South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-07-02
BONDED "JITNEYs" AND LEGAL
MARATHON CONTESTS.


OF the street railway interests so
soncitous Of the public safety and fear
that someone may be hurt by a "jit-
ney" bus without being able TO walk
up forthwith and pluck off "A modest
fortune from some indemnity Bond
ing company, are still seeking 10 in
cite a sense Of consistency by com
parsons with the demands that are
made upon the street car companies.
in case OF accident This much in
their own words:
II the street railway company.
because IL does a public utility
business. is compelled TO COM
pensate the pedestrian injured by
a street car. why should not the
1itney. likewise doing public
utility business, be compelled to
compensate the pedestrian which
II may injure?
Most certainly gentlemen. they
should and they are, exactly 10 the
same extent. but the correct answer
20 the query is. that the street rail-
way companies are not compelled"
and neither do they as anything ike
a rule pay From the multiplicity Of
cases that they have it is cheaper to
employ lawyers by the year to fight
them, and beat them, or at least wear
them out. This from the TT. Wayne
Sentinel illustrates the point:
BENJAMIN f. Repp, a Columbus
man, just now appears to be lead
ing "A sort of legal marathon CON
test with a traction company
which originated four years ago
in "A suit for $3.50 damages and
is still going at a lively clip in its
circuit OF the various courts. The
really interesting phase of the
contest IS not whether or no Mr..
Repp is TO get his $3.50, but
whether he is going to he able TO
hold out long enough TO legally
wind" a good healthy corpora
ton which seems 10 have now
struck its normal running gait
and is coming along the track as
fresh as a daisy
That is the gist OF the whole mat
ter. The traction companies are. per
haps financially responsible and could
be made 20 pay if you could ever bring
them 10 it, and collecting Identities
from a bonding company back of a
"jitney" bus would be just about as
tedious for they too are wealthy and
employ their attorneys by the year.
to defeat damage cases. Don't get il |
into your head that If the 'jitneys"
were bonded and you were injured, all |
that would be necessary would be for /
you 70 go over 20 the bonding COM
pany and carry away whatever Of
compensation for damage you might /
allege Pacific Motoring. Los Angeles, |
discusses indemnity by the ''jitneys" |
this way:
Better to legislate this new
means of conveyance entirely out
of business and be done with IL.
Most Of the traction companies
carry indemnity insurance. not
because il is required of them,
but because they find it cheaper
TO pay the premiums than to do
the settling and fighting and the
insurance companies in their turn,
find il profitable TO do the settling
and hghting for the premiums. In
either case the injured party gets
the small end or it for these con-
Germs have experts TO make the
settlements and in invoking the
laws delays when II comes 10 liti-
cation. Jitney regulation by bond
ing is a farce SO far as concerns
compensation TO an injured pa
iron.
Besides it opens a new field. capable
OF being made fruitful for the am
bulance chaser" 1t would be espe-
cially so if the indemnity companies
didn't fight. The demands upon the /
bondsmen would be coming in con-
stantly on trumped up charges per
haps just as now we concede. they |
are occasionally trumped up against
the traction people The public knowi-
edge maybe. that the 'jitney" bus
patron is taking his own chance with
the "ntneys." due 10 the financial un-
reliability OF the owners. is the best
indemnity against accidents after all.
We have known of people perfectly
willing 10 be hurt "a little when there
is prospect OF fat indemnity in sight.
But financial responsibility or no
financial responsibility. whether in
3ured by a street car or a ''jitney' bus,
the chance Of recovery Is always at a
minimum-nothing in the first place
helms just about as acceptable 10 the J.
average man as long fight with some
traction corporation or bonding house.
and nothing but trouble for his pains
in the end assuming that the end is
ever reached.
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