The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-11-02
EXPERIMENT . WILL BE TRIED. Traction Company Will
 Try Two Plans. THE COMMITTEE IS AGREED Big Cars Wifi Be Used on Certain Lines. Tkey win Have Fixed Partitioss- Movable Partitions VIII Be Placed In cars On other
IRE COMMITTEE IS AGREED

At conference last evening in the council cha mber of the city hall be- tween the members of the special Committee appointed at the last ses- sion of the aldermen to investigate the conditions relative to the separa tion of the races on the street cars Of the city. and the General Manager and Attorney for the Montgomery Traction Company. it was agreed to try ser ies of experiments. to determine the best method of providing separate ac- commodations for the blacks and the whites.
 The Traction Company was request ed by the committed, and at once ac- ceded to the suggestion. to operate It's largest cars. four in number, that be- ing all the closed. double truck cars the company possesses. upon the High land Avenue Mobile Street and the Washington Park-Jackson street lines. installing fixed partitions about mid way of some of the cars. and movable, or adjustable, partitions in others.
 The result of the two hour confer = ence of the two interests was embod- led in the following formal motion. which was reduced to writing just be- fore the adjournment of the commit tee:
 "That the Traction Company be re- quested to operate their four largest cars on Highland Avenue and Wash. ington Park lines. placing movable or fixed partitions ss they deem fit, in order that the committee may see how same operate
 The conference was attended by every member of the committee, AL derman Strause. A. L. Tyson, Foster Jones and Holloway, by General Man ager W. H. RagIand and Attorney Ray n L1 ntaRr, Traction Company. and also by Mayor w. M. Teague. Chairman Strauss of the com- mittee presided over the meeting.
 A number of suggestions were made during the evening. almost every per son present giving the result of ms observation in other cities than Mont gomery Birmingham, New Orleans. Nashville. Memphis. Jacksonville and number Of other cities were thus re- ferred to. the plan there in operation being approved in some cases and dis- approved in others
 The two plans which seemed to have the most adherents among those talk ing part in the conference were those in use in Birmingham and New Or leans. In the North Alabama City, the plan Is to have a fixed partition. with a swinging door in the aisle. the same as in a railway coach. This, It was urged, would have the effect of thoroughly separating the two races. neither the whites nor the blacks passing such a door into the compart- ment of the other race in search Of seats. .-.
 The New Orleans plan. which was championed by the Mayor. is to have large sign. extending over tho center aisle. fastened to the back Of the seati, in such manner as to be is!iy moved forward or backward in the an ac- cording to the needs of the line and of the trip. Such a sign, II was ar. gued. would be readily seen. while not blocking up the aisle, and If partic- ular line or particular trip demand ed more space for the whites than the blacks. or the reverse, It could easily be provided. It was argued against this plan that in case of crowd of either race boarding a car, it would be impossible for the conductor to enforce recognition of such sign and thus leave space for the occu- pancy of later arrivals of the other race.
 A modification of the movable siga plan was suggested by Attorney Rush. ton, his idea being to provide nova ble curtain to separate the races This, of course, would be applicable only to closed cars.
 Early in the conference. Manager Ragland. when called upon by Chair man Strauss, for a expression of opin- ion, said that the Traction Company was willing to cooperate n every way possible with the Council or with the either In conforming with the provisions of an ordinance. or in experiments that the com n1ittce might determine in what man ner the vexed problem might best b. settled He said that he spoke for the company in making that offer. and it was upon ths suggestion that the committee later acted in requesting that the experiment of fixed and nov al bIe partitions be tried by the com. pany without the formality of enact ing an ordinance.
 Mayor Teague, carly in he meeting. struck the keynote when he declared that both the Mayor and the Council were working for the same end-tha of present conditions though by somewhat different routes, and looking at the matter from differ ert standpoits
 Chairman Strauss expressed the opinion that if two lines f., the city. the Highland Avenue and the Wash ington Park lines. could be settled in a satisfactory manner. the rest of tha city would take care of itself to great extent. Those two lines. he thought. required that something ho done anG done at once. It was in pursuance of
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