New-York tribune., 1908-01-03
4 CASE OF CONTRARENESS-

/ We must regard it as strange ahhcuh''
ment that the people of Pittsburg nave WON d
! victory over the local street railway company
nv making il impossible for the latter TO oper-
ate its pay as you enter car system. we a (
told that the people organized. at consiuelaoie
trouble 10 themselves, to defeat the plan. ihes
walked long distances in order that lai Se
number of them might board car at once. anu
then each member of the crowd offered the
conductor dollar or two dollar bill. They even.
as some reporters aver, formed club the men,
hers of which were pledged to MAINTAIN sucl
nractjces until the new system was abanooneo-
OF course the making of SO much chanSe lol
so many persons before the car could De stdr 'eoi
delayed progress. and when the trick was piaSeu
IN all the ears in the city the conductors were
driven 10 desnair traffic was blocked and the
| abandonment of the system was necessary.
Undoubtedly the people won Victory Ou'
| if even only part Of what Is reported II trus
we should say that they won it against them
selves and st their own expense. Ihe OBJECT
of the company in trying the new system was
no doubt largely to serve its own interests, by
/ assuring a more complete collection and honest
return of fares. We do not know that 1t can
be accounted crime for corporation TO pro-
mote it's own welfare. But in addition TO that
the change was designed to enable the con-
ductor TO remain constantly in the place where
he is needed for the convenience and safety OF
passengers and to rid them of the nuisance OF
having him crowd past them and trample over
their feet in repeated trips through the car
! They did not have to pay more fare, nor were
they put to any extraordinary trouble in pay
! ing it They were simply required to pay IN
! advance precisely as they are required to do
| invariably on elevated railroads, in subWays,
! on most steam railroads, at theatres and opera
| houses and in innumerabe other cases.
1t is possible some have intiInated, tina I
| the car company erred in trying the new Sys-
| fem with the old cars instead of waiting until
| the lines were equipped with new cars spe-
cially designed for the convenient collection OF
i fares on entrance Even So it would seem
that the people ought at least to have given
! the system a fair test, by boarding the cars
! in the usual manner and complying with the
new regulations so far they could without
extra Inconvenience, instead Of following the
| lead OF some .'smart Aleck' whose pinhead
! intellect conceived that it would he a bright
| thing to make the operation Of the new
| rule impossible. We suppose traffic on the
| elevated roads or the subway could be blocked
| If large numbers Of people consplred to offer
large bills in payment for tickets at the booths
| but such performance would scarcely be re-
garded as sensible or decent. The public
| should not, of course be put to needless lncOn-
| yenience or be required to do work which the
| car companies themselves should perfOrm--as
| in the case of the old bobtailed. conductorless
cars. But, as we have said, no such demand
was made in this case. The people were merely
asked to cooperate with the company for the
presumptive good of both, without cost or
labor. They were guilty of an egregious piece
of that mingled stupidity and contrariness which
is aptly described as biting off your nose to
spite your face"