The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1916-07-29
Has Been Demoralizing
Factor for Business, AS
serts Louis Bean.
BY Louis H. Bean
Manager, Il. IL, A. l., 60.


The local street railway com
pany and its predecessors hav,
spent hundreds of thousands o.
dollars in pioneering work, FOL
the purpose of building up com
munities in the anticipation thai
at some future time return up
on the investment might he had.
y For years this company has
given service continuously for /.
hours out of every "a.
By this service and through
this pioneering. territory ha'
been developed and there hav,
been established what are know
as traffic routes" along which
the public knows that cars may
be secured at regular intervals
throughout the day and through
out part of the night on every
day in the year.
And now with this territory
bilt up and streets paved ton al
average of so per cent of which
paving on traffic routes hav
ing been paid for by the stree
railway company and with these
traffic routes" established
through continuous and reliable
street car service, there comes
competitor.
Open No New Territory.
This competitor operates only
upon these traffic routes" estab'
lished by the street railway com
pany.
1t operates only on streets
paved in the main by the street
railway company.
1t adjusts its schedule so that
il may leave its starting point just
ahead of the street car.
1t operates at such times and
to such points as may suit the OPP
orators fancy.
1t operates only when it is as
sured of a full load.
1t pays for no paving or mainte-
nance thereof.
1t opens and develops no new
territory and II does not insure
or stabilize real estate values.
Should the public encourage a
service which will ultimately
handicap and curtail effective
service of a reliable street rail
way
Broader Question Yet.
Furthermore, IL is not a ques-
ton solely between the five-cent
automobile and the street car
companies.
Broadly, it is the expression oil
attitude of the people of the
northwest toward the investing
public.
Shall the investor be impressed
with the fact that protection Will
be offered and his future partici-
patton in the advancement of the
Pacific northwest he invited, or
shall he be shown by an attitude
of. indifference and in many cases
antagonism to his interests, that
he must seek elsewhere for the
proper protection of his money
The street railway companies
of Washington are owned
by thousands of stockholders
throughout the United States, de-
pending on proper protection and
a safe return on their invest
ments for a continuance of con-
fidence in the future and posi-
bilities of the sections in which
they have placed their money
usually standing ready to place
additional money If they can be
satisfied as to the outcome.
How About Investors.
What must these investors
think of the loss they have in
Cured during the past few years
through the operations of the
fair weather five-cent automo'
biles"
Do we realize just what the
loss means in broad way anc
who has been the gamer?
1t is probably safe to say thai
not 10 per cent of the jitney bus
operators in the state have met
operating expenses. interests or
the investment, and depreciation
Who, then, has been the
gamer?
Obviously. the automobile and
accessories manufacturers.
The loss to the street railways
of the state, and consequently tc
the people who have placed theil
faith and money in the possibili-
ties of our future, has beer
mounting into the millions Of
dollars.
Not Fair or Lasting.
If this competition were fail
or lasting, 1t would not be so bat
but in times to come we ven
ture to say that this entirely un
regulated and irresponsible
method of transportation as com
pared with street railways will be
looked back upon as having hac
demoralizing influence on moi
only the transportation problems
of the cities, but upon advance
ments in other lines of endeavor
requiring the aid of outside CAPT
tai.