The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-11-08
SHELBY SPEAKS
 OF FORD'S ANSWER
EnsIey and. Pratt City Are Un-
 fortunate
5-CENT FARE QUESTION
President Ford of the Birmingham Railway, Light and Power Go. De clines to Grant Reduced
 Rates-His Reasons.

J. E. Shelby chairman of the "Ensley 5-cent fair joint committee when asked as to what action hs committee would take in regard to the refusal of the Birmingham Railway. Light and Power company to grant 5-cent fare to Ems ley, said:
 q have seen MT. Fords letter. and the reasons set forth therein for refus- ing the committees petition asking for a 5-cent fare are probably sufficient from the companys point of view to warrant them In their action. At the same time it appears 10 me that the residents of Pratt City, Ensley and Wy lam are very unfortunate in that they are not living on lines the fare upon which had not previously been fixed by land companies. as was the case with the residents of East Lake However. Mir. Fords letter will be referred to the joint committee. a meeting Of which has been called for Monday night, Novem- Der Il. at the city hall in Birmingham, at which time the members can take such action as they deem advisabe
 President Ford of the Birmingham Railway. Light and Power company set forth his reasons in a lengthy letter to Messrs. J. E. Shelby and W M. Drennen of the joint committee, and it is to this letter Mr. Shelby has reference
 MT. Ford's Argument.
 The reasons given by MT. Ford were in part that former President Robert Jemison had agreed to grant the scent fare as soon as the intervening coun- try was built up. This, states MT. Ford, has not yet been done, with the exception of a small settlement at Fairview. This results in practically none of what the company styles short haul' traffic The distance which the lines run through un- improved property is estimated to be 2.SO miles on the north and miles on the south line. making a total of 5SO miles through which both lines run in which there are no houses at all.
 MT. Ford also explains why only a D. cent fare is charged to East Lake. This charge was agreed upon in a contract which the East Lake Land compnay made with the railway company operat ing the line before its absorption by the Birmingham Railway, Light and Power company. The fact that the route be- tween Birmingham and East Lake is built up solid was also referred to- and the estimate made that only about 30 per cent of the business handled on the line originates in East Lake proper, while it is estimated that over OO per cent of the business on the Ensley lines originates in Pratt City and Ensley. Whenever the intermediate travel on fla CIa 1i,,n ,f. 10 ntsT rAnr cent of the total travel on those lines if will be time enough to take up the question of reducing the fare to cents.
 MT. Ford also explained that com muters tickets are being sold in books of 50 coupons at $2.S0 per book, which only makes the fare 5.6 cents School chidrens tickets are also used at 212 cents each The increased cost in main tenance and operating and the additional taxes that have been placed upon the company also cnme in as a reason for refusing. It then winds up with;
 As to Dividends.
 "'rhe company. as it's business in- creased, steadily paid it's dividend to it's preferred stockholders, and in 1903 began paying dividend of per cent per an- mum to It's common stockholders, which dividends was gradually increased until it reached per cent. On account of the burdens imposed upon us in the past year. we have been forced to suspend payment of the dividend to the common stockholders and we see no prospect now of resuming this dividend for some time to come. The fact is that if addl- tonal burdens in the way of taxes and operating costs and curtailment of our revenues are brought upon Us the pay ment of a dividend to our preferred stockholders will be jeopardized.
 with these statements l rely upon the farmindedness of the people of Ems ley, Pratt City and Birmingham to sup port my company in declining the re- quest for a reduction of the fare as pe- tttioned