Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-04-19
SATURDAY. APRIL 10, 1890
Straet-Car seryice-Aga,n.


The city il to be so crowded on the 2sth
of May that the street-cars will not be able
90 accommodate on that day half the per-
sons who Will be DESTROYS of patronizng
them. No company will reasonably be ex-
pectcd 10 purchase cars TO be used on any
one or two days in year. For good rea-
sons. therefore. the street-car lines will
have to content themselves with doing the
best that they can on the 29th Of next
month. The people Of Richmond will have
60 surrender tie cars on that day to their
guests-the thousands of persons who will
assemble here TO witness the unwilling of
the Lee monument. Even then only a
comparatively small number of visitors
will be able to ride upon our street-cars.
But the case will be entirely different
when the SAM JOKES meetings are in pro-
gress. Then the street-cars will be in the
service of the people of Richmond. OF
course some persons Will be here from the
country and from other towns and cities, at
tracted by the wide reputation of the dis
tinguished evangelist but es O rule the
cars will, especially at night, be crowded
with jewellers within our city's limits.
But here, again, there are difficulties to
be overcome. The crowds who will attend
upon Dir. JoSEs's preaching will be num-
bered by thousands; and these thousands
will all expect TO be transported to the
western end of Franklin street between
The hours Of and o'clock p. NJ. II is
more than three miles from the new church,
or tabernacle, TO the terminus of the cleo
trio-car line on Church Hill All along
the line, and between the hours named,
persons will constantly be standing await
ing transportation to the preacEing-place.
And all these people ought to be accommo-
dated. The circumstances are totally IN
like those which will surround the street.
car company on the goth of May. On this
latter occasion it would hardly be possible
for the company to transport from end to
end of the city all the persons who will be
here, most Of them for only q single dav.
But MIR. JONES will be here for many days
for weeks, perhaps; and on every day Of
his sojourn there will be large crowds of
persons seeking transportation TO the
preaching ground. How shall these peo-
pie be accommodated? How can Rich
mond be saved from presenting herself
In the character of the man who bit off
more than he could chew? 1t will never
do to let our visitors reproachfully say
that We erected temporary church far
from the centre of the city because we
had line of electric cars. and then failed
20 perform the duty which we had volun-
tarily taken upon ourselves Fifty sum-
cd xuiI hnl at0 hfx
persons each, or four thousand in all. But
In order TO run fifty cars from the eastern
20 the western end of the city in two hours
we must run twenty-five in an hour. or one
every two minutes. Are we prepared to
transport even four thousand persons to
MIR. JoSEs's meetings?
The Marshall-streetl line ought 10 do good
service during MIR. JoSEs's sojourn in this
city. The line down that street should
not cease to be operated until after the
JONES meetings are over. That line con-
veys passengers to the corner Of Ryland
and Marshall streets, or to point only
three squares distant from the tabernacle.
The Main-street line will convey passen-
gers within five or six squares of the taber-
uacle.
II all these roads are to come under the
control of one company before June the
three lines can be operated to the best adj
vantage during the JONES meetings.
The electric line has advertised Rich
mond from one end of the country to the
other. We have boosted of IL on all occa-
sions. But it has never had to undergo
such test of its capabilities as it will
have TO undergo in June next. Thepeople
of Richmond feel deeply interested in the
matter: and would greatly regret even
partial failure of the company to come mp
10 the Just expectations Of the public.
We repeat what we said day or two ago
that if there had been no electric road
here, the tabernacle would never have been
erected where il is TO be; and that the
Richmond Union Passenger-Railway CON-
pany cannot afford to fail TO show to the
world that it is capable of doing all the
work which its most Jealous supporters
say hes within its power.
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