The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1889-09-13
HACK DRIVERS GRIEVANCES.
They Have Them Against Each Other, the
Man with "a Pull" and the Public.


They Have Them Against Each Other, the
Man with Pull" and the Public.
In even the hack business trust ten
denotes are manifesting themselves,
according to cabman, whom a re-
porter of The News met at one of the
Jersey City ferries the other day. The
vast majority of hacks in this city, he
explained, are under the control of
one man who claims to have pull"
at the city hall, but who does not own
a single horse or vehicle himself
How can that bea" asked the re-
porter.
"Well, he enjoys the privilege of
going within the wharf gates and
soliciting patronage while the regular
hackmen are kept outside. He, con-
sequently, has monopoly of the bust
ness connected with four or five of
the principal ocean steamship lines,
and the others can have what is left
after he gets through.
He makes arrangements with the
big car companies which enable him
to collect large commissions on the
business he turns over to them. Hack
men," the speaker thought, pan out
about the same as other people. In
the matter of honesty their regulations
are bad" he explained, "becausa
many persons think they charge out
rageous prices, yet if those persons
were to- consider how much time is
lost in waiting for an ocean steamer
to tie up or a train to arrive they
would not have so bad an opinion of
the cabmen.
"Of course" in reply to another
question the hackman proceeded, Il
know some cab drivers are dishonest,
but they belong TO that class to whom
licenses are issued without investiga-
ton as to character. Anybody can
get a license in this city. Men who
own their rigs are generally an up
right lot, and the rascals are those
fellows who hire cab or coach for a
few days or weeks in order to get
chance to fleece he public.
Have we any rule about custom
srs among us2' Certainly. 1t is that
the first driver at gate should have
first position, and each man afterward
in the order of his arrival, and is UNI
derstood by all hackmen. If the first
man cannot arrange satisfactory terms
with his first call, the call is passed
over to the next, and so on, the last in
the line being generally the cheapest.
"Why is the last man in the line
cheapest?"
because the very fact of his com
ing late shows that he has coined
money elsewhere, and so can afford to
take less.
''If man at the head steps out of
a line at the ferry or railroad station
he loses his position, but not when IL
line before steamship passengers
When in the latter line he holds his
position until he makes bargain.
What class of people pay high
rates with the least reluctancel"
South Americans They never
kick. The average English tourist
and New York city club man are the
hardest to deal with. The English
man is accustomed to the cheap rates
of London, and cannot understand
our higher charges over here.
THE average Frenchman is good
fellow to deal with. His trips are
generally to hotels close by, and he
pays well. Bostonians as class are
not good food for hackmen. The %
cent rates in that city lead them to ex.
pect similar rates elsewhere.
Whenever you see hackman
whose badge number does not CORE
spond with the carriage number keep
sharp eye on him, because some
thing is wrong about the fellow" was
the hackman's parting advice.-New
York News.