Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-04-27
STREET RAILWAYS
de o.
Mr.. Pettigrew's Proposed Amend
ment in the Senate.
TEE PRESENT HoNePollEs ATTACKED
Washington Should Have One Com.
u Z
prehensive System.
TIL e G AS CUES TION

Il
The debate over the proposition made by
Mr.. Pettigrew in the Senate to amend the
charter of street railroad companies in the
District of Columbia to allow their pur-
chase after term of years by the Distric.
of Columbia or the general government
was begun in the Senate this afternoon
but was cut short by Mr. Hale insisting
that the proceedings should be under the
five-minute rule Mr.. Pettigrew refused
to go on under these conditions, and an
arrangement was finally made, by which
the tject will be taken up under unlim-
tied debate tomorrow morning Immediately
after the routine business has been dis
posed of.
Amendment Proposed.
The discussion was started on House bill
92O5. to authorize the extension eastwardy
of the Columbia railway. Mr. Pettigrew
proposed amendment to this bill, and
indicated that he intended to propose the
same amendment to all of the street rail-
way bills now pending in the Senate, pro-
viding that at any time after five years
from the date of the passage of the act
the District of Columbia or the govern
ment of the United States may purchase
at the actual cash value based upon the
cost of construction at the time of the
acquiring of the property of the railroad
above mentioned. The amendment further
provided that in this purchase no account
Should be taken of the value of the fran
chise to be granted by the bill under con-
Sideration, the franchise to be granted to
be for period of twenty years. unless tho
property OF the company is sooner acQulr-
ed by the government.
Mr.. Mcmillan objected to this amendment
because, in the first place. he said, ne
did not think the District of Columbia de-
sires to purchase this road. He said 1t
was road running into the country across
the Eastern branch and not one that the
governman emit would be at all likely to want.
In the second place. he said he did not
think the railroad could be built II such a
provision were put in It's charter. Thirdly,
he did not think such provision should
go in the bill at this time. He said that
row, while Congress is endeavoring to per-
feet the street railway system. it was not
we'll to hamper the companies with such
proVisiors.
Mr.. Pettigrew's Argument.
Mr.: Pettigrew said that it seemed to him
that the present was very opportune time
to provide for protecting the public in the
future. He said the city of Washington
today contains 100000 people, and that a
generation hence the population will be
increased to million people. He said the
public has not been we'll served by private
enterprises for conducting street railways
in the cities of the United States. and that
fact. he said. was well known to the world.
The fact. was, Mr.. Pettigrew continued,
that the public in this city has been eX-
tremely badly servedi in fact. worse than
any of the cities of the United States. and
almost Of any cities in the world. Private
ownership of public monopolies had be-
come intolerable in England. so that the
great cities in that country have now
adopted a system of public ownership:sand
are operating thelr itramways as public
properties. He said that IN Toronto few
government
street railways and afterward leased them
for period of years.
How to Make Suburban Roads Eff
Hcent.
Mr.. Pettigrew said that Washington
should have one street railway system
which should be bread and comprehensive.
He said it was true that the railroad under
consideration was suburban one. and
that suburban roads are not so profitable,
but at the same, time there were street
railroads in the city OF Washington that
are enormously profitable. He said that
combining the whole under a single system,
the enormous profits Of the city roads
would assist in making suburban roads eff
fic:ent in their operation. He said that
Washington city should be a model of the
cities Of America. He said it ought to
have the best railroad system in the world
II also ought to rave the best gas system,
the best water system and other natural
mcnopolies should be operated to the best
advantage of the people at large. Such
things, he said should not be the subject
of private monopoly, but should be operat-
ed for the public advantage. No revenue
should be derived from them, and they
should be operated SO that the income
would only be sufficient to conduct them.
In this way. he said. the cost of living
would be reduced in this city and the val
ue OF property would be largely enhanced.
Every citizen of Washington. he said,
should be interested in this movement, and
every citizen Of the country should also
wish to see it succeed, so that they might
point with pride to the street railway serv-
ice at the capital Of the country. On the
contrary, at present no person could point
to the monopolies Of this city, which are
run for personal profit, except in shame.
He said there were one or two lines of
street railroads in this city the stock OF
which has been watered to an amount
three times the cost of the roads, and there
are several bankrupt lines.
Worst Gas in the World.
He said the gas furnished In the District
of Columbia is the worst gas in the world,
though it is sold at the highest possible
price. When some three years ago, Mr..
Pettigrew said, Congress provided that the
price of gas should be lowered five cents per
thousand each year, the result which fol-
lowed was that the gas furnished was more
wretched than ever before. He said the
people of the country could not point to the
city of Washington as an example of the
SUCCESS Oi private ownership Oh puDuS mon
opolies.
He referred to the telephone war lately
waged in Congress. and said the charges
were two or three hundred per cent more
than that service was worth. Congress had
succeeded in reducing the cost to patrons
of ths telephone company 100 per cent. but
he said 1t would be much better if the city
of Washington could own its own telephone
sy stem and operate it for the benefit Of the
public.
One Complete Railroad System.
He said the city of Washington ought to
have one complies railroad system. en-
bracing all the avenues and streets on
which railroad wanld be needed. and it
should not have thei disconnected system
made up of private companies r;aping enor
nous profits which now exist. Some roads
are enormously profitable. whils others are
bankrupt.
He said this effort to have the railroads
owned by the government should have been
commenced long agd; hit as it had not
been done the best An1e to begin was at
once. lie referred to a statement that had
been made by Mr.. Mcmillan that Congress
reserve the right to revoke any charter If