The New York herald., 1871-06-15
Cheap Cabs for New York.

We are not disposed to utter a word which
would operate against the Introduction of
cheap cabs into this city. Tie want of some
vehicle in measure private, while being iE
the highest degree public convenience, is
necessity too long felt to warrant anything
bat kind reception for any plan wich prom
ises, however remotely, to supply the de-
fciency in our city travelling accommodations.
Other cities, even in this hemisphere. are well
supplied with cheap cabs. Havana, with
population, permanent and transient, not one
fifth as grea. as the population Of New
York, has q cab system which enables pas.
sengers TO ride from one end of the city t,
the other at a cost OF Only twenty cents. Two
or three persons may ride at time in one oil
these cheap carriages, 80 that the cost is Often
not much greater than the fare for the sams
number of persons in one of our street cars.
One dollar an hour il the rate for travelling
other than rom one point to another. The
same features, we understand, arc to be intro
duced here; but We have net yet heard wh.t
the charges are to b, for single drives from
point to point. We hope some scale of prices
may be fixed upon that will be remuneratise
to the company and yet not too severe a tax
upon the community. If this can be done the
enterprise ought to succeed, and we belie,,
in its success, with the necessary foresight
and under proper safeguards.
As matters now stand it is almost impossi-
BILE to get from river to river, and crosstowl
journeys are even more dreaded than uptown
trips on the street cars. Ole cannot take
carriage in Broadway to 60 even a limited dis
tance except at an exorbitaut charge, For
drive from downtown hoel throuyh the
Central Park il is customary to demand eig1t
and ten dollars; for shorter journeys, almo.t
anything which hackmen choose to ask. This
state of things has lasted 81 long that we
began to despair of any bstter mode Of public
conveyaac ce than the street cars; bis cheap
cab system in great city Ike New York is so
feasible that its success ought never to hav,
been a matter Of doubt.
There are some things in the cabs it is
purposed TO introdnce IN tlis city which at
first Ilush do not commend the vehicles.
Four-sea,ed carriages for general and public
use are only too likely TO prove general aud
public nuisance. Tiey must bo found too
large and too unwieidy for our crowd Il
streets. If they are intmdcl to carry other
than single passengers or to cx 4ct more than
one fare from the passeng gsrs--i1 other words,
If strangers are to be crowded into them and
one carried here and one there-Sm,th being
compelled to accompany Jones home before
he ean 60 home himself, w,c a third pas
senger has an opportunity to pick both
their pockets in the mcant'mc-most people
Will prefer to remain ont Of them. A cheap
cab system means shat the cab Is to be at the
absolute disposal OF the person ordering ,t for
the journey, or for the time during whicn he
engages it. On this basis only can any system
succeed, and in consequences the lighter the
vehicles are made, so far ~ their construction
Is concerned, the more likely they vii be 10
meet the long-fcit public want.
VouDoUIsM IN JAMAICA. The horrible
crime ia jamaica Of negro man aud
woman drinking the blood and roasting and
eating the flesh Of little boy, as reported
in our telcgraphic news yesterday from
Kingston, shows that the negroes, when nor
kept uader the restraint of civilized ito
people. will return to African barnar.sm. This