New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-05-22
COMMUTERS PUSH FIGHT
Aim Now Is to Delay Raise
Pending Court Proceedings. |.
ROAD TO REPLY TOMORROW
Mount Vernon, Affected to the
Extent of 100000 a Year,
After Injunction.

The Mount Vernon commuters, repre-
een,ed by Hugh NJ. Hewson and william
L. Ransom, have presented supplementary
evidence 10 the Public Service Commission
at Albany, and the commission has ordered
the New Haven Railroad TO serve its an
sxer in writing by tomorrow. Mr.. Hewson
said yesterday:
This supplementary proceeding is part OF
the plan laid out when we took UP this
fight. We foresaw that II the rate went
into effect reductions could not be obtained
until the fair and reasonable rate was de-
termiled by the commission and that rate
affirmed by the Appellate Court The pro-
ceedings 20 determine a fair and reason
able rate are similar TO the S0-cent gas
cases, recently decided. except that more
intricate questions will be involved. and the
reduced rate will not he IN effect during
the hearings.
Pending the formation of organized
resistance. and until some assurance OF
real relief should be afforded 10 the COM
muters. il seems advisable 70 strike first
and attempt 70 prevent the raise taking eff
feet. An assessment OF 81 IS TO So 10 a month
on every New Haven Railroad commuter in
the county of Westchester is no light sum,
and unless the raise in rates is prevented
final determination Of the rates.
Each Mount Vernon corumuter (whose
increase is the lowest. assuming that no
additional Increase should be made in the
mean time would pay the railroad company
SO a year in addition to the present high
rates Assuming that there are two thou
sand commuters in Mount Vernon under the
monthly arrangements, that means sec, 900 a
year from that one class from that one city
alone The total increase for the commut-
ers in Westchester County is appalling.
That. in brief. is the condition which
confronted US. The commuters were threat
ened with no theory. but real, live facts.
After elaboration We concluded that there
was one way. and one way only, in which
this threatened raise possibly could be pre-
vented. We then proceeded TO gather the
evidence covering the stations from Mount
Vernon TO Port Chester, and commenced
our proceedings upon the monthly commu-
tation rates from Mount Vernon, leaving
opportunity for the other stations 10 join
IN the proceedings.
The commission is following the law as
Rapidly as possible. and our proceedings are
progressing IN accordance with our plans.
They Will eliminate, we confidently expect,
next week in the obtaining Of an injunc-
ton preventing this raise in monthly rates
from taking effect on June ! In Mount
Vernon.
The same court has been open to the
users of every station from Mount Vernon
- Port Chester, and the evidence is easily
obtained for each Of those stations, but the
efforts Of the objecting commuters seem TO
have spent themselves in talk. and unless
they take exceedingly prompt action il
seems almost certain that they will have 20
pay the increased rate on and after June /"
The question of the commuters on the
Erie and the New York Central railroads as
TO what is to happen 10 their pocketbooks
VIII. il is expected. be answered soon. The
directors Of the Erie, it is understood, will
take action at meeting this week
Officials Of the New York Central are
now busy with q schedule of rate5
They are working on the principle of equal
izing the rates so that they Will be on the
same basis on different divisions The re-
suit expected is that the rates TO a few
points will be lower. but in most cases
higher. The new schedule zill probably he
announced on Tuesday.