The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1892-05-22
STREET-CAR OBSERVATIONS
How Tom l.. johnson Once Got Out of a
Tight Financial Pinch.
Cleveland Corporation-An Everyday
lncident-Exasperating Delays.

When "Oily Tom" Johnson. now Con-
gresham from the Cleveland district. was
in the street-car business in Indianapolis,
long before he began the circulation OF
Henry George literature at the expense of
the government. he was looked upon as IN
exceedingly smooth operator. His first
street-car experience was In Louisville.
Toms father was superintendent of the
lines there. In which Mr.. Dupont was the
chief owner. and Tom. then a boy fifteen
years old, was a clerk In Dupont's Office,
where he made himself useful and was soon
put in charge of the books. About this
. time Toms inventive genius woke NJ. and
he showed MP q fare-box, from which he
made $1,000. Although only twenty years
old. he concluded he would like to 60 into
the stTeet-car business for himself. and.
gathering his family about him, his father
and an uncle or two. he came up to Indian
apolis and bought the lines here from VIM.
II. English, who. financier though he was
and Is, did not appear To comprehend the
immense possibilities that lay in his thirty
years franchise. Tom scrsped together q
little money. and bought the lines.
His anticIpatIons were a little roster than
the facts justified, and after having made
a couple OF payments one was com
ing along that he could not meet. The
read had been BONDED and he could not
raise anything more. He bad already bOr-
rowed from Dupont and every body else,
and was ashamed to go again. He learned
about this time that 500, QUO of the bonds
were on the market. and could be had at
60 cents on the dollar. He telegraphed to
Dupont that he knew where he could
gather mp these bonds at 60 cents on the
dollar; thar it was n big thing; and Dupont
telegraphed 10 him to buy and draw OH
him for the money. He did so; sent the
bonds TO Dupont and told him they were
worth par. Dupont sent him q check for
half fhA .ftffarnnna harUaap thu n~nnnf
paid and par-S60 .OO0-and from that time
on Tom johnson has never been out of
funds.
Tom learned of a line in Cleveland. 1t
ran out to the suburbs, and was owned by
citizens. the Cleveland street-railroad cor
poration owning q small interest in IL. The
road was not well managed, and barely
paid expenses. The stock was almost with
out value, and Johnson gathered it up at 5
cents on the dollar. There was q part of
the stock he did not get. the little that was
held by the Cleveland Street-railroad COM
pany. That company fought him III the
courts, and gave him a great deal of
trouble. They attended his meetings., and
had access TO his hooks and papers.
"One evening the Cleveland compa ny
had a meeting of its stockholders and the
gentlemen of that concern found Mr..
Johnson among them as a stakeholder III
their road. de had found three shares
lying around loose and bought 1t and then
he began to give them trouble. They
wanted to make terms with HIM. Gentle
men" said oily Tom. I'm willing To play
fair. You attend all my meetings and find
out everything and / am doing the same
with you. If you want to play quits Fn
trade YOU my shares in your company for
your shares In mIne." The trade was
made aud johnson got about three hundred
shares for his three shares.
The other night a passenger on the Penn
sylvanla-street line was noticed to be
uarv drOwsv The a nnrfh- honn1 uaa
rounding the Circle when the conductor
reused him. 1t was then discovered that
he was very drunk. He was evidently a
stranger. and Quarreled with the con-
ductor for not having put him OFT at the
transfer car. and the conductor made
amends so far as was In his power by put
ting him off then and there. AS the car
turned into Market street the passengers.
looking back, saw the stranger start
around the Circle, sheltered from the drlv-
ing rain by the kindly billboards.
Remember that fellow / put of the car
the other nightP' remarked the conductor
a day or two afterward To a Journal re-
porter. Next morning | had the first car
out, and As 1 came to the Circle he climbed
on. He was still drunk. but not as drunk
as he was tired. 'Wbasser manner that
street, he asked. 1 told him. well.
thasser longest street l ever saw. Been
end of 'er YETI"
Possibly the most a~ggravatiag bit of
mlsmanagement about the street-car lines
is the handling of the Columbia and Chit
ford-avenue trailers at the Plum-street
junction. 1t is all right coming down, bnt
going out It Is usually all wrong. and the
people in the trailer have an exesperating
wait of any W here from three to eight min
utes before they can proceed with their
trip. Part of the time there are no mules
waiting. and the car stands still after the
electric motor leaves IL until another car
on the same line can dispense with its
mules. that is until it comes and waits a
few minutes until a motor coming down
College avenue appears. Occasionally there
are mules waiting. Then they are hitched
to the car and haul 1t about fifty feet.
Then they are unhitched and the car waits
as usual until it can get u team from an
other on the same line.