The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-03-08
GETTING DOWNTOWN ANDBACK
DAMNED STRFtCE Cars: BACON
SERVICE POPTL4R.
They were Lucky VINO Had a seat on a Roof
or In Fender Bicycles Hcsurrcctcd
Coed Thing for Auto Drivers The
Hardest &C All was the Getting Home.


Hardest 6 All was the Getting Home
There were about half million people
who bad 10 get up and down town yesterday
In ways different from ordinary. II woulc
be impossible TO compute the loss in bust
ness caused by the general disarrange
ment OF programmes and the inconvenience
Of 1t could not we'll he overestimated But
there was a comioai side which went fai
TO relieve the tension of the public mind
Of course there are folks who do not reac
the newspapers These had their lesson
yesterday morning and had it early when
they walked into elevated and subway
stations and found themselves confronted
by ono or two not over kindly tempered
policemen and no prospect of train.
What's the matter2- they would ask a
policeman Has there been an accident?
The things the policemen said to them
were not exactly profhne, but were sur
charged with contempt. The first thing
most of these non-newspaper readers did
WIS to turn with a -ha-I-have-an-idea"
smile and start for the nearest surface
line.
Pretty much everybody in New York
knows by this time what happened then.
| The surface cars have had their share OF
criticism for overcrowding In the past.
| but no one ever dreamed that so many
/ persons could be damned into single street
car "a were put into almost every car that
went up OF down town during the rush
hours yesterday, Men and boys got on
the platform buffers and from them climbed
up over the stauchions to the roofs and rode
there Cars were black with people
When the capacity of tho surface cars
was exhausted people who were anywhere
within reach Of the steam railroad tunnel
went over TO i3Sth street and i2Sth street
and the New York and Harlem station at
10th street and damned into the suburban
trains to get down az far as Forty second
street
Below l25th street there was very little
chance for anybody to get downtown ex-
cept az the risk Of his life. There would
have been room for hundreds on the elevated
and subway trains which ran at intervals
OF from fifteen minutes to an hour. but no.
body seemed to want to trust them Many
and many poor soul walked. Every
body who had an automobile. though il
had never been used before except for
pleasure, put it into commission for bust
Hcno manly dutOlnOpHe OWDerb, atoT
they were safely downtown themselves.
turned their machines over to their chauf-
feurs, who ran public automobile stage
lines for their own profit at so cents and a
81 a head, picking up passengers along
the street car lines from the crowds that
were not able 10 get into the cars.
Not few grave and dignifed looking
persons who had no automobiles and found
that CATS we're In vain, took to rusty old
bicycles resurreoted from their cellars,
and came down town trying 10 look as
though II were their favorite method OF
travel. Wall Street and the channels to |
it never saw so many automobiles and ca bs |
as we're winding their way along them.
The most cheerful travellers were the
youth Of the downtown business district |
who collected grocery and baggage wagons |
and travelled through the streets singing
boisterously. Not few Of these wagons |
had fifteen or twenty men in them ali |
standing and making merry with them |
selves and with the mockery ofpassershy.
In The Bronx there are many moving |
vans. some OF them as big IA smsi1 |
barns These we're sought out by p brow
ident persons and came downtown Ike |
80 many Black Marias. strange sounds |
coming from within such as
MerIty We ron along. ron along.
Merrly we roll along
OF course thousands OF people STAYED ar
home and let their jobs slide. believing thai
the lack Of means to travel would excuse
them.
The real fun began when the people who
had mana ged 70 be downtown all day ali
made up their minds about O'clock to start
home early and avoid the rush
The rush had really begun at O'Clock.
BY 3 o'clock he who got a seat on a surface
car bound uptown was hardly as well on
as he who hung onto the outside OF the hack
platform-peo sat on his lap and trod on
his feet and Tended of against his face.
The Bridge terminals OF the Sixth and
avenue lines became battlegrounds
Mobs of people. among whom were large
numbers OF women and children. surged
screaming and groaning around the can
crying Please let me on, I've got To eel
home, The policemen guarding the
BROOKLYN Eagle wagons again and again
had to leave their newshoys to shift for
themselves and dash into the crowd 10 save
people from being tramped on
There was similar scene at the Post
Office loop OF the Third avenue line. The
Empty cars coming downtown were seized
by forehanded mob AT Mail street and
reached the loop loaded 10 the tenders A.
he loop was helpless mob Of girls and I
women under dripping umbrellas sendin0
up pififu walls for help The Aston House, {
Sas filed early in the evening by people who
gave up the conflict. The Third avenue cars
going uptown were not allowed to sion nj
he Bridge because Of the congestion there
For the homegoing folks there were yerv
ew cabs on hand-most Of them were hrsy '
UPTOWN; there were no express wagons
BECAUSE all 81 them had been Robbled ma !
UPTOWN before they got down IA far as
street Pretty much anyhodv !
yho went home At all walked. except the a
,wners Of private carriages and tho 7
'eople who had cabmen or chauffeurs come
or hem.
Tho Battery terminals II the Broadway
nd Sixth and Eighth avenue lines were '
o' cutie 40 badly N The cars were al
owed 10 get three or four blocks before thew
He'd Up Be- ween walking and taking 10
'rivate vehicles and crowding into the 2
ew subway and elevated trains that were I
,lnning The downt own n reefs were fairly =
-ell cleared Hundreds II people raye -.
p the st'emnt 10 get home to dinner and I
aok 10 he downtown restaurants. which ,
-ere overcrowdcd until long after their
sual closing hours
A feature Of the day was he ioy of tho
ay had dogs IF Manhattan who poked
IN a. their Brooklyn brethren FER not being
bic TO send word homo 10 the genera
feet. ! won't Ne able 20 get home to-
light. my dear. Strike YOU know Sorry.
M ~ sorry
strike BECOMES Theatre show.
A. all the Proctor theatres yesterday