The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1912-07-30
PUBLIC OWNERSHIP MUST
BE ISSUE IN CAMPAIGN
Continued from Page Sin.

tenn Orarllyl unuel thelI Nual6S' inv
do not club the people as they used
10 do.
You can take my record OF nine
years in the common council and on
the bench OF the police court and rely
upon me TO do all that can be done
In cleaning out graft In the municlpal
government. But let me urge II upon
YOU that YOU must not allow my op-
ponents 10 shift the issue away from
municipal ownership. That must be
the principal issue OF the campaign
What we must do is TO eliminate
the cause OF graft. While YOU have
the old molasses barrel standing in
the ward you've got TO have the flies
And the cause OF municipal corruption
lies i'm the sale OF public privileges.
Standing silently behind every
public official OF the city you can
every moment see the temptr Satan IN
the guise OF a public service corpora
ton. IL Is more than human nature
can stand. Every now and then some
OF the officials yield and fall Then
what happens? The poor man VINO
has Welded TO the temptation that was
too strong for him is punished and MS
wife and family suffer with MIN III
the ruin that has been wrought DN
this sinister influences that is ever
present In our public life. But what
of the rich corporationist is he pun
.tshed9 Does ne suffer? No. he goes
ON In his complaceut way laying new
nitfans for Other men coming w,th
honest hearts and hands into US 1880
gerous paths of public life.
nj aI
lied for fftv.hve millions OF dollars
stands today as the chief source OF
graft In our municipal affairs, intim'
idatinC the manhood and the woman
hood OF Detroit.
"One thing that stands out in
this latest bribery scandal is the
fact that public utility corpora
ton wanted something and got IT,.
The Wabash railroad now has $50
600 worth OF our property for which
they paid nothing. II they want 10
be fair why do they not come back
TO the council. return the property
land agree TO have the Seventh-St.
proposition passed on its merits.
But. no. That is not the way the
thing goes What happened today?
! The Michigan Central came in with
| a petition 10 lay tracks across a
street. And the common council
4 committee was so intimidated by
the developments of the last week
that II passed the Michigan's APP
lplication without giving the matter
any consideration at all
Mayor Codd tried to settle the
street railway question size years
ago and failed Mayor Breitmeyer
tried and failed, and Thompson has
failed twice Would Thompson set
tie the question now? | want TO
say that the election of any mayor
who is opposed TO public ownership
means delay They'll be ready 10
( spring something through the Board
jof Commerce that will have behind
lit all the money power OF the city
and attempt 70 drive YOU into bar
gain with the ID. L. X.
Judge Jeffries said there were sta
tistics to show that it cost only Two
cents per passenger TO operate tn,
street railway system of Detroit i
years ago, and that the subsequen
] increase in traffic, together with IN,
fact that there has been hardly an,
increase In traCkage or cars, mus
have considerably reduced the aver
| age cost. Referring TO what ha
! been dine in the way OF street rail
way settlements in Cleveland, o.. AM
/ in lasgow and other cities Of. Grea
Britain, he said the thing to do il
| Detroit was to follow the example o
these other cities and begin build
ing tracks 10 compete with the ID.
r. He suggested a belt line passinI
through the north-end factory distric
and touching the river in the eastern
and western sections of the city, as
4 good start and as line that woul,
be a valuable factor in any eventua
street railway system
He predicted that the ID. L. r
would come TO terms, as soon as /
found the city going into actual com
petition with II, but urged that NUM-
| cipal lines should be built with a view
TO permanency and the elimination o
waste effort, and said that the onl.
/ thing that now prevents the city from
| taking possession of the streets wher,
| franchises have expired is the fac
that il can offer no substitute service
With the proposed belt line in oper
alton and extensions built where they
are most needed, he declared the city
would throw out the d. u. r. from
one street after another as fast al
the city could build parallel lines L
| take care of the traffic.
The first meeting. Monday evening
was ntld in the hall OF Burkhard
Fetts, Garfield and Joseph Campau
Iaves., in the sixth precinct of tn,
Eleventh ward, and from there tn,
Judge went to William Dyes place. a
Milwaukee-ave. and Chene-st., in tn,
clever ia precinct OF the Ninth ward
Both places were crowded with voters
and IN each a Jeffries' club was or
CAMEO, Resolutions were adopted
in the Eleventh ward meeting criticiz
ing the Free Press and Journal al
"scuIrilous sheets because of thei
Opposition TO municipal ownership
and other progressive measures
Ipledging the voters TO work agains
the influence OF the Republican jour
nails working for the vote swappers
lleagde in debating who shall be tn,
In. ~