The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1905-11-23
a POPULAR STREET BARON,
How "Tom" Lowry Has Won Hearts
Of Twin Cities Trolley Patrons.

l
How "Tom'' Lowry Hns Won Henrts
cfTwin Cities Trolley Patrons.
Mr.. Dalrymple Of Scotland, who
came over here little while ngo to-
tell Mayor Dunno OF Chicago how to
bring about municipal ownership, nnd
who finished by advising him not to,
ltry-Mr. Dalrymple said that the trac-
ton system Of the Twin Cities was the
best in the United States. If you go
to Minneapolis or st. Paul you will
find the entire population saying the
same thing, according to the American
Illustrated Magazine. And you will
be saying 1t yourself before you go
away. You ride on the cars--they are
big, roomy, clean, and they move like
Pullmans. You wait on corner to
see a shabby old car go by, feeling
that you really ought to know the
worst, and you find there is no such
thing. Mr.. Goodrich, the manager,
says he can't afford to keep old cars
In commission.
The power house embodies the very
latest engineering practice. So far as
you can find out, every employe of the
company is possessed by the idea Of
making everything as near perfect as
possible.
Now, to nll intents and purposes,
TON" Lowry is the Twin City Rapid
Transit Company, and he is also the
most important part Of the 500 road.
He also owns much real estate and
all the important newspapers. So there
can be no doubt at all that he Is really
the baron Of Minneapolis; yet this Is
sure, that If you tried to talk about an
'ollgarchy" up there and were to hint
at municipal ownership people would
merely stare ut you.
Tom Lowry was young man when
he went to Minneapolis and he found
Minneapolis very young city. The
two hit 1t Off wonderfully together.
On his part, the attachment began at
once. He became at first sight an en-.
thusiast. 1t was true devotion; that
Is, the idea that he belonged to Mime.
npolis possessed him much more
strongly than the idea that the city
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has in course Of time come true 1t is
only because he read the future clearer
and more hopefully than any one else
could do.
He went into the street car business
in the 7Os and 1t prospered good
many years, as everything else was
prospering. By the later SOS he was
regarded by everybody as the richest
man in the thriving town. But the
bankers, who were not SO optimistic as
to think that the boom could be eter-
nal, were little nervous about him.
with any sort Of scheme to boom
Minneapolis could get Tom Lowry's $
name on the back Of 1t, and that most
Of them had.
1t was just at the end of the sos
that the change was made from horse
power to electricity. Then in 90 came
the short, sharp panic, caused by the
failure of Barring Bros, and at that
the boom in Minneapolis came to nm
abrupt end.
1t was hard enough for everybody,
but it was almost the end Of Tom
Lowry, for the weight of every broken
scheme and every blasted hope fell
back at last on his shoulders. He was
as good MS bankrupt half dozen times
over and yet the crash never came.
The simple reason was that no one In
the town was willing to sue him for
payment.
That has curiously improbable
sound after the men, the measures and
the atmosphere we have been talking
OF little way back, but it is literally
true. The banks that held his paper
renewed 1t as often as 1t fell due, and
n certain banker 10 whom l talked
about 1t said:
"Oh, yes; you could have broken up
any board Of directors in Minneapolis
by proposing to sue Tom Lowry"
As for him, his serene confidence In
his city never wavered, and when al
last things came his way they came
fast. Minneapolis has caught up with
him Mt last and has made him n very
rich man. But he could no more enter.
tain the idea of going away to look for
n wider field to rule than New Eng.
land preacher could think Of going Ia
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