The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1878-08-04
SLOW RAPID TRANSIT.
Backward State of the Work on the
Elevated Roads.
UNFULFlLLED PROMISES.
Poor Prospects of Relief for the
Uptown Wards.

The recent compilation Of the Metropolitan Elevated
Park. ard the rapidly approaching completion Of the
New York Elevated Railroad, from the Battery
through Third avenue as far as Fifty ninth street, are
unquestonsby lacts which afford unsuitable grounds
tor seli-grauatlon on tho part OF New Workers. But
while little fault be found with the two companie
for the manner In which the work has been carried
pn SO lar as has gone there s;iI remaius serious
question IN the minds of many whether
inc entire programme laid out By the Rapid
Transit Commission will be carried out Tor
years to come. People who LOOK merely
1t the outward appearance OF what falls under their
observation. aud who judge Of results hastily, may
be, and many be, ueliuod to DO satisfied
tho progress 10 the past two years. those
who carefully consider the whole work and calculate
probabilities by the way matters aavs developed IN
the past there seems long time intervening between
The present condition affairs and the compston Of
the Two roaus. That TWO companies, with the liberal
charters granted TO them aud with capital which
they themselves have declared ample, should have
been year in building about ten miles OF road, Is
small guarantee thar the forty miles which New York
demands will be completed "a the time New Workers.
expected. And when 1t Is remembered that the year
represents actual work that tho projectors had
PEARS OF time TO perfect their plans beforehand, tho
prospect seems poor.
The hard common sense Of the com mt unity, which
ridges OF tho acts Of corporations by the unavoaDle
light of their experience with other corporations an
swered the questions naturally arising from the pres
ent condition Of Affairs in few words 1t has been
commonly said, "oh, yes; We will have . road far
tho lower END OF the Park because the comps
are virtually assured Of the tact that OF the
road will pay. Tho bulk Of the citizens OF New York
live below Fittv-ninth atreeL But TO the building
of ~
districts--wat and sec." And accordingly tho public
has waited, but il has not yet seen.
A week ago the HERALD gave the officers OF The two
roads and OF the contractors opportu nifty OF
saying directly TO the public what their intentions
ana expectations were In regard to The completion
their roads Without exception they declared that
the work would be pushed through .'as rapidly AS
possble' and INDUCED in glit.erng generslities
about the results TO DO attained and the beuents 10
be derived from such completion. But the public,
which had often before heard the goneralties and had
realized the benefits to be derived before making
demand for rapid transit still SAID swat aud sss.n
and It u still waiting.
SURVEY OF TIE ROADS.
With view to finding out therefore, what the real
prospect is, In view OF accomplished facts and also
IN view Of the magnitude Of tho work. an examination
was yesterday made OF tho WORK nominally In
progress and Of the maps Of ne entiss roads pro.
tscted In relation 10 tho magnirud, OF the work
itself word Should DO said as preliminary. The
erection Of. say forty miles of elevated railroad
whe is usquestionably great work, 10 yet the
present. stage Of civilization, by means a difficult
Divided as It Is between wealthy corporations
and erected on tho plan they have adopted, by
tract work. there be reason, excepting tho
inclination Of the companies themselves, why the
whole work could not have been done In tho same
I'M q 6v mi les ear buva hsop
built. The work was carefully considered before
dollar OF capital had bcen put into It The ground
was all perfectly vol known by the results Of count.
Ices surveys OF It, Labor and material were cheap
az they arc evor likely 70 be, aud responsible con-
tractors were surely not lacking II the companies
had really aimed at supplying tho public demand 10
meet which they were createa, they could have
contracted Tor forty miles aimost as easily
for ten. The public, always prone In
New YORK TO be lavish ir IL can only
have its needs supplied, had granted every demand
made and had gwen the largest privileges 10 the men
who proposed TO supply It's most crying need, aud
they expected, aud had . right to expect that tho
work would be done at Approaching FULLY and
probably overes,imatins the difficulties oil work,
they yet knew the resources OF engineering skill and
knew that on the contract system with plenty OF
money, IL need take longer build twenty miles
than ten.
For year past the public has been painfully aware
that the work was IN progress aud has accepted the
alleged difficulties q suniaent excuse Tor the slow
progress OF the work. Now, however, desires to
informed how long viii be before the real bouedts
Of rapid trapsit VIII be ned. That the who
lives In Fftieh street shall save forty minutes day
10 gong to and from his bus Is desirable and SO
far as II goes, - relief; but II Is BY no Teans
the public have demanded, Tor prscticaiy the man
who spends IRON two TO three hours day in going
aud from ms business has us yet received no
H.. yei 4 hfe
u Tue class Tor whose benefit IL mainly
projected. 10 The comparatively poor mao, VINO wsl
not i've IN q tenement house ana who not Inc
money to hire house downtown, and who Is there
tore obliged to pay he difference in rent IN daily
loss OF Two or three hours OF his time and I've in The
suburbs, rapid transit has seemed practical souton
81 tie greatest oil his trials As Jet he has Ieei
despite all that has been said about tho progress OF
the good WORK. sa
A glance the map gives no great epcourasement
ot any speedy relief. The Metropolitan Company has
sompetsd, or will have completed very soon, just
Dne-hitn Of It's road or Eve miles As II is bound by
ls charter 10 complete i've miles eaeh ycas until
The work 10 done, and u has taken a
rear TO do tho nrs I'VE miles, the inference Is natur
Ally drawn that four years more viii eapsc before all
Will be finished. Tho inference rs greatly streDgth-
sncd by I've tact that as yet tho prcranary surveys
have not been begun on tue other portions OF the
far IS negotiation. Even TINS It's con.
ciusou, aud IN some places the exact line OF the road
ts not yet known. Under these circumstances ~ 10
net strange That the residents OF the suburbs should
teel sccptczl as 10 the prospect.
TIM WORK SOW raoGREss.
Metropolitan road the side is sixth avenue
through Fiiy-thrd street 10 Nicth avenue, tutougn
Ninth avenue TO ll0th street. east through ll0th
street to Eighth avenue and thence stra,gut up to
Harlem River anu along the river limo to inasbrdgc.
0f AL this 10 completed tue lower section, that
reaching To Fifty ninth street on sixth avenue. Ine
line through FIfty-th ri street, from SIKH Nntn
avenue. has been IA progress about three weeks.
walk through that street showed that tho progress
Wss Ny M means rapid Perhaps thrty or forty mea
all were at work, and on tho nor side oil tho street.
from sixth avenue Eigbtn, holes had bcea ~ anu
Tour i've OF The foundations nearest Sixth avenue
psre nnlsned. Tue holes Tor others were dug aud
ths preliminary work these various holes was In
various stages On the south SIDE Of street notn
ing has been done apparently, and nothing west Of
Eighth avenue.
Al Office OF the company was learned that the
futy third street sec,ion Was uuuer contract 10 DO
hA.snsd by Oc.ober ~ lar ~ tue iron work IL
cernsd The pilsrs Eisdcrs and spans csmposng tho
structure have peen contracted Tor uy CLARK,
Reeves h Co., who butt tho West Broad.
way ana Church street section OF the same road.
The contract for laying tho foundations has been
liyen 10 John Counef. VINO bound by his aprec.