Adams County news. [volume] (Ritzville, Wash.) 1898-1906, 1906-07-25
A POPULAR STREET sARoN,

Cow "Ten" Lowry Has Won HsaFts
Of Twin citiss' II ollsy Patrons.
Mr.. Dalrymple Of Scotland. who
came over here . Mtle while ago to
tell Mayor Dunno OF Chicago how ia
bring about municipal ownership, und
who finished by advising him not to
try-Mr. Dalrympls said that the trnc
ton system Of the Twin Cities was the
best in the United States. II you 60
to Minneapolis or st. Paul you win
find the entire population saying tho
same thing, according to the American
illustrated Magazine. And you will
be saying it yourself before you 60
away. You ride on the cars-they are
big, roomy, clean, and they move like
Pullmans. You wait on a corner to
see q shabby old car 80 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 carr
in commission. ..
The power house embodies the very
latest engineering practice. So far ~
you can fnd out, every employe Of the
company IL possessed by the idea OF
making everything as near perfect as
possible.
Now, to all 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 oil that he is really
the baron Of Minneapolis; yet this 1.
sure, that II you tried to talk about an
'oligarchy" up there and were to hint
at municipal ownership people would
merely stare at you.
Tom Lowry was a young man wher
he went to Minneapolis and he found
Minneapolis a very young city. The
two hit 1t of wonderfully together
On his part, the attachment began al
once. He became at first sight an en-
thusdast. 1t was true devotion; that
Is, the idea that he belonged to Mime
apolis possessed him much more
strongly than the idea that the city
must belong to him. And II the latter
has in course Of time come true 1t l,
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 7Vs and 1t prospered a good
many years, a. everything else wal
prospecting. By the later SOS he wa,
regarded by everybody as the richest
man in the thriving town. But the
bankers. who were not so optimistic al
to think that the boom could be eter
l.al. were a little nervous about him
1t was common talk that any mar
with any sort Of scheme to boon
Minneapolis could get Tom Lowry
name on the back Of 1t, and that mos
of them had.
It was Just at tho end Of the 60's
that the change was rade from horse
power to electricity. Then in 90 came
the short, sharp panic, caused by the
failure Of Barring Bros, and at thai
the boom In Minneapolis came to ar
abrupt end.
1t was hard enough for everybody
but 1t was almost the end Of Ton
Lowry, for the weight Of every broker
scheme and every blasted hope fel
back at last on his shoulders. He wal
az good az bankrupt half dozen time:
over and yet the crash never came
The simple reason was that no one lr
the town was willing to sue him to-
payment ....
That has q 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 rs 1t fell due. ant
certain banker TO whom I talked
about 1t said:
"Oh, yes; you could have broken ny
any board Of directors in Minneapolis
BY proposing to sue Tom Lowry"
As for him, his serene confidence In
his city never wavcred, and when al
last things came his way they came
fast. Minneapolis has caught up witt
him at last and has made him a very
rich man. But he could no more enter
tain the idea Of going away to look fol-
q wider field to rule than a New Eng
land preacher could think Of going Il
the far East and setting up harem.