The sun., 1902-12-28
REAL OCTOPUS AT OUR DOORS.
SONE THINGS THE ELECTRIC CAR
Trust HAS DONE.
IT'S the Genuine Article IN Monsters and
Its Deeds Come Right Homo TO New
Norkers-Enect OF Its Progress on Its
Employees AMI Everybody Else.

Employees AMI Everybody Else.
There is in this city a trust which has
almost escaped the attention OF the octopus
hunters Its operation affects millions of
people, and not only men but beasts. II
has utterly chan ged the character Of a
great business. Here is laid bare the true
character of the monster
Ten years ago there were between 200 and
800 miles Of horse-car lires in the city of
New York Over these lires were run
several thousand cars. Each car was
drawn by two horses more or less well fed,
ard two men were employed TO run each
car.
They we're not highly raid workers. but
'hcn the amount of intelligence required
20 run horse car ard collect the fares
thereon under the traffic conditions ex-
isting was not large. On the earnings Of
each man depended an average Of about
five other persons.
A number of small companies operated
these street car lines as efficiently as their
limit ed capital would allow. New Workers.,
not having experienced anything better.
stood the deficiencies Of the service and
grumbled surprisingly little.
But about nine years ago, a change in
the situat ion began. One Of the companies
in the directorate of which we're men who
.1w the possibilities Of development and
irofit in the street car service Of New York.
hcSan to gobble up the other companies.
at a time. Now the surface lines OF
citysare practically all operated by one
ant corporation, which stretches out
every surrounding district as fast as
district becomes settled.
,'ow as fast a. this octopus seized upon
- properties. it began to do things to
IN. First of all. the horse cars on the
sin lines were abolished. The company
laid steel cables beneath the roadways.
built great power houses to move the cables
and ran bigger and larger cars at better
rate Of speed than New York had ever seen
before,
Hundreds of the horses which had drawn
the cars were sold Small farmers bought
most. Of them and got them cheap. The
farmers were needless enough Of the de-
vastating progress of a huge monopoly
to be glad Of the chance.
The horses, not being able to understand
about trusts. were glad Of the change to
the country and lighter work. New Workers
themselves were so busy that they didn't
think anything about it except that il was
good to get about more easily and quickly.
But the cable method of propulsion was
both expensive and unsatisfactory. The
cables wore out and broke at critical times
and that tied up the whole Of the line af-
fcctcd for an hour or two till the broken
strands could he spliced.
And moro particularly, it was expensive.
The Octopus. though IL was already making
tolerable profits. looked about for cheaper
aid more trustworthy method of trans
psrtation.
1t turned to electricity. but overhead
electric wires. being dangerous, were for
hidden by law within the city limits. So
the company tried to find out if there
wasn't a way Of running cars by electricity
power from underground.
ii was such tough problem that to en-
courage inventors to discover something
which would enable it to run more cars and
carry more passengers, the Octopus offered
n reward Of 500 900 for satisfactory sys-
lem Of underground electric power. 1t
oSperimented also, on it's own account,
with electric power and compressed air,
90. on a line up in Harlem where traffic
WIS light, and by and by ii solved the under
trolley method of car running. never before
used successfully outside OF New York.
Then II tore up its tracks. line at a time.
ipped out the cables. making an awful
iauss in the streets. to the indignation OF
many good citizens, put most OF its re-
manning horse cars out Of business. and
i,st allied its new electric system.
Such Of the horse car drivers as were
good for job under the new conditions.
had become gripmen. Now they became
motormen. The rest went hack to digging
trenches and other men filled their places.
All this. Of course. took years to accom-
piish. Meantime. the Octopus. having
acquired al! the other street car lines out
sihe Of it's own. increased its traffic by
granting free transfers from one line to an
other: In other words giving two rides for