East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1905-12-23
NEW YORK LETTER.

New York. Dec, 23.-New Workers
are having an ocular demonstration
of the fact that n tunnel has been
built under the Hudson river. in the
preparations now being made on the
surface AT Church. Cortland, Dey and
Fulton streets.
There have, to be sure, been par
ties at intervals, who have been shown
through one OF the bores, entering al
Jersey City and emerging at Morton
street, well uptown. But two blocks
Of substantial buildings on Church
street are in process Of demolition
and a great gap appears, extending
about $50 feet down Dey, Fulton and
Cortlandt streets, and 50 the general
public is brought face to face with the
tunnel itself. for this great hole IS
being dug for two immense skyscrap-
ers of 90 stories each, intended for
offices and business apartments for
the tunnel which brings New York
and New Jersey closer together.
Great Franchise Battle.
Thomas F. Ryan, having disposed Of
Mr.. Hartman, and fixed himself per-
manently in control of the Equitable
Life Assurance society, will now, it is
reported take up the United States
Independent Telephone company, and
push forward the movement i'm which
! II is interested. This company is
seeking to enter the city by securing
franchise granted many years ago,
! and then considered worth $4,000 to
| the Mercantile Electric company TO
enable that company to perfect a
burglar alarm system.
| This franchise which originally was
! considered as worth only an insignifI-
cant sum, is now valued at $12,500,-
900 and bonds worth a face value Of
5000. 900 have been issued upon it,
which shows that any right given to
dig under the street in New York city
contains a gold mine among its posi-
bilities and that every inch of space
traversed is almost incalculable value.
But n pretty fight is coming. The
city authorities are on the alert, and
will fight the matter until at least,
some portion of that S12,5O0,0O0 has
materialized in their neighborhood.
Great sums of money must inevi-
tably be expended, for there Is the
New York Telephone company with
untold millions, continually multiply
ing TO whom 1t is worth millions to
keep the company out of the city,
Striking Printers Confident.
The preparation of big Six" in the
strike for an eight-hour day are GER
tainly striking and vigorous. Printers
pressmen, compositors, proofreaders,
and, indeed, all hands of the typo
graphical profession are now paying
10 per cent of their weekly wages into
a fund to furnish the sinews of war
to carry out the fight by caring for
men who drop work 1t is reported
that the Typothetae will order a gen.
eral lockout, and will spend a for
tune, and the society has II to spend
II 1t so Wills.
1t would seem that the magazine
men have one advantage, as the
magazines are set up several months
ahead and no printers will be needed
in all that time for current work.
But the union printers as one talk
with them, express the utmost con-
fidence in the final result. claiming
that their cause is just, and that they
will fight from the word go" and re-
main on the battle line until the end.
Privately the union printers complain
| Of the burden of the tax that is laid
upon them; but they are firm in the
belief that strikers have won them all
the concessions they have secured,
and that they will continue to wrest
from the employers the concessions
sought by them.
A lower Broadway cigar store dis
| played In its window n sofa pillow
| covered with cigar ribbons on each OF
which is the signature of some prom
inent actor The center piece bears
the name Ethel Barrymore. to whom
II Is averted, was presented 1000
| Turkish cigarettes. Miss Barrymore
acknowledged to a reporter of a New
York daily short time ago that she
Just loved cigarettes"
Turbine Passage Popular.
The reports of the passengers who
are so fortunate as to cross the At
lantic on the maiden trip of the new
turbine steamer Carmania, were so
highly favorable that everybody who
has occasion to travel to Europe at
the present time seems TO be anxious
to try the experiment OF travelling on
the new liner and enjoy the novel ex-
perlence of eating three square meals
day and enjoying them during a
winter trip across the Atlantic. The
bookings for the return trip OF the
Carmania were unusually numerous,
considering the season, and II is stated
that bookings have already been
made for the next voyage OF She bis
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