Omaha daily bee., 1883-06-01
TWO n

bridge Is regarded as an era In the his
tory of New York city and Brook.
lyn. New York and Brooklyn both
rejoice that the great Union Ferry
monopoly Is forever destroyed. The
Brooklyn bridge, which cost $I5, coo,
600 can be crossed on foot for a penny
and passenger fare by rail will be five
cents. Freightage will be In proper
tlop.
Omaha also has q bridge over which
she enthused eleven years ago. That
also broke down a ferry but In ita
place stands toll gate for highway
men. The cid ferry monopoly charg.
cd ten cents for carrying passengers
ACROSS the Missouri. For ten long
years the U. p. bridg, exacted fifty
cents for every man, woman and child,
and ever now though they pretend to
have made a reduction for Omaha
every traveller In Nebraska and every.
where else who buys a through tic ked
to the U. P. terminus Is comp elled to
pay fifty cents.
But the freight tolls over this bridge
Of slghs have been tho most monstrous
imposition on shippers that have over
been perpetrated In America, and not
only In America but In any part of the
world. Not only the people but the
government has been robbed In the
same way In spite of the act of '66,
which makes all bridges public high.
ways and restricts the charge for gov
eminent transportation to mileage
rates. The bridge bas paid for Its
cost more than five times over besides
paying the interest upon a fictitious
value. To the City of Omaha this has
been the greatest drawback next to
the imposition of the Missouri river
transfer. Every time ene of our PEG.
pie CROSSES the river he has every
reason to curse the bridge, the men
who built 1t and the scoundrels who
keep up the system of ~brigandage
which maintains 1t. Not only are
tolls exacted, but the accommodations
for crossing are wretched and made.
quate. The dummy trains with their
cattle car attachments are switched
about from place to place on both
sides Of the river, regardless of the
waste of time, to the great discomfort
Of passengers. Nobody aver dreamt
when this bridge was built that the
old ferry experience would be repeat.
ed, and that men and women would
be compelled to travel as attachments
to horse and cattle cars.
Even this might bs borne, but when
men paying from fifty to twenty-five
cents are jammed together In reek ing
coaches like so many hogs In a pen,
and compelled to stand throughout
the entire trip, 1t is simply beyond
endurance.
If our boards of trade and mer.
chants were not shackled hand and
foot by this monopoly monster, they
would long since have risen and tested
their rights In tho courts to fair treat.
mentand decent accommodations.
Tho original act of 1871 authorlz.
ing this bridge to exact special tolls
provided that the bridge should have
q wagon bridge attachment, and as
good a lawyer as Roscoe Conkllng has
declared that without q wagon bridge
attachment the three miles between
the terminus and Omaha are only
parts of the main line of the Union
Pacific for which mileage rates alone
can legally be charged.
How muoh longer our people will
submit to these outrageous exaotlons,
delays and dlsoomforts remains to be
seen. Possibly they are waiting for a
new bridge, but II that Is to be their
sole reliance for relief, they are likely
to grow old and grey before they oele.
brate Its completion.