hid e4Pnei SHu
there rem aimed 10 inducemert to perseVefe
II tie invention was then perfect, 1o'hng can NJ"
be directly MADE by revivlng It. But II tnere DC
psteniabe improy enent, OF sufficient emcacy 70 o1a
the old plans, II en- wrong may be MADE. buI u e,'n'
case, it is worthy of liberal men TO revive u,
me srs TO bereft the public, especially this city i2r
if II prove as good as was testifsd under OATH by tne
best engineers, to have proved in England, W. W.,
relieve the streets from dirt and the body po lc HUN
the influence Of extremely y vicious poltieisn'
Asitisn not proper for me to trouble those VINO 90
no wish 70 aid this invention and as the rea! rens
of it would wish to spare me the rnctifc aiion OF per
sonsl app ica,ion 10 those W ho cOnscet mp'v,s I
al end. ask the favor OF c)mmuulcallonS 80 m -
who would Ike to become members Of cluo' OK 70
take small shares in experimental sook aau =