Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-11-19
COMMUTERS ASK
SPECIAL SESSION
Want Fielder to Call Legisla-
ture to Settle Question
+ of Railway Tariff.
Special to the Evening star.

Special to the Evening star
TRENTON, Nov Ex-Governor
James Fielder has been appealed to
by the Commuters Association of the
State and the United Towns Asso-
citation to convene the Legislature in
extra session to take action on the
proposed changes in communication
rates on the railroads.
William Carey Marshall, of Cam
den, counsel for the Commuters As
ISOLATION, and James l.. Polk. it's sec
rotary, today held a conference with
the Governor and presented the petit
ton. He said he would not say at
this time more than that he intend
ed to safeguard the interests of the
State and would announce his deci-
sion at an early date. The COM
munication he is now called upon to
consider is as follows:
THE growth and prosperity of New
Jersey is greatly endangered and is
certainly to be greatly retarded for
many years by radical and almost
prohibitive advances or cancellation
of Communication fares by the rail
roads of the State that are soon to be
put into effect unless prevented by
legislative action. Tariffs of these in
creases have been placed on file with
the Public Utility Commission by the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company and
announcement has been made by the
other railroad companies that they
will put similar advances into effect.
Not only have fares been increased
but the most popular forms of COM
mutation tickets have been taken
from the tariffs.
Say Real Estate VIII suffer.
IF the radical changes proposed
become effective, real estate values
will suffer, especially in the great
suburban districts in New Jersey ad-
iacent to New York and Philadel-
phia. The hundreds of thousands OF
residents in these sections will face
an additional expense that in many
families will equal the taxes they now
nav on their homes. The conditions
that confront these citizens are more
serious and far reaching in their ell
fects than any that have commanded
legislative attention for many years.
"Permit us to cite as concrete eX-
smples of the changes that have been
put into effect recently and the pro-
posed changes in the rates of fare
from two towns on the Trenton diYi'
sion. These are. typical and win
serve to illustrate the conditions that
citizens who have invested their
have been called upon to meet. For
many years the Pennsylvania Rail-
road Company had on sale at Mer-
chantville a fifty-trip family ticket
that was valid for passage by any
member of family within year.
This ticket was the most popular sold.
The price was 81, making the cost per
ride to Camden eight cents
1.-THE price of this ticket was later
\ . te- snd
10 take it off sale entirely, and the
cost of a round trip to Camden will
be thirty cents, instead of sixteen
cents, as formerly. The cost of trans
portation has been nearly doubled. As
an illustration of the increased cost
of the round trip ticket, the price
from Mount Holly to Camden was
ffty-nine cents. Then the price was
Increased to seventy nine cents, and
now the cost will be 81, or nearly
double what it formerly was. This is
an almost intolerable burden on q
citizen of modest means and where
It affects number of members in
the same family must necessitate
their removal from New Jersey to
the cities in the adjoining States
where they are employed.
Where the holder of commute
ton ticket must use as many as sixty
rides a month the proposed increase
i'm fares will be felt less, but for every
such rider there are many who will
use the train service frequently, but
not to the extent that will warrant
the purchase of sixty rides every
month The railroad companies have
appreciated the opportunity to make
revenue from this class of riders and
have withdrawn from sale the 100
trip ticket good for one person a year.
''These increases in fares We're an
nounced in the face of the largest
earnings in the history of the rail-
roads, except one year, and at a
time when they are paying dividends
larger than in many years. Permit
us to cite some of these dividends,
but before doing so we would call
your attention to the fact that the
united railroads of New Jersey,
which practically constitutes the
Pennsylvania Railroad Company
system in this State, pays its stock
holders ten per cent. per annum on
it's capital stock and on its bonds,
and pays its organization expenses,
and even its taxes. This is all guar
anteed by the PENNSYLVANIA rail-
road. The roads that propose to in
crease fares do so in the face of pay
ing the following dividends:
Pennsylvania Railroad Company,
six per cent. Central Railroad of
New Jersey, eight per cent; Reading
railroad, eight per cent; Delaware,
Lackawanna and Western railroad,
ten per cent; Lehigh Valley railroad,
ton per cent: and the earnings have
been so large that these dividends
have not been at any time in danger
of reduction.
I'm view of the seriousness of these
conditions to hundreds of thousands
1T citizens of this State. and the fact
that the new tariffs will be effective
December 10, 1914, we respectfully pc
tition you to convene the Legislature
in extraordinary session to take such
steps as in its wisdom it may deem
proper. In asking this we are con-
scious of the existence of a Public
Utility Commission in this State, but
we also recall that the commissioners
are greatly circumscribed in their
powers by the law under which they
act.
1--WE would also petition to have
counsel for the State appear before
the Interstate Commerce Commission
to protest in the name of the State
against the railroad companies being
permitted to put into force the pro-
posed increases in fares and to pre-
vent the discontinuance of certain
forms of tickets.
I'VE would also petition that the
encouragement of the State take
such action in our federal and State
courts under the law to safeguard
the interests of the citizens of this
State.