Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1919-07-26
UNFORTUNATE TROLLEY LINES.

The trolley lines of the United States generally speak
ing are in bad way street railway expert says that
they need $1OOO0OO00O year to enable them to meet
public demands twothirds Of it new capital and onethrd
to be used for refunding outstanding obligations Need
less to say they have not been getting it.
The most obvious thing to do is to raise fares This
is difficult however the expert explains because fares
are fixed by franchise municipal regulation and the
public is still mbued with the fvecent fare dea though
the nickel fare very profitable and it would
be dime today If it had kept pace with current depre
0ns STILL the public is getting used to it. for dozens of
cities have raised their fare rate in the last few months
varying all the way from five to ten cents
The situation is undeniaby bad for most of the troll
ley companies But curious fact obrudes itself into
the argument In the city of Cleveland which has nearly
100000 people and system of street car lines of large
mileage permitting very long rides the public today is
getting eleven rides for fifty cents though paving an ex
ira cent for transfers The stockholders are paid guar
anteed dividend of per cent which may be raised to
per cent There is surplus of about ST. 100000 in the
safetyvave fund which automatically regulates the rate
0t fare The fare has just been lowered from the straight
i've cents that has prevailed for year or So EMPLOYEES
were granted liberal raise not long ago. The present
rate OF fare is said to provide enough money for every
legitimate purpose, and there prospect of raising it
in the near future
Is Cleveland freak town. able to do what no other
city can do? Or are the trolley experts wrong about it
and is the little old nickel just raise after ALL when
street car system has the water squeezed out and
aged efficiently under public supervision?
Personally we have always relied on the villfication
of such men as n r. Moore and papers like the morning
Statesmen which still read occasionally BY some persons
In this vicinity certificate of responsibility and in
tegty The public has failed to regard it that way
and it has probably caused newspaper business
to prosper even beyond just deserts Moore if we
remember rightlyand we think we do---was formerly
newspaper publisher of Logan Utah the real Mormon
capital, and came to Corvallis along with certain widely
advertised educator also located there for many years
We do not know that he brought any surplus wives to
Oregon since under our laws is not allowed to wor
ship God in bigamous fashion in this state However,
Moore sold cigarettes at 1000 per cent profit to the sol
der boys back in the safety of France during the
war; and evidently was not out of place there Irwin Cobb
and other distinguished war correspondents aver that
some of the Y NJ c. A. camp followers exhibited marked
Mormon pr0cvties there and many serious scan
das were hushed up in order that the reports might not
undermine the morale and weaken the support of the
people at home. large part of the mutcoored de-
tachmentS OF the Allied army doing work in the
while the white men fighting in the trenches and
Moore only naturally may have formed tender ties and
associations that influence his vehement protest against
drawing the color Hne We must however hold to our
opinion and reerate it. that do not believe the black
man to be equal to the white either mentally morally
Or regi0usy The boys who fought to make the world
safe for democracy did not include the negro in their cal
eulaons except that they willing to protect him in
hs Just rights and privileges so long he remembers he
is negro and conducts himself accordingly. There is
always something fundamentally wrong with the white
man who accepts the negro his equal and in the case
of Moore the welknown moral axity Of The black may
appeal with especial force by inspiring memories of the
old free life in Utah. with its celestial marriages. not
toned by our prOsac man-made laws in Oregon
Won Hindenburg offers to place himself "fully and
absolutely at the disposal Of the Allies" That's fine
much better for example, than simply giving them wood
zen statue to drive nails into.
new altitude record was made at Mneola field to-
day when Curtis Wasp" rose n 100 feet Governor
0lcOtt viii please take notice
Aerial mail carriers went on a strike that popularity
speaking put the whole service up in the air. by holding
Iis down to earth