The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-05-15
SCUDDBR ON GRABS.
Franchises Given Away, the
Pastor Says, While Peo-
pie Sleep.

AS a prelude to his regular Sunday
evening DISCOURSE. the Rev. John l..
Scudder last evening talked for a while
upon the subject. Grabbing a Franchise
While People Sleep" He said:-
-Four companies are clamoring to es-
tablish rapid transit in Jersey City, aud
their representatives are making ou
! Street and Water Board weary through
their conflicting opportunities for valu-
able franchises These companies study
their own interests and expect to coin
money out of the public. | know not
who compose them, but in behalf OF the
people from whom their profits must &C
crue. 1 affirm that unless we are extreme
Iy careful at this time, we shall have a
yoke placed upon US from which we shall
not be able to escape. aud, moreover. we
shall nave no one TO blame but ourselv es.
GLANCEs ABROAD.
I'VE have only TO glance across Ine
hudson and study the Manhattan Eie-
waited Railway, TO see what a grip q prl
vate corporation can have upon the throat
| of the public, and how it can squeeze the
municipality until it is blue III the face.
Prof. Charles B. Spahr, in u recent lee
| ture on sMonopolies and the People" de-
| clared that the Manhattan Company reaps
a profit of 40 per cent. annually, and thus
almost doubles its capital every W
wears. The company charges a five cent
| fare, although it costs less than three
cents to transport each passenger
Every poor workingman who travel 9
daily upon this road land at certain times
the cars are crowded with this class
pays $31. 80 q year to this company. OF
which amount $l2.i0 is net profit. Inc
labcrlng classes are thus Systematically
and unnecessarily piucned. Ii the city
of New York operated the elevated road,
as il certainly should, every such work.
ing man and working woman could put
SIP. so into the bank, and even then tne
city would have u margin of profit.
SYSTEM IN JERSEY CITY.
NOW, do we want any similar oppres-
siye system iu Jersey City? Have we not
had enough experience with railroad cor
porations in tins past2 Shall we. the peo-
Die, meekly put a saddle on our back aud
a curb bit in our mouth, aud allow these
s~ouiIess corporations to ride us? That
rapid rrapsit 10 soreiy needed, we all nd
NIT, 1t will double our population aud
cover acres Of vacant lots, with families
owning their own homes aud taking an
interest in guod government. But
why cannot the city furnish this
rapid transit az a reasonable rate.
even as it now supplies us
with water. Municipal transportation
is a public function anu shonld meyer be
placed ia the hands OF any private Cor
porstion. All future rapid transit routes
should be owned and operated Dy the
CITY. Transportation Is provided by
many European cities today, and also
by the city of New York over the Brook
lyn bridge. IL owning and operating
our own roads We should not be acting
without urecedent; our Undertaking
would not be IN experiment., for we have
as much sense as our friends across the
water.
While then paid agents are presenting
tile claims aud applying the persuasions
Of these corporations. rs a citizen VINO De-
lieyes in the sovereignty aud best inter-
esis of the people. l appeal III henaiI OF
our owl city, Il corporation in which we
are all stockholders, and whose policy is
determined by our ballots. In supplying
rapid transit The city eau afford to charge
less that private COL porationS. aud
cheaper rates will certainly be d pubic
blessing. II tue fare Is placed at 3 cents.
it will relieve much OF the over-cro wdlng
Ia the congested tenement house districts
of lower Jersey City, and enable the poor
workingman to have a wee nome OF MS
own In the suburbs. People will cease TO
60 up five stories in mario W, dismal flats
when they can go OH I'VE
miles with speed and eco nomy aud
breathe the fresh air OF heaven.
at is better to raise children on green
grass than in the gutter, and cheap rapid
transit will enable them to do 1t. l ask
the Street and Water Board then to con
slider we'll the material and moral welfare
of the working classes before they vote
away irreyocable franchises worth mil
lions of dollars. l ask q ever vigllant
Mayor TO be especially wideawake at this
jancture.
STUPID TRADITIONS.
ssTf az q cltv we stuDidlV adhere to the
traditions of the past, and Insist on plac-
ing public transportation in the hands of
private corporations, we shall do an ire
parable injury to the people, unless all
such corporations are compelled TO reduce
the fare to three cents aud keep IL there
1.-The proposition that rapid transit COM
panies shall paw to the city 5 per cent. of
their gross receipts. may be we'll enough
for the city treasury, but this will not
prevent the companies from charg-
ing what they please for fare and geug-
ing tniuuitous profits from the pee.
pie. A contract once made ~ tnviolaple,
and Que of the greatest curses in America
is the ease with which rapacious corpora
tions rave secured the right 30 fleece
the public. Citizens of Jersey City
wake up and make it peculiarly
warm at this limo for your
Street and Water Commissioners. They
can be your friends or foes. The time TO
shout IS before the mischief is done. In
one scalepan Of the trembling balance
lies the welfare OF the people and their
children, III the other lie the n~oneybags
of u powerful but privileged few. Which
will weigh the most with our officials the
| future will determine. ! have done my
duty aud forewarned you. Awake then,
I say, aud be not shacKled while you
Sleep"
PUBLIC LIBRARY CIRCULATION.
So