The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-04-13
PRACTICAL CAR TENDERS
Saved Over Thirty Lives in Baltimore
In Six Months.
SCRANTON COMPANY'S HONOR
Copy of Promise Made In Writing to Put
Fcndcrs on Its Cars-Othcrs Besides
The Tribune Have Sharp
Stick for the Company.
COMPANY'S HONOR

The promise of the Scranton Traction
company. made I'm writing over year
ago to put tenders on It's cars Is In the
possession of the board OF trade, and
copy of that promise Is printed In full
below
In several interviews General Man
ager Beetem and Vice-President Clark,
of the company. have said that no prac-
teal tenders have been invented. A
letter from the mayor of Baltimore,
written Thursday, to Secretary Ather-
ton, says that the four street railway
companies in that city have each dis
| tinctive type of fender on all their ears
ana that thirty or forty lives have been
saved and that no lives have been lost
| since the tenders Were first used. This
record has been made within the last
| six months. Substantially the same re-
port comes from Buffalo.
A copy of the Scranton company's
promise Is as follows:
ID. h. Atherton, Secretary Scranton
Board of Trade
Dear Sir-Yours of the I'D duly received
and noted.
| beg leave to inform your honorable
body that this matter (fenders) has been
Just as soon as II can be determined
which particular fender Is the best there
will be no further delay In adopting the
same. Very truly yours
H. II. Archer,
General Manager Scranton Traction Co.
Scranton, March %, 1894.
Letter 10 Mayor OF Baltimore.
The correspondence between Secre-
tary Atherton and the mayor of Balti-
more is as follows:
Mayor of Baltimore, Nd
Dear SiI-Wil yeu please state by return
mail what make of street car fender Is
being used in your city, how long it has
been in use and If 1t Is giving satisfac-
ton or not. Thanking you in advance
for your kindness, l am very truly,
ID. B. Atherton,
Secretary Scranton Board of Trade.
Scranton, April IL, 1895.
This is the reply:
D. b. Atherton, Secretary Scranton
Board of Trade.
Dear Sir-I have your letter of April 10.
In Baltimore there are four different
street railway companies, and all of these
companies have u style of fender peculiar
to themselves.
| send you herewith a copy of report
mode by the commission appointed by the
city council of Baltimore to take this mat
ter into consideration. After this report
was sent to the council that body passed
an ordinance directing the different street
railway companies to supply themselves,
within three months, with tenders that
should comply substantially with the re-
quirements set forth in the report This
was done, and since that time there has
not been a fatal accident. while the lives
of some thirty or forty persons have been
saved by the use of the tenders.
A visit to our city would enable you to
see the different styles of tenders that
have been adopted by the railway COM
panies and make your own selection as
to which i'm your judgemnt you consider
the best. Yours very respectfully,
+. c. Latrobe, Mayor.
Baltimore, April II, 1895.
Tenders Do Fcnd.
The commission which was appoint
ed to investigate the practicability of
tenders consisted of Mayor Latrobe and
two others. They We're assisted by
Mendes Cohen, one of the most compe-
| tent civil engineers in the country, and
reported their findings to the Baltimore
| council Aug. 30 of last year.
The seventy Tenders examined were
divided into four classes-the pilot fem
ders, the scoop fender, the fender which
Is built beneath the car and in front of
the wheels and a fender combining the
principles of the first two named Out
of the seventy devices the commits
sion pronounced two of the first class
two of the second class, three of the
third class, and four of the fourth class
worthy of adoption and recommended
that any of the total twelve styles be
adopted This report and the fact that
the Baltimore companies were obliged
to adopt any one of the twelve styles
and that between thirty and forty lives
have been saved within six months
seems to prove that in one city at least
tenders will "fend.''
At the next meeting of the board of
trade the following resolution will be
introduced:
Whereas, During the past month two
fatal accidents have occurred on the troll
ley roads of this city. and
Whereas, The officials of the Scranton
Traction company have made repeated
promises to place safety tenders on their
cars, and have as yet shown no dsposl-
ton to do so; therefore, be IL
Resolved, That the city councils be re-
quested to at once pass an ordinance
compelling the said traction company TO
place the best fender now on the market
on each Of their cars and to provide for
penalty should they fail to comply with
the requirements of the ordinance within
sixty days from passage of same.