The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1910-02-11

city of East Chicago will refuse to
pass any franchise, and there will be
complete deadlock over the matter.
| But regardless OF the attitude taken
| by the Hammond city administration.
| the business men of this city last night
| were forced to admit the reasonabieness
| of East Chicagos position. and public
| sentiment in Hammond will be with
East Chicago in its effort to have the
Forsyth avenue route left open to. any
and every interurban line that desires
4 to use that thoroughfare.
/ BOMBERGER MAKES REPORT
The question came up for considera-
| tion when Attorney l. L Bomberger, as
| a member of the committee which was
appointed to investigate the respective
! claims of the contending traction COM
| panies. read the report of the commit
tee and moved its passage.
1 This put the matter before the house.
and John E. Fitzgerald was then called
upon to make some remarks the
subject. He informed the Business
Mems association of the action of the
( Manufacturers associate ton in approx
| ing of the claims of the Green line.
| providing 1t improves its service. Mr..
| Fitzgerald apologized for the Green
line by saying that for years 1t had
/ looked to him like a line that was
about to sell out. He said that line
that Is about to sell out never makes
| any improvements. Now, however. that
the line has sold out he believed that
| Mr.. Cohe was determined to spend a
! large amount of the $3o,0O0.o0o or s4o.-
100000 that had been raised in the east
| in rehabilitating the Indiana end of
the Consolidated Railways of Chicago.
CAN'T MAKES ABLE TALK.
The East Chicago delegation was then
! requested to present their views on the
| subject. and one after another they
told how East Chicago is hemmed in by
| Hammond and Gary and how Forsyth
avenue Is the only remaining highway
over which interurban lines can come
into that city. That explained their
determination that this one route be
| left open to all invading interurban
| lines.
Frank Gavit of Whiting made an
able talk in behalf of his line He de-
clared that competition in the traction
business is the best guarantee of good
service. He stated that his. company
had lived up to it's franchises in Gary
and Hammond He declared with con-
siderable effect that he could not I'M
derstand why the Green line wanted an
additional route to East Chicago when
1t already had one. He asked why it
was that the Green line officials had
never thought of applying for a fran
chise until they found that he was
about to ask for one over this route
He pointed out the fct that his line
| granted universal transfers in Gary
and would do the same here. He point
| ed to the fact that the Green line al
ready has franchises over two of the
L-rsl -
J the Indiana Chicago Traction company
has franchises over two of the remain
ing three bridges. He asked why his
line should not be granted rights over
the only remaining bridge over the
! river.
TO DOUBLE-TRACK LINE.
Mr. Gavit pointed out that IL there
are two independent lines to East Chi
cago. the city of Hammond and the city
of East Chicago will have two twenty
minute services between those cities
and they might not have it IL the Green
line is permitted to control both routes.
I He then declared that his company will
double-track Sibley street next sum-
mer and eventually expects to build a
line from East Chicago to Gary.
Peter Crumpacker then presented the
arguments in favor of the Green line.
He told of the pioneering that the line
has done in this region; he said that
the people are partly responsible for
the dirty cars and declared that the
company he. represents will execute a
bond oSarantee that 1T will build
the East o-hicago extension in six
months.
He differed with Mr.. Gavit on the
question of the desirability of compe-
tition, and said that the trend in com
mercial affairs is towards concentra-
ton. He said that If the present fran
chise is faulty it was the one which
came before the famous referendum
committee of 100 at the time it was
passed. He declared that universal
transfers are a good thing for a little
line like the Gary & Interurban, which
would use the twenty-six mI1es of the
Green line for feeder.
ALSO PROPOSES EXTENSIONS.
He announced that Mr.. CODE proposes
not only to make the proposed extern
sion from Hammond to East Chicago
to be built to Burlington and one to
Grasselli He also referred to the
nouncement of the proposed extension
to Harvey. Ill.
The meeting finally resulted in the
adoption of the committee report fav-
oring the Green line franchise. with a
i proviso regarding the improvement of
the service. A committee of three is
to be appointed to represent the Ham
mond Business Mems association before
the Hammond board of pubic works.
After an attempt had been made to dis
cuss the question of the lighting con-
tract the meeting adjourned. owing to
the lateness of the hour, and will take