The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-04-15

and fae progit Il = ersdffed WITH = dear
~ psjd for ~ poer SERVICES ard COM
par1sivesy high prices-
Ii appears fYsrn . summary of the
financial and othr- results u the Eng
Issh experiments. prepared by ex-
Census Commissioner Porter. that re
have greatly undeFSsted our own I'd
vantaGes and have been mistaken -
10 the nnaaefal superiority Of munich
pal management
Before quoting the figures which are
given concerning English cities. It VIII
be NeIl to remember that. with . popa-
lzsion Of ss.oee to so.eeo. Seattle has
twenty miles Of cable railways. and
sevenfy-six miles Of motor railways.
Swing total Of ninety ix miles. For
cents one can travel by electric or
cable ilne. making good time from the
heart OF the city. nearly three miles
out: and some OF the roads allow re-
bates. which make 1t even less than
this. IT Is proposed under the CONSOLE
dafIon to gfve transfers for one fare.
30 that . man can ride from the end of
Madison street out to Columbia Tor
cents.
Now LET US compare that with the
English cities. Taking the one 20
which reference II most frequently
made. we and that Glasgow depends
upon horse cars There was q profit
to the city Of $4,000. but II invested
over $1,000. 90 In the enterprise. while
an American firm offered to install an
electric plant free Of cost and give the
city q bonus Of $50. 900. With such
heavy investment Glasgow win be
compelled TO put up with the horse ~ =
motive power for . long time.
The only other cities owning their
own lines are Huddersfield. Leeds. Shelf
field. Plymouth and BlackpooL Hud-
dersfleld has $7oo. 900 invested in twenty
two miles Of street railway and has
muddled away 100000. with further
deficits In sight. Leeds has not run
behind. but Il has no more than twenty
two miles Of track. though Its popula-
ton is over 40o.0oO. II we had street
car tracks In ratio to population. while
Leeds has twenty-five miles. we would
have SIC miles.
The fact 10 that. with such . dense
population. the Leeds street car lines
ought to be better than the Kiondike.
The reason our lines do not pay is be-
cause OF the scarcity of people.
Another city which has tried the ex-
pertinent IL Sheffield. That city fell
heir to the plant for q song. as It Is
described. The first year showed an
excess Of receipts. but It soon ran be-
hind. and was recently turned over to
. private company. which pays the
city $4,000 q year. and discharged most
Of the original obligations. The COM
pany IL now Installing q system OF
thirty-fve miles. Plymouth IL about
$4,000 behind on small system. and
Blackpool has realized profit Of $500
with IN electric plant.
Summing up his figures, Mr.. Porter
calls the attention OF municipal owner
ship enthusiasts to the city of Boston,
with Its 45e miles Of street railway. as
compared with Glasgow with the same
populations: TO Baltimore with 39l miles,
and to Leeds. having the same popula-
ton. with % miles He summarizes
cities having a poulation OF 1885,. 2al
supplied with less miles OF track than
Washington. d. c.. with q population
OF 10000. Had he known Seattle's fig-
ures he would have given them. be-
cause contrast could not be better
marked.