The Detroit times., 1917-12-06
The Th0mpsOn-Hally
Franchise Crowd Isn't
Emphasizing This Point


The old Thompson-Hally franchise
crowd did just what We expected it TO do
when the Detroit United Railway abro-
gated its day-to-day agreement and be-
gan charging a straight five-cent fare.
II tried 10 stage a comeback and. mo-
mentarily. it looked as if it would attempt
it with the increase in the rate Of fare rs
It's excuse.
The Free Press was part of the
Thompson-Hally crowd in that bitterly
fought and well-remembered campaign
that made such strange political bedlel-
lows. and when the rates Of fare were
raised by the company on Sunday, follow
ing its snap notice hurled with defiance
at the mayor that newspaper had this to
say:
SIX years ago. at the close Of 1911, the people
~ Detroit bad before them what was Anown 60
the Thompson Haily agreement. under which the
street car rate Of fare WAS hXed on a basis OF
eight tickets for a quarter until 1924. when tbe
franchises on the Piugree lines are 20 expire. and
the city was 20 have the right 70 acquire the
entire system at The termination OF the agree
mcnt The Free Press supported that agree
mon, and used it's best endeavors TO have il
accepted By the voters bur certain interests.
political and otherwise, brought about its re-
lecton.
There will be no need of thrashing over old
straw OF six years ago, bnt II the Thompson
Hally agreement had been accepted in the cleo
tion, January %, 1912. instead ef being rejected
The people OF Detroit would not only have been
riding Tor cents over Since bUt They Would %
riding az that rate now and for six wears 20
come The present deficit In receipts would
have been A problem exclusively for the company
10 meet and II would meet Il. presumably -
raising money 70 tide itself over the emergency
which Barclay Parsons d Klapp believe TO be
temporary. altho the method the company
would adopt would be It's concern and not the
pubic's The eghtfor-aquarter fare could not
have been raised
When any one tells you that you were led
astray in rejecting the vague proposition which
the city refused 10 accept two years ago and
which had no promise OF any Limitation 81 fares.
refer him back four years farther and ask him
whether he advocated the approval ot the
Thompson-Hally agreement that would have pre-
vented all fare increases prior 10 1924
The Free Press doesn't say anything
about the expense to the taxpayers that
would have fallen to them with the
Thompson-Hally franchise, for paving,
the work to be done by the D. L. r. at the
city's expense, which would have included
a nice profit to the D. U. r. above actual
cost
Ist doesn't say anything about the law
suits against the D. U. r. which the city
would have dropped.
1t doesn't say anything about the secret
conferences or the lying ballot.
The Thompson-Hally franchise was de-
feated because the people of Detroit were
determined then that the d. u. R. will
never get another franchise, as they are
determined now, despite the fact that the
News has taken down the slogan against
any more 'on any terms"
The Free Press does not tell US that
what the people wanted from the D. T. r.
at the time of the Thompson HalIy pro-
position was SERVICE before a cheaper
rate of fare, and that the Thompson-Hally
proposition did not provide the service
they wanted, nor even attempt it.
What the people want now is SERVICE
before rate of fare that will not enable
the D. U. r. to give them service and the
object in retaining experts at an outlay
or So5,OO0 OF city money is to md out at
what fare the D. U. r. can give SERVICE
and operate at reasonable profit.
The common council has been quick TO
seize the strongest weapon we have at
hand to hold over the d. U. r. and that
is our full say in the matter of whether
the company can defy us and still have
fhe uSp nf orr etreefS for i+e eno,-root,s
interurban business and its freight busi-
ness.
That club can be used with good effect,
but if the Thompson-Hally franchise had
been granted the D. u. r., WE WOULD
NOT HAVE TT.
The Thompson-Hally crowd is not en-
phasizing that point
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