Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-04-07
ADOPT THE REPORT.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS NEW
STREET RAILWAY SCHEDULES.
GIVEN A HEARING,
A Lively AItercation-Not n Dissent
Ing Vote Cast-WlIl BE Before the
Council Next Monday Night-PIens
OF the Two Companies.

In special session last night and adopted,
without q dissenting vote, the report and
ordinances presented by the sub-commit-
tee touching the condition Of the street.
car companies, and prescribing schedules
that shall be maintained.
Counsel for both companies were given
a hearing. and advanced arguments
against the schedules which 1t is pro-
posed to enforce. The proceedings were
void Of any particular interest save for
a Lively passage OF arms between Captain
Guigon, representing the old company,
and the city Engineer.
THE SESSION IN DETAIL.
The committee met shortly after 8
o'clock. the members present being
Messrs. Allen chairman. Bloomberg,
Burton. Gibson. Pollock, Ebei. Peters,
Bahen. Woody, King, Lawder, and Whit
tet-a full attendance.
The usual preliminaries having beer
disposed Of, "A motion was made and
adopted that counsel for the two electric
companies be given the privilege or the
floor to discuss the report concerning the
said lines submitted by the City Engineer
and the two ordinances recommended
/ WIN lHt ItUOIl, NlllU DiDflAS hhAt -tnN
companies shall give a certain schedule
and keep their tracks in good order under
penalty OF heavy fines for each failure 10
comply with the provisions OF the oral
nances. both Of which have heretofore
Jeen printed in full.
CAPTAIN GUIGON'S PROTEST.
Captain A. b. Cuigon, representing the
Richmond Railway and Electric Com
pany. was first heard from. He began by
entering an earnest protest 10 portions
Of the City Engineers report. which, he
said. inadvertently, he was sure, did his
company an injustice. Continuing, Mr..
Guigon said he desired to say at the
outset that he did not admit the right OF
the committee TO pass such ordinances;
Whether they were constitutional and
| legal, nc declared, might never have 70
be determined; the present, however, was
not the time to raise the question; but,
i'm order 10 save the point. he desired to
respectfully decline to admit the consti-
~tutionality Of the ordinances.
The speaker then took up the business
features of the situation. He contended
that it would not be proper 10 compel a
| corporation 10 do a certain thing at a
great loss to itself. simply because the
power was possessed to make II DO that
thing. All sides OF the question should be
looked at. nc said, and II IL was found
that the traffic on certain lines did not
warrant the enforcement Of certain regu-
lations. ne did not think they should be
imposed.
He then took up the provisions of the or
d~inances and pointed out his objections
to them at length. He spoke especially
Of the section requiring the police 10
watch and spy upon the street-car
A, companies. This, he said. placed the po-
lice in "A false position. and was a need
less reflection. both upon the companies
and upon the police.
!, HAD BEEN DONE INJUSTICE.
The City Engineer, who had been at
tending another meeting, entered the
| room at this point. and the speaker again
began TO discuss the report made by him
Having disposed Of the subject in a gene
raj way. Captain GuigOn said he would
refer TO the particular features OF the
ordinance. Is TO the cars reported, an IN
Justice had been done In partlcularizinB.
II was calculated TO convey the impress
sion TO the public that "A larger percent
axe of cars were faulty than was really
the case. lie charged that when some o.
the ears were inspected by the individual
chosen by the city, they were IN the shops
pairs. Car IS he quoted as q case in point.
II was reported as UNIT for service, ana
its defects were seyerally specified. Car
90 was I'm the shops when the report was
made: three cars were reported for haN-
ing Vestibules on one end only, but Cap
tain GuigOn contended that that was al
that was required by law. Continuing, ne
controyerted the accuracy Of the report
Of the City Engineer. Neither the CITY
Engineer nor any OF his assistants could
possibly be acquainted, of his own know
ledge. with the defects noted in the re-
port. 1t was a matter that required the
eve and knowledge of an expert in me-
chanical and electrical appliances.
THE SERVICE BEING GIVEN.
The report called for sixteen additional
cars. TO carry out the schedules demand
ed. and this would entail an expenditure
Of $4,000. on the Main-street line, he
contended. a siX-minute schedule was now
being given, and that service would be
improved this week by the addition OF
two cars during the busy hours. On Clay
street a s~even-minute schedule was being
given. instead of a nYe-minute schedule,
as required by the new ordinances. On
Broad street a siX-minute schedule, In
stead of five; on the Forest Hill line. a
twelve-minute schedule, instead Of ten,
on Hull street, a ten-minute schedule
on Seventeenth street, a ifteen-mlnute
schedule: on the Chestnut Hill line, a
twenty-minute schedule, instead OF nj
teen: on the Marshall-street line, a nj
teen-minute schedule; on the Lakeside
line. a twenty-minute schedu c, instead OF
a hfteen-minute schedule; the
Traction Company, a twenty-mlnute
schedule. which was all that was re-
quired. Although a schedule only % pei
cent. better was required by the report
it increased the expense 100 per cent
The schedule on the First-street line,
argued Mr.. Guigon, was satisfactory 10
the persons living along that line. There
would be uncel tainty in making an alte-
ration. 1t would take two more cars 10
give the 15-minute schedule required by
the report. and this would increase the
expenses by $5if'a month. which. added
10 the present loss of Sli7, would make a
net loss of $69l. He gave similar figures
for the other lines.
WHAT THEY ARE LOSING.
The main lines. said Mr.. Guigon, were
not losing money in anything Ike the
same proportion as the feeders. He was
pressed for information In regard to
profit or loss on these trunk lines. but
he said II had been impossible 10 get the
figures I'm time. and further than that,
they did not bear upon the subject unde
discussion. He hoped the committee
would give their attention 10 the branch
lines and relieve the stringency there.
He presented the following summary Of
loss per month on the branch lines:
Prest. SEIZED. Prop. SEIZED.
Lakeside ...... .... .Sii7 $6yl
ScVenteenth-street ..2l1 $50
Reservoir 90. 80. 23 500
East Marshall ..... l5l 3l
West Marshall ..... 23 B
Chestnut Hill ...... 29 4C9
Fairm't, Tfac'n co. 80 l5