Daily Republican. [volume] ([Wilmington, Del.]) 1874-1890, 1888-12-06
CITY CAR EXCHANGES
HOW PASSENGERS BEAT THE
COMPANY OUT OF FARES.
A New Plan Adoptsd-Punohed Fiokets
to be Used-mOrs WORK tor the
Car Drivers-Thoy DO not
Complain.

"Give me an exchange up Market
street," sRid passenger on the Fourth
street line TO . car driver yesterday.
Yes cir, 1 will Ra soon as / can get
tsme to prepare IL for you. II takes
considerably more time than formerly
10 give On exchange Ticket" said the
driver, but uu uucomplAlningly.
The driver then produced . book in
which there weEe probably TWO or three
hundred tiokets, bound and perforated
TO make them easy 10 tear OF. The
tickets sre IN inch and , half wide and
three inches in length. In the centre is
The name Of the railway. Along the
upper margin are two rows Of figures
representing the hours Of the day. The
upper row runs from 8 to IA the fret
figure representing the hour in the
morning when the cars commence to
run, aud the latter the hour OF noon.
The second row runs frOm1 to IL, the
hrst being 1 O'Clock p. na. and the latter
midnight. The hourB from 1 70 II
.. N. are not upon the ticket, % no cars
are supposed to be running during those
hours. Upon the lower edge OF the
ticket are also tWo rows Of figures, run
ming from to 81, representing the days
Of the month. On the rlEhthsnd end
| Of tho ticket are the Abbreviated names
!
| When q passenger asks for an ex-
change ticket, the oar driver gets out
his ticket book and his punch and looks
At his watch 10 see the hour, and II 1t 10
O'Clock =. m, he punches out the hR
ure In the hFst liDe Of figures on the
upper edge OF the ticket. Hs then re-
calls that Il 10 the Ath day of Decam beF,
when he punches out the figure 4 from
the figures on the lover margin Of the
tioke', representing the days Of the
month. II being December, he then
| punches out the abbreviated word
"Dto" on the right end margin Of the
ticket.
The work being completed, the ticket
fully punched is handed to the pnsnen-
ger, and interpreted IL Fesds something
like thia: "At 2 O'Clock in the forenoon
OF the 4th day Of December, got an
exchange ticket on the Market strest
line Of the Wilmington Olty Railway"
The tickets are Of different OOlorH, TO
represent the different lines. White IL
used on the Fourth street line, red on
the main line, blue on the electric line,
and pink on the Rising Sun line. This
| arrangement has been made 70 prevent
impositions By those passengers who
are always conoooting some plan 20
beat the company out OF its fare,
As the old exchange tickets were
good until uaed, some persons would get
all tho exchanges they could and use
them ~ other times and sometimes
they have sold them TO others to Eeo.
This has especially besn the case on tho
Rising San extension. Exchange
tickets given during the week have
been kept and used on Sunday and diff
eront parties have used them than
those TO whom they were given. The
company has AlWAys avoided Aa much
as possible she giving Of exohanRe
tiokets before the present plan WAa
adopted. The plan before In vogue a.
. general TuIe ct the functions where
passenger wished to exchange was
this; The Gar driver would try 10
keep the ran Of his passengers and ind
out the number who wanted exchanges.
When at she junction II he had three
exchange passengers he would hold up
three fingers to the driver Of the other
car. But when there WAS crowd and
. rush for an exchange oar, the driver
oould mot reckon the number, even witb
the fingers on both hands, and it wns
found that, some persons would steal
Eide1 BY taking advantage Of the rush.
The present plan 10 adopted By Super
intendent Heald to avoid these little Iu.
novAtions and annoyAnces, although 1t
gives the drivers OF the cars . little
more trouble. When they get used 10
it, however, the trouble viii not be 30
great.
show DO you like the ohanss9" was
asked Of driver this morning.
"0h, We don's mind II muoh," said
that very patient servant Of The public.
TT brings rs more labor, It 10 true, but
At the same time 1t saves rs from q
great many AnnoyRnoes. Had 1t com.
menoed In the summer, we and the ps0.
pie who ride In the cars would have
bs0n used to IL by this time Il will be
. little cold punching the tickets, and
We have to uuRlove our hands 70 do II.
Still, We are not complaining, a. the
company Obliged us BY granting our
request for regular hours, and I'VE feel
like obliglng the company In return.
II passengers who want exchanges
would les uB know that fact As soon as
they enter the car IL would save trouble
and avoid delay, but II they put 10 OF
until they Are Abont getting out of the
car, and there happens to be . number
OF then, there can1ot help but bs CON
siderable detention. We hope, how
ever, that they will soon get used 60 the
new plan and ask for exchanges Is
soon ~ they enter the car"
Some time ago, At the rEquaat Of the
drivers, Superintendent Heald put IN
operation . plan regulating she hours
OF labor, which gives very general sAtLs-
faction 10 the drivers. Under this plan
the drivers are on eight hours one day
and sixteen hours the next, making an
average OF twelve hours. A driver 20
ing on duty At 6 O'Clock this morning
will go off at 10 O'Clock tonight, and to-
morrow the sAme driver will 20 of At
3 O'Clock in the afternoon. This gives
the drivers considerable time for them
selves every other day. 6uperinten.
dent HsAld, In all that he 10 doing, is
endeAvorinS to better aecomm cd ate the
| nnhlin and all 0hnpaotad 9TH tha ,n.A