The San Francisco call., 1896-04-08
AN OWL SERVICE
FOR RICHMOND,
A Mass Meeting in the
Western Addition for
Late Trains,
NO CAR AFTER MIDNIGHT
Sutro Electric and Sutter.Street
Cable Company Will Be
Appealed To.
MR.. sUTR0 TO RUN HIS LINE.
President Morrow Says the Suffer.
Street Gable Must Stop at
O'Clock.
MR.. sUTRo TO RUN HIS LINE

The residents of the Western Addition
and Richmond District will ask the Sutro
Railway Company and the Sutter street
Railroad to give them better transfer
facilities.
To accomplish this end a mass-meeting
will be called to-day for Saturday night.
The two improvement clubs of Richmond
will join hands on this occasion, which
insures largeand enthusiastic gathering.
The meeting is not called for the pur-
pose OF protesting against any evil, imagi-
nary or otherwise, but to ask the two rail-
roads to assist the people who are now
aiding them by their patronage. Rich
mond and the Western Addition people
want late car service, an "owi system"
in other words, and they look to Sutro's
combination to give it to them.
1t is contended by those who live in the
western half OF the City that their prog
ress is seriously retarded by the discrimi-
mating methods adopted by Manager Vim
ing This is par rticularly apparent since
the new electric line was started Instead
of making bid for public patronage,
according to those who observe such
things, the Merket-street Railroad has re-
stricted its service and abandoned certain
lines in the district
1t is for the purpose of putting these
matters squarely before the public, and at
the same time asking additional favors of
the peoples line, that the mass-meeting is
called.
"Of course every body fully understands
and in measure appreciates the disreput-
able tactics adopted by the Market-street
Company" said T. G. Parker, the we'll
known Richmond real estate agent, yes
terday. 81 use the term appreciate
advisedly because the people at large
know their methods fully.
For long time past our people have
been aware of the indignites heaped upon
them by this corporation, but not until
Sutro built his road were they in a posi-
ton to enter protest. Even then there
were many who were not willing to cast
off the old love without another trial
The majority accordingly fell into line and
the old railroad was asked to make certain
con cessions.
Instead of acceding to this they seem
to have done everything in their power to
make bad matters worse. For example,
some weeks ago they inaugurated new
and most harassing schedule. Every
other car starting from the ferry-the
even mbers-goes only as far as Central
avenue. Passengers desiring to go to the
park must get out at this point and wait
for an odd-numbered car. TO make con-
fusion worse confounded this schedule is in
force from o'clock in the morning until
1 in the afternoon. Then for the next five
hours every car goes through to the park.
After O'Clock the morning schedule is
again put on. The travelling public, to use
common phrase, hardly knows where it
is at
Now this kind of schedule is in direct
violation of the conditions of the franchise.
When the Sacramento line was extended,
about two years ago, the Market-street
Company agreed to furnish the same SER
vice along the entire line. They are vio-
lating this pledge dav after day, yet there
seems to be no legal way of making them
live up to the original agreement.
"There is one way, however, to remedy
this, and that is for the people interested
to declare sort of boycott. We have de-
termined to do this by asking the Sutro
railroad and the Sutter-Street people to
add to the excellent service now afforded
us by inaugurating the owl system.
"Richmond and the Western Addition
demand late service and we look to
Sutro to give il to us. There are hun
dreds OF people who would come to Rich
mond if there was only some way of
reaching here after IL o'clock. This is
essentially district for laboring man or
capitalist, but the late toier must have
means of getting home when his davis
work is ended. The rich man has his car
riage and is, therefore, independent of
Sutro, the Market-street Company or any
one else.
"This mass-meeting, which is called for
Saturday night, will pass resolutions ask
ing the Sutro Company to run cars half
hourly from IL until 2:3O A. NJ. If they
will do this / can almost guarantee them
the entire traffic of the Richmond district.
Our people are becoming exasperated and
| know of hundreds who now walk blocks
in order to avoid paying Mr.. Huntington's
corporation cents.
If the owl system is adopted by the
SutrO combination, Mr.. Vlning may just
as well stop all his cars at Central avenue.
Our people would not then, under any cir
cumstances, patronize the old cable line.
.Of course, we would like to get
cheaper fare if possible-say. 3 cents-but
our present fight will be for late service.
Cheap transit will come in time, but an ex
ira service must be fought for. have
reason to believe that the Sutro Company
will accede to the demands of the mass
meeting, if only for one reason-that they
have business capacity enough to under
stand the public cannot be indiscrimi-
nately and continually damned
Editor Bond of the Richmond Banner is |
strongly in favor of the owl-car system. |
In fact he approves of anything that tends
to enhance the interests of Richmond.
''The idea is a good one-excellent, in |
fact" he said, land l am sure the mass
meeting will result in much good. This |
SeCtlOH OI TIE Cliy Is growing IdSG ana
solidly, and we need just something of
this kind. Everybody out here is sick of
Mr.. Vining and his COMPANY, and we are
patronizing Sutro because he has SO far |
treated US well. There is no reason to be-
lieve that the new company will fall into
the error of doing otherwise"
Everybody III Richmond seems to be
thoroughly enthused with the idea of a
late-car service. THE CALL representative
talked to some twenty people of the dis
trict yesterday, all of whom thought favor |
ably OF the project.
The indications now point to big dem
onstration, which will be difficult for Mr.
Sutro and the Sutter-street Railway Com
pany to overlook.
Mayor Sutro when interviewed yester-
day stated that he was perfectly willing to
accommodate the people of the Western
Addition with late train if the Sutter-
street company would connect with his
cars.
1.-THE travel will be light at that hour"
said he, but will give it trial. There
will be late train anyhow the evening of
the Yale celebration at the beach. But of
course unless the Sutter people run their