Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-07-08
ADVISES GRANTING
OF FRANCHISES
Was Elected on His Promise to Secure
Immediate Public, Ownership Of the
Street Car Lines in the City, But
After Only Few Months Admits In
ability to "Make Good.'

Chicago, July Z, - Mayor Edward
F. Dunno, elected mayor only few
months ago on an Immediate munic.
ipal ownership" platform, has aband
oned immediate municipal ownership
and operation of the street car lines.
Throwing up his hands, Chicago's
municipal ownership mayor and cham
pion last evening acknowledged that
the scheme Of immediate public own.
ership and operation Of the traction
lines Is impractical. In message he
asked the council to authorize an In.
dependent private ownership corpora
ton, whose only claim to the. name
/, municipal is that it is to be man
aged by a directorate composed OF Ave
men selected by the city, instead Of
the stockholders. .s,,s
The mayor went farther, thai that.
He suggested that the cofncft give
this private corporation+'a properly
safeguarded twenty year franchise.
terminable at the will of the city by
the purchase of the physical property
OF the so-called municipal" company
at the cash value then to be deter.
mined by appraisement.
1 Defeat Stuns chIcagoans.
The declaration of Mayor Dunno was
4 received with dumb amazement His
openly avowed policy that IL elected
ne would take measures which would
render the street raj ilwavs the prnpArty
OF the municipality, thus to the ex.
tremeg betterment of the service which
4 has been an aggrayation to Chicagoans
for many years, was believed In and
I he was elected but a few months ago
by a tremendous majority. The an.
Inouncement that he has thrown up
his hands and acknowledged defeat az
the hands of the corporations is stun
ming
It is possible that the recent opin-
lon Of James Dalrymple, manager OF
the municipality owned lines Of Glas-
4 gov, Scotland, to the effect that Mayor
\ DUNES policy was not feasible oper-
ated against the mayor. At any rate
the constant struggle since his cleo
J ton has been too much for Mayor
Dunno, and his defeat was acknowl.
edged today.
: Mayor Dunne's municipal ownership
: plan has several critics. 1t also has
+. supporters. The first question asked
naturally was who the five directors OF
the municipal company are to be. It
grew out of ex-Mayor Carter III. Harri-
sons remark that he would like to be
/ one of those directors.
This question the mayor answered
after this fashion:
Il had no man or set of men In mind
when l made my suggestions to the
: city council. have talked with many
men about the plan, men prominent In
traction and financial matters, but I
have not suggested, nor have they,
that they should form a part of the
proposed company.
: I'm the ordinance sent to the COM
z mittee on local transportation the
names Of the directors were LETT blank.
5 1t is for the committee and the coun.
9 Gil to fill these blanks with the nam es
+ of the people they think most fit for
n the place. have no names to offer
J. myself. If the committee and the coun.
n Gil decide the plan is good one 1t is
= a part of their province to select the
men who will manage the enterprise
Is johnson Interested2
When asked if Mayor johnson OF
Cleveland is to be one of the people
who are expected to finance the pro
> posed road, the mayor said:
II have talked with Mr.. Johnson
about the matter as have with other
d people. 1t is not his suggestion or the
$ suggestion of any other man. 1t is
d what might be called the wisdom oi
e many 1t is composite, so to speak.
\