New-York tribune., 1912-01-15
SPEAK FOR AND AGAINST
PUBLIC SERVICE BOARD
Attack by F. w. Whitridge Is
Answered by T. M. Osborne
in Joint Debate.
HAS DONE WELL, SAYS ONE
Traction Man Pokes Fun at
Commissions 0rders-Large
Audience at the New
Rochelle Forum.

Before an audience that packed the New
Rochelle Theatre yesterday afternoon a de-
bate on "Is the Public Service Commission
Public Beneft?" took place between
Thomas Mott Osborne. a former Public
Service Commissioner, and Frederick W.
Whitridge, president Of the Third Avenue
Railroad Company. under the auspices OF
the New Rochelle Peoples Forum.
Mr.. Osborne, who drew the Public Ser
vice Commission act, took the affirmative
side of the debate. while Mr.. Whitridge
spoke in the negative and told Of what ne
classified as ridiculous orders issued to him
as receiver by the Public Service Commits
sion. Mr. Osborne, at the outset, declared
that the law had been enacted for the bene-
fit of the whole people of the state ana
doubted II many persons would vote to re-
peal this law if they had an opportunity
Mr.. Osborne said that the reason why the
Public Service Commission had been estab-
ilshed was to give the state certain control
over public service corporations, because
many of them had been essentially monopo-
listic in character. He added:
The commission is in existence to regu-
late these monopoies. The state, through
The commission, is virtually partner IN
the different enterprises. The trolley cars
run through the streets of a city. VINO
owns these streets? | say the streetS pc
long to the entire public Of to-day-to the
city and the public of the future ana al
succeeding generations
| say that IL will be found out that many
franchises have been given away without
consideration of the future, and II VIII also
be found out later that these franchises
are Illegal.
Tells of Watered Stock.
The sneaker told of how many corpora
tions had watered their stock. and as an
illustration said that a trolley line one ana
a half miles in length not far from New
Rochelle which owned only two cars was
recently sold for $500. And yet. he said
this corporation was capitalized at $O'-
100000
That's the kind of high fnanciering that
Is being stopped by the Public Service COM
mission" Mr. Osborne declared.
Mr. Whitridge caused much laughter by
his descriptions of the orders the Pubic
Service Commission had given him while
he was receiver Of the Third Avenue Rall-
road Company. He said along this line;
on February "A, when 1 had had the
Third Avenue road five weeks and the
other companies less than two weeks, /
received an order directing me 10 tePaip isl;1iI
six cars a day. ] wrote the commission
that il was a commercial and physlcal I'M
possibility to do anything of the sort. Inc
tracks in my shops would not even ven. nU,u niyt
salary that the Public Service Commission
might fix whom they could select 10 90
what l was ordered 10 do. TO that theE
replied on February % that the original
order remained in force, and was Obliged
TO repeat that my refusal was likewise IN
force. -.
,allV undertaking to regulate the weather
One of the most frequent causes OF cofi- %
plant against the streetcar company Is liie :
temperature OF the cars. IL is alnost d
general rule that women complain that the
cars are intolerably hot and men that they
are intoerably cold The commission now
ever undaunted. started to solve the whole
difficulty and made an order directing tnat
the temperature in all cars between &c
fober and April 10 he kept at between %
and Go degrees. Conceive If you can, OF
any reasonable human being thus debating
20 the weather.
Cost Of the Commission.
The s4aff of the commission is pertinent
in this matter. When / last looked at 1t
its force consisted of GA persons. at an eX-
pense of $l,l0J.OOO year; this year II is
81 300 600 This commission has enjoyed It's
vast powers for a period OF four ana one
half years. A longer time elapsed between
the firing on Fort Sumter and the surren-
der of General Lee a AppomattoH, ana II |
had been charged with the JOB ana had
accomplished no more in the time IN Whlch
It took the United States to suppress the
rebellion than the commission has accom-,
plished in the building of subways ! shouid
feel that an indignant population would
hold my head under the town pump
In reply TO Mr.. Whitridge, Mr.. Osborne
took exception TO the statements of his op-
ponent He said they were speaking from
two different points of view-Mr. Whitridge
about his experiences with the New York
City commission and himself about the up
state commission. He seid Mr. Whitridge's
address should have been entitled "Why
cont like the Public Service Commission
There would not have been so much
trouble between Mr. Whitridge and the
commission if the parties had got closer
together" said Mr.. Osborne. There was
a mistake made. One of the commissioner
should have been the receiver of the Third
Avenue road and Mr.. Whitridge should