Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1911-07-06

pier on the one hand and his ware
h~eussa4fear the river front on the other
to connect both with this subway, the
permission was instantlysgranted, but
coupled with an expense demand Upon
him for something like a million dol
lars.
Gormly could give Miss Haldane a
million dollars to play with; he would
not spend ten cents for bribery. He
saw instantly that the demand upon
him was q mere attempt to. hold him
up. To build the switch would cost
perhaps forty or fifty thousand dol
lars; the privilege might be worth as
much more; but inasmuch as no
streets were crossed, no overhead traf-
fc hindered, he was doubtful even as
to that. The road had been built by
private capital-subscribed by the reo-
ple-on a public franchise. The in-
terests of the public were supposed to
be paramount. A reasonable return
upon their investment was all that the
promoters had a right to expect.
Gormly had consulted his attorneys,
had appealed to the city council, and
had done everything that he could to
settle the matter short of publishing
the whole affair. He had failed abb
soluteIy everywhere. The members of
the transportation committee of the
board of aldermen were very sorry.
but they did not see what could be
done. A gentle hint that Gormly
might prefer to indemnify the alder.
men for their trouble in case they
should give him permission was met
with panied silence or explosive wrath.
It was furthermore pointed out to him
that the board had no power, the
rights Of the people having been vest
ed in the corporation for a ninety-nine
year period. It was too bad that the
innocent aldermen had allowed them.
selves to be placed in such an unfor-
tunate position; but so it was-and
there you were. There was no help
for the matter, and Gormly's only re.
source was to pay the money, unless
he wanted to unload his goods into
truck wagons and vac and cart them
all over the city. OF course he could
do this; but it would be much easier,
more profitable and more desirable in
every way if he had the right. to run
cars out on the pier alongside of the
vessels of his feet and transport the
merchandise in bulk in that way.
He was in a very desperate sftua-
ticn. Here he was saddled with a
twenty-ive-year lease of M of the
most expensive piers In New York:
here he had a great warehouse six
blocks OF more away from the pier;
here he had also a vast store several
miles from the warehouse; here was
a railroad that practically connected
all three, provided ONO OF two little
spurs or switches could be built from
pier to railroad, and from warehouse
to railroad. 1t vas perhaps the one
mistake that he had made in his bust.
ness caree not to have arranged mat
tiers before all this came to a climax
The railroad people mea to make
him pay. They were resolved that
he should; he was equally determined
that he would not.
He was not alone in his position,
however; for it was found on all sides
he discovered it by making quiet in
quiries-that other shippers and
merchants seeking similar privileges
were being held up in the same way.
The road had proved enormously ex.
pensive to build; the stock had been
watered numerically. Contracts
which had been entered into for tbs
construction of switches were found
to be of little value; can were avail.
able to break them and evade them.
and the whole water front of New
York found itself practically helpless
in the grasp Of this octopus of a corpo-
ration.
There had been no clamor in the pa
pers over this matter; but there was
a tremendous ~undercurrent of resent
ment and dissatisfaction, and Gormly
thought he saw an opportunity of turn
ing it to his own account. To expose
the Ubiquitous methods of procedure
of the Gotham Freight Traction com
pany, to bring about it's ruin or its
downfall by depriving it of the fran.
chise it was abusing, to safeguard the
people in their rights in any furthe,
grants, was certainly an object suffi.
GENTLY high and sufficiently vast tc
attract the attention, and, should be
: succeed, to. awaken the admiration Of
any being. And Gormly himself with
out losing sight of Miss Haldane be
gan to look at the possibilities from
high and noble point of view, in which
. self-interest took a secondary position
4 Therefore, late in November he
came boldly out in the open, and ovel
!, his own name vigorously attacked the
Gotham Freight Traction company
! He did it in a unique way.(too. IL
stead of the full page advertisement
Of Gormly's store which appeared
simultaneously in all the great dailies
q there was presented one morning IL
:, clear, direct, businesslike English s
statement of the whole situation E x
n actly as it was. There were no threats
q no menaces, 40 intimations of any fu
ture plan or purpose; just a blum
statement of facts printed in large
double-leaded type, and signe.. will
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