The Irish standard., 1905-04-08
EPOCH MAKING EVENT,

On last Tuesday the voters of Chi
cago rendered great service to all the
great cities of this country. They de-
cided squarely in favor of the immedi-
ate acquisition of the street railways
OF that city by the city. This is an
important step by one of the greatest
cities in the country; the greatest of
the nation in advanced and indepen-
dent thought. Chicago has decided to
own and manage its own street rail-
ways. Within the last few years there
has been crystallized into an efficient
force in that city the sentiment which
every where exists in favor of cities
owning and managing all civic moEop
olies. What Chicago decided to do last
Tuesday, every other city in the coun-
try will some day decide to do. Munic-
fpal ownership is bound to come, be-
cause 1t is right and the people through
the ballot will in every community
eventually overthrow corrupt politics
and wipe out forever public service
corporations which experience has
shown are the greatest bride givers
in our country. Evidently the people
of Chicago realize that the streets of
their city belong to them and not to
Yerkes who lives in New York, nor to
j. Pierpont Morgan of Piccadilly
street, London. Once the people of
any city fully realize that the public
streets belong to all the people, once
they comprehend the fact that the
streets are the most valuable of all
city property, more valuable than the
most costly sky-scraper in the most
populous center, they will not be slow
to demand that those streets be re-
turned to them by the nonresident
landlords who own stock that Is made
| to pay immense dividends which ought
to 60 into the city treasury.
Municipal ownership means better
service, it means lower taxes and bet
ter pay for those that run the cars
and operate the street railways. But
it means more than all this. 1t means
that public service corporations such
as our own street car company will be
driven once for all out of politics anc
will no longer be the arch manipulation
of city, councils. 1t has been pointed
out time and again by observing mer
that the great black spot in our pub
lie affairs is to be found in municipal
politics. No less a parsonage thar
Mr.. Bryce, the eminent English pub
licist, in the current issue of the "Out
look" calls attention to this fact
Municipal politics has become a ma
tional question and it is made so large
ly by the public service corporations
Greater, therefore, than any finan
cial benefit that can come to city be
cause of the acquisition of its stree
railways is the benefit that the peopl
will derive in the way of purer poll
tics. When the time comes that Their
/ 10 uO oCI VI HIGH lOOnlu6 III SpCCld
privileges from city councils the ir
tcentive to bribe.giving will be gone
and when the bribe.giver is remove
/ the bribe.taker will be harmless.
The plain common people Of ever
city in the country will take hope an
heart from the Chicago election o
last Tuesday. For the hrst time i
this country a city Of the first magn
tude has declared in favor of at ono
acquiring and running its own stree
cars, and once the people of Chicag
have acquired those street cars an
become accustomed to the better ser,
ice and the cheaper service that l
sure to follow, they will no more d.