St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-08-13
COMMITTEE IS FIRM
In Making No Concessions to
the Street Railway Com
pany,
Except in the Matter Of Use
Of Track by Other Cor
porations.
The Other Claimants Repre-
sent That Lowry Will
Block Them
The Moment the Streets They
Desire to Occupy Are
Made Known.

"There is not another such franchise,
probably, in the United States of Amer
lea as Mr.. Lowry has"
Such was the remark made by Will
lam Pitt Murray last night before the
council committee on streets; and any
one who sat through the session and
saw the committee repeatedly stalled
by the street railway cOmpany's formid-
able charter must have agreed with him.
The Lowry electric ordinance was first
taken up. Aid. Sanborn stated that in
his opinion the ordinance presented by
the committee at the last council meet
ing is the most desirable one that could
be drawn. eff we can't get it, how
ever, get what we can," was his idea,
though it was not concurred in by a
majority of the committee. The sehti-
ment appeared to be that Mr.. Lowry
should be compelled to make great con-
cesSions, or refused further privileges
After some further argument it was
decided to take up the Lindeke-Dawson
ordinance, altering it so as to conform
with the franchise to be presented to
Mr.. Lowry, with the understanding that
any changes found necessary be made
in the latter ordinance. Aid. Cullen
and Sanborn objected to the Lindeke
ordinance on the ground that it is
blanket franchise, designating none of
the routes over which the company
part of the Lindeke company was
deemed wise eXpedlent by Aid. Gehan
and Yoerg, who held that should the
company be compelled to designate the
routes in their ordinance the street rail-
way company would come in and OBJ
struct the streets desired by them with
horse cars. That Mr.. Lowry could cause
trouble in this matter none of them
seemed to doubt. ut is very clear"
said Aid. YOerg, shat Mr., Lowry is
constructing the South Robert street
eXtentiOn for no other purpose than to
keep out another company; and as soon
as any street is designated by new
company he will jump upon it,"
Aid: SanbOrn offered as motion that
the blanket" clause be eliminated
from the EindeKe ordinance and
clause substituted making it necessary
for the company to secure three
fourths vote of the council before occu-
pass any blanket franchise without my
VOTE" he said, ''for it would be con-
ferring upon the Lindeke company
practically the same rights that Mr..
Lowry has to-day" The resolution was
lost. and it was decided to postpone
action on that section Of the ordi-
nance. William Pitt Murray stated
that he had no objection to nam
ing in his ordinance the routes
which his company proposed to traverse.
provided the council would guarantee TO
protect them, keeping Mr.. Lowry from
going to work on their proposed line
with four or five hundred men the morn
ing after their route is announced. Aid.
Cullen thought that if it came to a
''show down" between the city and Mr..
Lowry that gentleman could be fought
in another manner from any yet sug-
heroic measure, he said. to parallel his
lines on every street with electric lines,
or to build belt lines up one
street and down on the opposite side
of the block. Attorney Mum stated
that within five days after he presented
the ordinance in which he is interested,
designating the proposed route, Mr..
Lowry covered a part of it with 800 feet
of track-and old track, at that. that
wagon couldn't be driven over"
Section % of the proposed Lowry Or
dinance. which IS a condition that the
company waive its alleged exclusive
rights. also caused considerable discus
sion. Aid. Sanborn stated that there
was no question but that the st. Paul
Railway company would refuse to &C
cept the ordinance. at the expense
of the valuable rights now claimed by
them, and moved to strike out the sec
ton. The motion was defeated on a tie
vote, Aid. Cullen, Gehan and Yoerg
voting in the negative. 1t was held that
10 m no 70 in Of ha
street privileges, and that the street
railway company should be compelled
to give up rights now claimed for any
further privileges.
MIR. Moore. representing proposed
West Seventh street line, stated that
Mr.. Lowry would come to time if COM
PEELED to, citing the fact that
before there was any possible
competition he wanted S15O,OOO |
to construct an electric line into the
Fort Smelling district, for which he was
then offered bonus of $4,000. Now,
Mr.. Moore said, the street railway COM
pany was willing to build the line for
S25, 900.
Section Is, giving other companies
privileges over the street railway COM
pany's lines, also caused much discus
sion, and was finally amended to read
as follows:
The common council of the city of st. Paul
reserves the right TO grant by ordinance to any
person or corporation, other than the st. Paul
City Railway com pany, the right and permits |
sion to operate line or lines of railway
across any Of the lines OF railway hereafter
occupied under this ordinance and upon and
along all the portions of said railway that
shall at any time be operated upon or across |
any bridge or bridges in this city, and upon
any other portion of said lines of railway, not
alvuf
line, exclusive of bridges, wherein, in the |
opinion of the common council, it shall be |
necessary for such other line or ltnes to be op-
Grated.
The length of time which the fran
chiseS shall run was another point upon |
which the committee could not agree, |
and which the council will have to set |
tie. 1t was generally agreed that twenty |
years was not sufficient, but no two |
upon the matter, one member even |
favoring fifty years grant of privilege,
and Attorney Murray thought the fran
chiSe should be perpetual, with a
stipulation that the city be allowed TO
purchase every twenty years. A change
was also made in the proposed tax on
the gross earnings. The ordinence as
amended provides for tax of l per
cent for five years after the first five,
and per cent thereafter. Before adj
journment the following resolution, by
Aid. Cullen, was adopted:
That the committee recommend the pas
sage of the ordinances now before this COM
mittee which have not yet been considered, |
upon their being made to conform with the
Lowry and Lindeke ordinances excepting as
to the designation of routes, and that such
routes be so adjusted as not to conflict with
each other.
Notice was received from the st. Paul