The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-02
SAYS .0AKLAND'S MAYOR
His Strong Message on. Rail
road and Waterfront
=. Questions.
FARES SHOULD BE REDUCED.
Other Recommendations !. Made.
: :: :: Death of P. H. Smith, an Oak
..... land Pioneer.


Mayor Dayie does not assume his seat
~untiTto-day, but his inaugural message to
the City. Council, which took the .reins of
governmental hand lastevening, was read
on the Converting of that body. He re-
viewed the figures taken from the books of
various city officials, showing that while
. theincrease of expense for the maintenance
of:the city government from 1889 to- 1894
: had only been 1915 per cent, the re
teipts from taxation had increased. during
the: same Period by 40 per cent, while
the assessed value of Oakland property had
increased but 25 per cent. He argued from
this that taxation should be materially re-
dueed.and asked the careful considera ton
OF the.Gouncil on that subject. -.
Alter touching on the question of public
parks and calling the attentionof the Coun-
Gil to the vast advantages of numerous
70 and,extensive. public grounds he took up
the, School Department and advised the
; utmost caution in expenditure funds
for school buildings.
. In reference TO. the Third and Sixth
Ward schoolhouses, hecharged that there
. had been gross acknowledgement in the eX-
penditure OF the funds realized from the
sale of school bonds. In the same section
ofthe document he referred particularly to
the necessity for industrial and manual
training.in the public schools and advised
that the Board OF Education take measures
10 perfect the courses now in vogue in Oak
land institutions: of learning. -: -
In reference. to the changes which have
been, made in the operation of the Seventh
street LOCAL train. the Mayor said:
!. am clearly of the opinion. that the com pany
has nc. legal: authority 10 charge fare within
pff lTrfr ,Qrir
mits thatit has .notthis legal.rigft by. making
It's local tickets good TO APPOINT. outside the
city; it. admitted 1t by CARRYING passengers
without charge -for period OF thirty
years.; it admitted it by posting in. its cars
notices that itcould not charge fare, and it adj
.mitted ii. by. not Oh arging fare.
-. 1he company makes loud proclamation. that
1t has had To. Try passengers free. This is q
misste ten1ent The@eonipan has never carried
q passenger Tree. Itearried the people OF Oak
land without ehaFge:as "a considera ton for the
by steam al the rate of thirty. miles per hour
through RI very cen ter of the. CITY,. No: other
city oi 10000 people in the JIlited. States is
subjectedto the Hazard. and Inconvenience I'M
posed by such a IRA nchise =.
: & Whatever may. have been the pledges and
prornise Of therailroad .company;to the people
inTeturn for The extraordinary privileges It
enjoys, it is certain that the Council has the
right to=hx the fare doWn.to 20 figure that en-
ables*t he=road 70. rn*oTl opera ring expenses
and but per cen the cost cOnst tuetioI.
An ord nance king he fare at ohe-fouEth of
accent. per person between West Oakland and
the eastern limit. :o1 the city would j have n D
1.-THE Legislatu approved May 20, 1851 which
!; Is the law authorizing building OF this
:: local Sys TEN OF rail read Z -. -:
:: :HGd 4the com psny compiled Ith the eondi-
tions upon y HIGH It obtains JerIaission: toll Law
down. III e. Seventh-Street track its franchise
!, Sonld continue: some ighteeh. years longer,
but as IT has undou btedly forfeited its right TO
noxe5cars by: earnalong that street the ques-
ton of franchise need not 5e=conSideTed i'm the
foTInL lation OF an ordinance. prohi bi ting the
MOVING of:trains by steam on :tha line. ~
s::: Jntrer. the head of Port. of Entry the
Mayor called attention 10. the fact that
while Ga kIalid. has nine miles of water
front only 800 feet are under the actual
control. =of.#tfre city government. He
.:tho Hght the CoUncll and the Merchants
Exchange should confer on the subject and
try: to find. some Way.of getting what be-
longs TO The city and. he. continued: =.
E a question Of great Importance to the. people
oitfiiscitv is that:of the suits pending to de-
;terTnfle the title ofthe water front. The first
~:s1ft ever TesSed TO final juigIn et in tn lower
court was the .one entitled :'The Oakland
!: va er5front+ Company vs.. Doane, cameron,
= et;:eE'. 1t was tried before: y dges Greene,
HenshaW and Ellsworth sitting in bank with a
jIry. 4 here werestwo decisions rendered inthe
:casef the first holding thatthe CarpentieFtitle
was valid. fies second based upon what is
known q The Cbicago decision, holding tito. be
.InYelid-and Striking out @the entire testimony
! Of plaintiff :.~..- -. r..
= The plaintiff sppeal IRON the Judgment to
rjlle5 Supreme Court Of the State, and at the
i " term of the court the case will be argued
and Submitted. III the court affirIns- The judg-
.IneIlI m informed the effect will bethe final
lem eIlt oil the title 10 the water front in
faE0Ts0f the city After this case had BEEN de-
cldedaiH the. lower: court the city. with COM
: lnen Ca5le. zeal, grew aggressive and with a
stTQIG: arm und ertoOk*to take *forcfb1e posses
: (which Tesul ted in. the railroad company
60 Il9n nei1lg a suitinths United states Circuit
!: Golrt;.in. which suit an Injunction was OBJ
"a tfng theeity from IuTther inter
@terenc until de term nation which in junction
Is by-ccnsent.of counsel for the city now in
ioIee. 1 his case Is now pending in the said
court, having been slI omitted for decision; and
!. TO NNIl]c never the Judgment may 90 an;
appeal vi Il Det sken. There is also the case of
y he =ttts q. Oakiand vs.. The Oakland Water
iron company, which has been tried and 81 b.
init ted 1o.Jrdge 0gdeB; who'll venture VIII
: decide i1r eli y, as tits hardly possible that
: he Will overFu le the dgnnent THE court over
The Sta u: has also one. suit now pending in
Z the supreme :CQuTt of c lifornia, that OF the
" State Of f9F1ia.ys. the city and many de-
!: feHdants, on appeal from q judgment from an
order sustaining en- Irrar of ciefenda Mt
w C. .Doane. =:
=: The suit broughtin the United states Supreme
:. Court by the State. in which the city undertook
to intervene but failed has been dismissed In
nv Judgment tn city. would lave been .intlch
better eff financially: and nearer a speedy de-
termination OF the 0ntrOversv had She inter-
-vened IN the suit brought bY the Oakland
Waterfront Company against Dosne, Cameron
ct al: -. p. ~
on the contrary she saw.fit to- incur great ex-
/. ~pense Tor counsel fees and costs, which might
= have been avoided. -. r. x.
-: BUTT will be my pleasure. as it will be nv
|dutywhile l am Mayor 10 see that all these
snits are diligently prosecuted, and if possible
under my administration, hssiened to final
determination.
The Mayor was positive in his opinion
that all streets leading to the water front
should be opened 10 the water, and said
that the Peralfa land grant whieh had thus
!. far kept such project from being carried
ont was bugbear cencocted by the rail-
road company, which could be located or
dislocated at the pleasure OF the corpora
ton. In. conclusion he said:
believe the city should open all streets be-
tween Alice and Market and elsewhere, across
: the so-cf ded private property that has been
!. created by embankments and debris deposit IS
. az once and keep them open, thus giving the
claimants of the so-called private property an
Opportunity 10 locate the original Peralta grant
Ing to do which they must produce the ofLlclal
map which: so mysteriously disappeared from
me Secretary of States Office about the time II
p was needed in Oakland
Mr.. Dayie. advocated the formation Of a
water park in West Oakland, saving that
" by buying 400 to 600 acres of marsh land