The Portland daily press., 1895-04-04
THE FERRY La NDiNe QUESTION
The Choice is Between Progress and De-
population and shrinkage.

TO the Editor of the PRESS:
So much has been said and SO little
written upon this all absorbing topic OF
ferry landing, prompts the writer to
make few suggestions and convey a
few thoughts to those who have not tax
en- the time, or are unable by reason OF
lack of an acquaintance with the subject
to judge of the merits of the controversy.
From tho days when Xerxes. B. C. 4S1
after an unsuccessful effort to construct q
permanent bridge of boats across the
Hellespont, and administered 300lashes to
the waters of the Dardanelles, to the
present time, all who owe their living to
crossing the waters to gain sustinance,
are, to put it mildly, unfortunate.
That people will continue to reside at
places convened by ferry by reason of the
attractiveness in other respects, is self
evident, by reason ofsthe great accum-
mutation of wealth, and increased pop
ulation at the northeastern part of what
| is now known as the town of South
Portland. or to be more concise, the two
villages of South Portland and Willard.
! The villages above named comprise
about one half the valuation of the new
town, or to be exact, the valuation on
the assessors books for the year of 1894
was $640, $50, small part OF district 6
being set off by division makes it i'm
posi- BILE to give the exact figures until
the assessors of both towns have made
| no ir,icf vr;f
the facts, the people of these two vii
lagos are as much dependent upon the
ferry to Portland as is the infant child
! in it's mothers arms, and to put it in
general terms, all the people living in the
| locality above named are required to
earn their living in the city of Portland,
4 and to get there requires the payment of
1 ferriage of from two to three dollars per
month for each person, and with a fam
lily Of five, all working in Portland,
makes the ferry tax 10 inconsiderable
| factor in our existence.
The present ferry company, as is gener-
ally admitted, is operating without
profit at the present tariff rate. and the
travelling public have been getting a
| benefit by reason of competing lines, but
when this is done and everything is set
tied down toshard pan, and one COM
pany is doing all the business, which is
not great, who will pay the rental, if any
is charged, the ferry company or the
people who patronize it?
| We have no hesitancy in saying that all
charges however made, under whatever
pretence, must eventually come from the
pockets of the people.
| In view OF the above, is there any good
reason why this people of South Portland
and Willard should be called upon to
| pay in addition to their regular toll
any thing for the use Of the pu bile high
way and landing? and if they should, is
not Vaughan's bridge an exactly paral-
lei case? Who OF our people believe the
people of Ligonia and the western end of
the town should pay, aside from what
they pay in tax, for crossing Vaughan's
bridge, and can any person see wherein
there is any difference in the two? both
are highways for public travel, and both
were built and are kept in re pair at pub
lie expense. The only perceptible differ
ence that the writer has been able to dis
cover is that the ferry convenienees a
population and valuation at least three
times greater than that Of the bridge
| In the light of information that could
be readily obtained as to the profitable
phase of operating the ferry between
South Portland and Portland, leads the
writer to wonder why the gentlemen,
owners of the Peoples Ferry Company,
should have investd SO much money
there in, with the exceedingly question
able prospect of ever being able to real
ize therefrom. The fact of this ferry line
never having paid its owners, when u
suitable conveyance has been provided
is doubted only by those who would dis
pute against the sun; now in view of
that fact, will it be good policy for the
town TO charge these gentlemen, if they
! have the power to do so, rental, when
the company is operating without profit;
ande five years later the town be called
upon to subsidize n ferry as in the past?
Allow the writer to predict that if the
enemies of the Peoples Ferry Company
succeed in driving these gentlemen who
own the stock i'll that company to take
the Elizabeth City" from the route.
that the town of South Portland. as \
municipal corporation, will be the owner
and operating within the next ten years
a ferry between the two points named.
Do you gentlemen who are aiming at
the vital interests of our villages think
the town can operate a boat az profit,
when private corporation is operating
without profit? Try it if you want high
taxes.
Are the promoters of this scheme to de-
stroy our magnificent ferry accommodate
tions, aware OF the fact that the people
of South Portland village contributed
from their own pockets to build the ferry
landing befo.e the town would pay any
thing therefor?
When men will assess themselves to op-