Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial. (Wilmington, Del.) 1878-1928, 1918-06-10
COUNCIL DIGS DEEP
INTO 7-CENT FARES
BEFORE BIG CROWD
Utilities Commissioners Chief on
QUESTIONABLE Grill for More
Than Two Hours.
HOW ORDER WAS FRAMED

Figuratively speaking, City Council OF
Saturday night turned itself into
scalpel-armed. keen-eyed and indeiatiga
bic student of anatomy, and the cadavc
upon which it worked was the 7-ccnt far
order granted by the Board of Publ
Utility Commissioners III favor of tn
Wilmington and Philadelphia Traction
Co. For almost three hours the knit
flashed and cleaned, LAYING bare nerv
and muscle, bone. slnew and artery
organs vital and auxiliary. until at th
end pretty nearly nothing was lett un
searched or unseen,
And. getting back to straight, un
metaphorical English again, this Is wha
Council found:
That the commissioners never made
personal investigation of the trac-
ton company's affairs. but relied on
the statements of experts and ceru-
fed accountants.
That the commissioners had made
recommendations from time 10 time
for bettermeni of the traction COM
pany's service. but had taken no
drastic action because they thought
the company had done the best il
could under the circumstances.
That the commissioners president
thought the traction company stock
was full of water
That the commissioners did not
think they had the power 10 squeeze
the water out of the company's stock
before making the order for the in
crease IN fare.
That the commissioners had not
insisted upon the traction company
paying for the services of the expert
examiner upon whose report they
acted. because they did not find
anything in the act creating the COM
mission which gave them the au-
fhority so TO do.
That the expert was an employe
Of the Westinghouse Company and
that the commissioners were not
aware that the traction company
bought supplies from ii If il did.
Thar the commissioners had acted.
in making their order. on the adj
vice Of counsel and the United
States government. as well as on
the experts report.
Ira. the majority of the COM
nlissioners world give their best
Judgment and rot be unfair" 10
proposition 10 take over the traction
eompary's property at IAN honest
valuation az of today" and operate
il Or a FIVE cent fare basis with
euararfec of better service.
This Iast item caric out Just prIor I.
ths clos. Of the evering's invest CATION
phei. counsel for The opponents of the :
cent order xes I'd batch Of questions Is Z
Whist thc Commission would do unde
euch 4 SET Of circumstances. stating tbs
he wss informed that s. person IN Thu
city was ready 20 make such q prop 2Sal
Eng TEaNcs. BIG MIGHT, BIG CROWD,
Couicil has doce soEle remarkable
ios,s IL its time in the wsy 81 puliclf
probing matters OF vital interest 10 tn
community or Of letti2g Light ard air int
DARK aDd closed-up municipal rSCIES. BIZ
Saturday nights task was abo'I: To-
iggest il this liae II ever tackled No
was il without the big gallery Of spectstor
inevitably drawn wherever mortal ma
dig q unackIng big hole or does some
thing out Of the ordinary where the othe
fellow can see il eelt-corstitute3 II
spectnrshlp. SIS II were
ne VI tut ~ i1A-tFt- " =
crowded ike a sardiue box with cIt.z"rr
eager 10 see and hear what the EtnAr
of Public Utility Commissioners hsJ n q
and ssv for themselves reE-T rding thr
cert fare order and wh&t the opp<,7frt
Of the order would DO and s2y 10 tn
commissioners Every counCltnaa va
present, the commissioner were there I
. man and with them WIS City Soliclt0
Bavard The mayor was there, an At
tentivc but silent spectator, as well a
some cit. and county and State officials
and there was quite a sprlnkllng 0
lawyer Tho Taxpayers League, tn
Voters N0a-Tsrtslan League and tn
Central Labor Union, more OF less in al
Lance against the 7-cent fare. were repre-
scented hy officers and members And, I,
use another figure of speech. they manu-
featured the ammunition which was fire.
at the commissioners in the form 0
query-5ullets-
Was it a hot meeting? Rather. 4
delicious cool breeze blew In through th,
big opened ventlaung windows high il
the walls, but 1t couldn't cool what Wa.
going on. Council was there to find on
from the commissioners just what wa
what and the men who formulated TIT
queries and those who propounded then
had neither mercy nor compassion Anc
the crowd looked on, every now and tbel
applauding when the questions bullseyea
something or other, and passing th
word back TO the queue Of would b
spectators arriving too late to get insld
the chamber, but getting its information
and satisfaction by proxy, which sam
proxy had to seep clean down to TIA
door below to reach the last man
COULDN'T KEEP APPLAUSE Down
The crowd was told TO keep its appaus