The Portland daily press., 1897-05-17
WILL HAVE SUNDAY CARS.
A Peculiar Campaign In a Canadian
City.

The Toronto Cars VIII Now Run on Sunday
"A Special Meeting Was Held to De-
eide 1t.
Toronto, May 15.-The city voted today
by 500 majority to allow street cars to run
on Sundays.
By q clause in the charter of the Toron-
to street railway company the system
could not be operated on Sunday until a
majority Of the manhood franchise vot-
ers had declared that they want street
cars on the Sabbath. Such vote has pre-
viously been twice taken and twice it
has been adverse to Sunday service, the
first time by 1000 majority and the second
by 973. Subsequent to the latter vote,
which was taken in August, 1898, the leg
islature passed a special act prohibiting a
repetition of the vote until January, 1897,
and thereafter only once in three years
might the people be permitted to vote,
though if one contest be favorable the de-
cision is final.
The vote today was taken under differ
emit circumstances to those which OBJ
tanned at the last contest. Then the sa-
looms were open; today they were shut.
Greater safeguards against plugging"
were provided this time.
The campaign opened about three weeks
ago, mildly and without active public in
terest, though II 900 persons had signed a
petition asking for vote. The advocates
of Sunday street cars suggested that the
campaign should be conducted quietly,
without meetings and therefore without
appeals to the people to vote either way.
This, however, the opponents of Sunday
cars-the antis, as they are called-did
not feel inclined to observe and they be-
gan ten days ago to hold public meetings
in halls in various parts Of the city
Clergymen at once took a hand in the
fight, and gave the campaign a religious
complexion. They gathered around them
a number of representatives of organized
labor, and argued for the observance of
the Sabbath, and also that the introduce
ton of Sunday cars would mean seven
days work for the employees of the rail
way. The antis not only held meetings
in the halls, but in churches and even
went the length of taking collections in
churches last Sunday for the fund of the
opponents of Sunday cars. Seeing this,
the advocates of Sunday cars began this
week to hold meetings and have had as
speakers leading citizens and representa-
tiyes of organized labor. Thus the cam
Z paign which was to have been quiet, has
become keen, even hot 1t is only fair to
say that the advocates of Sunday cars
have conducted a campaign in which
courteous treatment of their opponents
has been the invariable rule. On the 9th
er hand, SO much cannot be said for their
opponents, who have charged prominent
citizens, such as Mr.. Edward Quincy,
president of the board of trade, with in
terested motives in supporting the Sun
day cars. These charges have drawn from
Mr. Quincy and others warm denials and
in the past few days the contest has be-
come very hot.
The advocates of Sunday cars have
been organized by a firm of lawyers and
had committee lawyers. So to lawyers
organized the antis and they had commit
tee rooms also. The antis had also the
organized aid Of the Epworth Leagues,
Christian Endeavor- Unions and other So
the churches. The antis have been vigo-
rous and Incorporating in their cam
paign, sparing neither words nor work,
and have overshadowed their opponents SO
far as apparent enthusiasm is concerned.
This has led many Sunday car advocates
to fear that their side was net sufficiently
alive to the closeness of the fight.
The charge Of the antis that the intro
duction of Sunday cars would mean sew
en- days work for six days pay is easily
met by the fact that the charter forces the
railway to pay not less than Is cents per
hour wages, and the additional fact that
the company voluntarily pays it's men
16 a-S cents per hour, thus paying s37 900
per year more than the law orders in
wages. The church people are divided on
the question of clerical intimidation and
because the downtown churches, the
large and formerly rich churches, have
suffered from the moving of people into
the suburbs as the city grew, a metropoli-
tan change that has forced half dozen
once wealthy congregations into dire
straits. Naturally these congregations
wish for Sunday cars that people may
ride from the suburbs down to the big
churches. Another factor which has made
votes for Sunday cars is the fact that the
clergymen and laymen who are most zeal
GUS against Sunday cars do not scruple to
drive to and from church in their own OF
hired carriages.
The bicycle vote, as it is called, was an
uncertain quantity, which each side