The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-09-05

would pay roundly for the privilege of
doing If we had representatives
that insisted upon it. This is a fair and
impartial summing UP of the two sides
of the question, without feeling or IA
vor in either direction
The action Of the assembly is left ex-
posed, to the glare of public scorn and
condemnation by the propositions that
were made and voted down for deal
ing with the street railway company in
the only manner that conforms to
proper sense. of public duty. A substi-
tute ordinance was proposed, and re-
ceived the votes of three assemblymen,
which was just and fair in is terms,
but which had no chance of passage
because it embodied a care for the
rights of the people instead of solicit
Gus interest for the welfare Of the
street railway company. This ordl-
nance, introduced by Mr.. Albrecht, rot
ed the fact that the street railway
company had violated the conditions Of
its franchise by burning bituminous
coal at it's power house, and had re-
fused to obey the requirement that it
pave it's tracks on Third and Fourth
streets; and had further violated its
rights under its charter by giving a
service on the Selby avenue line that
any court must hold to be inadequate
and unreasonable. This ordinance
was, indeed, defective in that it per
mitted the company to use the safety
device instead of cutting down the hill,
but it did place the new line under the
provisions of the present ordinance,
limiting the franchise to fifty years:
sion attacking the franchise of the
company, and instructing the corpora
ton attorney to institute proceedings
to forfeit the franchise of the cable
line unless the company should accede
to reasonable terms.
Here was a clear way out OF the dlf-
ficulty. 1t is known to all that the
company's franchise would not stand
such a legal attack, and that the com
pany itself could not afford to take the
chances in such a contest. By the pass
age of the Albrecht ordinance, leaving
out the provision for safety device
on the Selby avenue hill, the city would
have been placed in a position where it
could absolutely dictate it's terms. The
st1-
been obliged, under penalty of losing
it's right to operate the hill line alto
gether, to reduce the grade to safety,
to pave between it's tracks with as
phalt, to put in union depot loop and
to grant transfers to all lines. There
is not the shadow of doubt that every
improvement in this Fourth street line,
from terminus to terminus, which the
people desired or expected, could have
been secured from the company if the
members of the assembly had fixed
their eyes upon the interests of the
city, rather than those of the street
railway company. They voted down
the peoples ordinance and passed the
company's ordinance. Now let us see
what the board of aldermen will do.
The street railway company does not
intend that this council shall pass out
of existence before it shall have obtain
ed substantial concessions, including
everything that public opinion will
stand. 1t hopes, by temporarily relin-
gushing it's, attack upon University
avenue, to secure, for all tine to come,
the privilege of putting in, under condi-
tons regardless of the public interest
and the public safety, an electric line
on Fourth street. The assembly has
given its consent. If the board of al
dermen does the same, then we shall
have registered for future reference
list of those so-called representatives
of the people who are more concerned
about favoring the street railway than
about protecting the people. Let the
council make UP this issue and go to
the public upon it if it dare.