The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-04-10
GLASGOW LENDS
 MAN TO CHICAGO
MAYOR-ELECT REQUESTS "LOAN"
 OF TRACTION EXPERT.
Work Begins on ArrivaI--Dunae's Move Calls Attention to Tram ways Condition in
 Scotch City.

AhC bChcEdt manager Ot Inc OipcA" tion tramways of Glasgow, Scotland, will come to Chicago next month to give Mayor-elect Dunne the benefit of his experience in introducing municipal ownership and operation of Chicago's traction system. This was decided yesterday when Judge Dunne, just be- fore his departure for New York, re- ceived cable message from the lord provost of Glasgow, as follows
 Lord Mayor of Chicago: The cor poration of Glasgow unanimously and cordially agreed to the request of your municipality. Tramways manager un- able to leave before May To- Letter follows. John Ure Primrose,
 Lord Provost"
 The message to the 'iord mayor of Chicago" was in reply to one that the judge had sent the day before, asking for the loan" of Glasgow-s traction expert for thirty days.
 Response Encourages the Mayor.
 This courteous response from the lord provost of Glasgow is most en- couraging." said Mayor-elect Dunne. Tt shows that the people. not only in the United States, but in Europe, are willing and anxious to further munich pal ownership. When the Glasgow man gets here we will lose no time in getting to work. The Chicago Passen- ger Railway naturally will receive the first attention. We want to ascertain if 1t can be operated by the city on a paying basis.
 Whether, under municipal control, the Chicago street railway system will be cable or electric or some other power, or whether, If electric, 1t will be overhead or underground, Is mat ter I have not decided. l shall require expert advice. At any rate the system will be constructed along the most modern lines"
 The fact that a man from Glasgow was called is taken as an indication that Chicago will be guided largely by the experience of the Scottish city.
 The tramways of Glasgow have been under municipal operation since 1894. There are 70. 34 miles of double track in a city a little more than one-third the size of Chicago. and the service Is improved electric. the power being supplied by the municipal works
 The Glasgow tramways always have been the property of the municipality. Under the tramways act in 1870 the corporation borrowed the money for the common good" to construct the lines Originally they ran through several suburbs. but with the extension O fthe city in 1891 all the system was brought within the boundaries The lines were leased in 1871 to the Glas- gow Tramway and Omnibus Company under the following terms:
 That the company pay the recoup- ing interest on money borrowed for making the lines, including the par liamentary expense.
 That per cent. on this total ex- penditure be paid to the municipality for the purpose of paying off the debt.
 That 4 per cent of the cost of con- structing the lines be lodged with the municipality for meeting renewals to be executed by the company under su- pervision of the corporation.
 That $75o per mile be paid for the use of the streets.
 That all other expenses incurred by the corporation in connection with the tramways be paid by the company"
 Under this agreement the corpora tion, after paying interest and sinking fund charges, received an average of SIS. $50 a year, which went to the "comon good" The total profit dur ing the twenty-three years was $31S,- 628, and the highest received in any one year was $2S.300.
 City Takes Over the Operation.
 Five years before the expiration of the lease the company sought addition al powers ITOHl anu cred into negotiation with the corpor- ation for a renewal of the lease. After much discussion terms were submitted. The negotiations, however, were broken off in April, 1892, and in the following year the corporation decided to pro vide new premises, plant, and equip ment for the thirty-one miles of dou- ble track, and have the undertaking complete by July 1, 1894. It was big task. If the time spent in prelim- mary arrangements in acquiring sites is deducted and also the trial period before starting. it will be found the constructive work was carried out in around year. The corporation chose as It's general manager John Young. who for seventeen years had been con nected with Its cleansing department, and his selection turned out to be fortunate one Six months ago Charles T. Yerkes engaged MT. Young to man. age his London traction system.
 During the year nine buildings were erected for stabling around 4,000 horses and housing cars. There was erected a large central workshop for the manufacture of vehicles, and 240 were constructed. The corporation in sisted on having one style of car with all the parts Interchangeable, While convinced that mechanical haulage was the power of the future the corpora tion had no other choice than begin ming with horse power.
 Success Assured from the First.
 The success of the new service was assured from the first. As compared with 4,42S.51S passengers carried by the tramways during the four weeks ending May 3l. 1894. the lines handled 6.114.7S9 passengers the two cores bonding weeks in 1895. an increase of 3S per cent The fares had been re- duced 33 per cent. but the tramway company had started a cheap omnibus line in opposition to the corporation line
 In October. 1898, the overhead sys- tenn of electric traction was stated on an isolated line of two and a half miles of double track. and its success soon was demonstrated. In January of the following year the work of tn- stalling trolleys throughout the sys- tenn was started. and in 1901 all the horse cars had disappeared.
 The majority of Glasgow's cats are of the double deck, single truck pat tern. for fifty-fve passengers.
 City Has Own Plant for Making Cars.
 Most of the cars have been built at the companys own works. large number of the old horse cars were converted into electric vehicles. The total length of line. measured as sin gle track. on December 30, 1904. was 143 miles of which AZ miles was out side of the city.
 In a letter to Judge Dunne. the gem eral manager of the Glasgow tram ways gave the following comparison