The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1876-02-14
The Rationale OF .No Seat No Fare,

In the struggle of the people of New York
with the grasping car companies to obtain
seat for fare we wish to keep the main issue
clear The monopolies have endeavored to
befog the question by raising side issues and
pretending a depth of feeling for the
peoples rights which is so comical that we
can afford to laugh at it as the only thing in
connection with the popular movement
which at all looks like joke. To convince
the companies that we are not misled by
their specious ingenuity we restate the case
of the people. The 'no seat no fare" de-
(mand Is just necessary and feasible, because
FirSt-Every passenger who pays fare
has right to a seat, and however willing
any passenger may be to take strap or the
space of sardine in box or hog in a pen,
he has no right to discommode annoy and
distress the seated passenger.
Second-Crowded cars are unhealthy, foul,
fetid and not only originators but spreaders
of disease
Third Crowded cars are indecent, the
scenes constantly occurring in them from
immodest personal contact being fruitful of
gross Generalization.
F6o1th-Crowded cars give steady, lucra-
tive and safe employment to one thousand
pickpockets in the city of New York.
Fgu-The rule of ''no seat no fare, will
tend, inconvenience the public by unneces-
sary delays, for more and better cars can be
put on, and the grasping companies bound
by this rule will put on cars enough not to
lose single nickel to their plethoric treas
uries.
Sirth-The ''no seat no fare" rule will be
better for horses as well as passengers, and
thus more rapid time can be made on the
trips, and
Seventh-The 'no seat no fare" rule
works, and always has worked, successfully
in London and Paris, where the population
is far greater and denser than in New York.
1t would be easy to add to these reasons,
but the above are sufficient and indisput-
able. AS to enforcing the reform when once
it is made a law we can only say that if it is
intrusted to Mr.. Bergh, and that all fines
for violation of the rules are given to his
society, it will be carried out to the letter
without fail The cool impertinence of the
companies who, with both hands grasping
the enormous profits they are wiring
ing from the peoples discomfort, are
lamenting like so many Jeremiahs the
proposed invasion of the peoples rights"
to strap is refreshing. We might cite
many parallels to their confusion, but here
is one. Just fancy hotel keeper at Sara
toga who season after season packed his
guests SO that they slept three in every bed,
ten in every bedroom; who filed the CORR
doris with sleeping guests, crammed the
verandas down to the lowest step, and
when told that he was an extortionist, pro-
moter of disease, indecency and theft would
reply:-"Build another hotel or two! Give
every man bedroom that pays for it Mon
strous Enough hotels could not be built
to accommodate them. / should not make
one-third the money now make. My heart
bleeds at the thought that q man might
under such rule sleep in the open
air. That is ridiculous and absurd, but
outside of sending lobbyists with full purses
to Albany it is all the companies have to say
for themselves. They are a monopoly IN
willing to cease fleeing the public, but the
people are not idiots to endure an abuse
forever.