St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-06-09

unSa tlSfactory. we pass on 10 the
broader proposition that the true policy,
not only in Minneapolis, but in every
other city, is to encourage competition.
The Twin Cities are the sufferers to-day
because they failed to adopt this policy
earlier in their history: for there are
no two other cities of anything like
their population on this continent, SO
ill-provided with street transportation.
If st. Paul and Minneapolis twenty
years ago had adopted the policy OF en-
cOuraging the building of rival street
railway lines, both cities would have
been in much better condition than
they are to-day. This is fact recog-
nized by everybody, and we are there
fore all the more surprised that the in
telligent workingmen OF Minneapolis
should now step forward in an endeavor
to throttle the only plan by which the
city can be relieved of the oppression OF
monopoly in its street railway service.
In illustration of what we have been
saying, we invite the attention of our
readers to comparison of the city of
Duluth and the late city of Seattle as
respects their street railway service.
In Duluth they ran into the same mis-
take that st. Paul and Minneapolis
made in their early history, of granting
an exclusive franchise to one company.
The result is that Duluth has one little
bobtail Car line. and although the people
of that queenly little city have for
long time been clamoring for additional
Np1xr tho ,,ynniSQ tn tho
ear to have it broken to the hope. The
little city of Seattle, away out on the
Pacific coast, with less population
than Duluth, adopted the policy we are
advocating of granting franchises to
every company that gave evidence OF
its ability to build street railways,
and as result, when Seattle was burned
the other day, it had better and more
extensive street car service than st.
Paul, Minneapolis and Duluth COM
bined. There is the proof of our asser-
ton and the argument in support OF
our proposition. We know that if st.
Paul had pursued this policy by this
time we would have had cable lines,
motor lines. electric lines and all sorts
of modern street railway improvements
running to Como, to the Midway dis
trict and to all other sections of the
city.
While we advocate the policy of be-
ing liberal in the granting of fran
chiseS, we also insist that the fran
chises should be carefully guarded so
as to protect the interests of the city
and to leave open the avenues for all
future competition. All of these fran
chises have an actual money value, and
there is no reason that the city should
part without fair consideration. If
they are worth money to the companies
who receive them they are worth money
to the city which grants them; conse-
quently it should always be expressly
stipulated that certain percentage of
the gross earnings shall annually be
paid into the city treasury. Here in St.
Paul the people have granted to one
company franchise that is represented
to have an actual money value of 81 ,OO0,
600. and yet the taxpayers have never
received one penny as consideration
for their grant. Where people are so
unjust to themselves they scarcely have
right to expect justice from others.
In conclusion, we again impress upon
the workingmen of Minneapolis the
folly of their course Ill opposing the
granting of these franchises. They.
above all others. are interested in start
ing competition and encouraging the
building of rival lines; and we hope.
after calm deliberation and full dis
cussion of this subject among them
selves, they will see their error.