The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-10-19

OF the nine street car companies in the
city. operating seventv-seven miles OF
track. only one company reports loss Of
business. comparing the present patron
age with that OF a year ago. The eight
| companies report an Increase OF from
| Is 70 100 per cent. IN travel while the av-
erage increase. taking In all of the lines,
including the one which reports a decrease
OF business, is in the nelghborhood OF 20
per cent
with the banking business increased s.
per cent. in a year. the coal output so
per cent. and the traffic Of the street cars
showing a gain of 80 per cent. can It be
doubted that Seattle is growing in i'm
portance and prosperity?
The West street electric line, running 10
Ballard. reports an increase of 50 per cent.
in the average daily receipts at the pres
ent time over year ago. Supt- Shuttle
ton says that some eco passengers are
being hauled daily now and the ears are
so crowded thss the company is about 10
put on the mammoth car. Guy c. Phin-
ney," which has a seating capacity Of
forty. and viii carry twice that number
or more. If crowded.
The First avenue cable roads business
is at least 20 per cent. better than last
year at this time, according TO Receiver
O. D. Colviu. So favorable are the indi-
cations for the future. too, Mr..
Colvin says. that the summer sched-
h.
winter schedule, viii be continued
through the coming winter Travel is bet
ter than for two years past and is equal
almost TO the period in which. owing 10
the burning of the power house OF the
electric road. the cable had partial mon
opoly OF the business north.
Auditor Kemster. of the Seattle Trac-
ton Company. operating the Second av-
enue. Lake Union and North Seattle cleo
trio lines, says that the business of that
company for the past four months shows
an Increase OF 20 per cent. over the CORE
spending months last year. The nine
cars running now are doing more business
than eleven were last year and the Oc-
tober travel is showing up even better
than the preceding months. Mr.. Kemp
ster ascribes the increased business not
alone to transents. but to the fact that
old residents are riding more than form
erly.
On the Madison street cable road travel
has increased between % and so per cent.
over last years record and It is better
than any time since 1892.
The Union Trunk line. operating the
James street cable. the Broadway and
other lines. has also experienced an in
crease in business.
w. j. Grambs, of the Third Avenue
electric line and of the Grant street cleo
crease of Is per cent. in business lately
over last year at the same time.
The Rainier avenue line has been ex-
tended to Renton during the past year.
and its daily business is at least 100 per
cent better than it was a year ago.
The road which reports a decrease of
business is the Yesler way cable line, and,
strangely enough. the loss Of business is
ascribed 10 the Klondike excitement. II
Is a fact that the exodus to the gold fields
drew heavier from the section Of the city
reached by the road than any other part
of the city. Summer attractions at the
lake have not drawn so large crowds as
usual. Still the decrease of business has
only been about per cent.
Taking all the street railway companies
together and considering the number OF
passengers handled by each daily. the con-
clusion is reached that there are in the
neighborhood Of 20 per cent. more people
riding now than there were a year ago.