The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-07-09
ANOTHER WAY OUT
Ofthe street Car Muddie Suggested
by w IL Graves.

l
The street car situation appears IN
changed. except that instead OF the once
| familiar bi-weekly kilograms informing Us
| that the cars are in the paint shop, we
| nav occasionally hear that some capitalist
| Is looking over Wichita with q view td
| investing in a new street car system.
VIII You pardon a few suggestions as
| TO the solution OF this problem in man
ner that will leave Wichita mistress OF
| her own street car system instead Of being
| continually annoyed by the necessity OF
dealing with a corporation whose only IN
tarest in the town Is to get as much rs
possible out of its people for as little and
as poor service as those people viii sub
NIT to.
Fscape from this annoyance involves
city ownership and management OF this
service. and the way to such ownership
would be clear but for the fact that the
city has no legal authority to engage IN
such business.
There is, however, in my judgment. a
perfectly feasible way to get all the bene-
fits of first-class street railway system,
owned by the city, growing in value as the
city grows and operated for the convent
ence and benefit OF the citizens OF Wich-
tia.
The city has authority to own and oper-
ate a plant for furnishing electric light
and power for it's own use and for COM
mercial purposes. II can therefore, make
4 contract with a company 10 furnish
power for operating street cars, and a
company can be formed for the purpose
OF owning tracks, cars. etc, on such terms
az will make the city the virtual owner,
and with the right 10 ownership whenever
il may be authorized to acquire such prop
erty. This contract or franchise may be
granted in such a way a. 10 preserve the
rights OF the city by requiring all SUMS
received in excess of operating expenses,
repairs, extensions and interest on actual
investment TO be turned over 10 the city
as the rental value OF the Franchise, and
that in view OF the possible future own
ershp By the city. no expenditures shall
be made without the consent OF the mayor
or suca auditing committee as the council
shall appoint
1 am credi5ly informed that when the
Church company filed theIr mortgage for
$50, -. they had a contract with the pres
ent owners 20 pay them 5000 Of the bonds
for turning over 10 them the property and
getting our OF the way. OF SUCH an issue
$500 OF bonds would be worth fax less
in casa, and al the present time. with
the loss Of franchise staring them in the
face and the utter hack Of availability Of
-, a.=4@
Cf sIca loss, the present owners would
doubtless accept a stat smaller sum than
the cash value Of the bonds
Two years ago first-class. sing,e-track
vesIibu.e cars. ready tor track. could be
bought for &s55 each. Ten such cars. tw5
more than are now in nominal uSe. woI-d
COS, ssJD. They may cost more now, but
they don't cost anything Ike the usual
quotation OK S3G9 each. except in the i'm
agination o. the creditors.
Twenty thousand dollars ought 20 b4 am
pie for purchasing the tracks and equip
pics them Witu cars. and stiil have money
for the purchase o: ties and other ma
tsriaI imH@d .ately needed for tack re-
pairs.
an reliably informed that The system,
poor as Z Is. and El-patrorZed. Is pay
ing operating expenses. II they can pay
operating expenses, i would not require
a very great stretch u the inns giuat-oa %
expect new and comfortable ard safe cars
% pay = profit. even wita the present /
rough tracks. and a. thai p-of; wound :
BE put into The improvement q III tracks. .
The patronage Of tHs railway would b in +
creased. even at the present 4-cent OF 3 .
cent fa7e-
Tue question u reduction Q; fare = .
hardly a proper srojsc; Tor dscozs.0n in
this article L may Dc E=l % remark. (
hgwevsr tHa- th= Indianapolis stree; rail- I.
Say = case directly n p-5snt The CON- /
pa-y fought against reaction ii Tz'a- +
ard then found ;5a; 4 3-oea; fare IN /.
creased t.e.r ~ earnings
The gods hep them that hep tasn- |
sa.ves WALTER Il GRAVES /