Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1919-02-04
Street Rallroad Hearing.


Norway, the Oxford Electric ,Compan.
petitioned these towns for permission t
discontinue street car service during tn
winter months, and the hearing was 20
for Wednesday, January %. Owing {,
sickness In the family Of Wadleigh B
Drummond, counselor for the company
the bearing was adjourned one week, o
until January 20.
The hearing was held In the municipa
court room, Norway, and was . join
hearing, with the towns of Norway ant
Paris participating. Selectmen George
r. Hathaway and Alvin Brown repre-
sented Norway, and Hon. Charles w
Bowker, Paris. Mr. Hathaway presided
over the meeting and read the call anc
petition.
Mr.. Drummond, of Portland, opened
the case for the Oxford Electric Com
pany. He explained that the running Of
a street railroad between Norway and
South Paris was not q paying PROPOSE
tion. The road had paid In the past
but for the last four years 1t had lost
money, and there was no prospect that II
would pay any better in the future. Peo.
pie did not patronize the road as well
now as formerly. Why, he did not know,
but suggested automobiles as . probable
cause. OF course times have not been
normal during the past two or there
years, but even discountipg the extra
expense on account Of the war" would
not have made the road pay. Therefore
the corporation wished to be rid OF the
road as an encumbrance.
Fred Gordon, of Auburn, manager OF
the company, was first witness, and gave
an account of the management of the
foad, showing that it bad not been e1.
travagsnt, and mentioning what methods
had been taken to keep down expense,
such as running one-man cars, etc.
he said there were no high-paid off,
cials at the general Office in Portland
that the office force maintained there
cost only $500 Q year. He said the
company bad considered the matter Of
fares, but wherever this rem
edy had been applied 1t had not sue
ceeded. He mentioned the Lewiston,
Augusta & Waterville Street Railroad as
an example. When they increased the
fares from five to seven cents zone, the
revenues of the company actually fell of.
This result had been duplicated on other
roads. The company did not feel justi-
fed in trying this experiment on the
Norway Paris road in face OF these exam
pies. He suggested municipal ownership
of the road, then II higher fares were
needed for maintenance the public would
feel such move was justified. He also
suggested that the price for light might
be Increased, the addition to be used in
making MP the deficit on the road. BE
said In justification of closing the road
that not only had patronage fallen of,
but the road was out OF repair. when
Main street, Norway, was concreted, that
part of the road had been put in good
condition with new rails and ties, at q
cost-ipcluding what was paid the town
as its proportion of the expense OF con.
nearly $4,000. The mile and
one-half manning needed new ties. 1t
would take nearly 5000 OF these, and at
present prices, q tie in position cost
about 81 so.
Cross.examined by Colonel Albert j.
Stsarns, who appeared for the selectmen
Of Norway, as to the capitalization of the
road and its indebtedness, Mr.. Gordon
said the stock preferred and common
amounted to $4,000, and that it was
bonded for $4,000.
Asked why the towns were petitioned
1t this time just before the hearing by
the Utility Commission, witness stated
he corporation wished to have the dis
of traffic ratified by the
towns through which the road ran.
Asked what the act introduced in the
legislature by Mr.. Forbes authorizing the
road to discontinue operation and dis
pose of its franchise and property meant,
Mr.. Gordon said 1t was simply q provis-
ion 30 the Utility Commission could sep
arate the road from the other property
owned BY the Oxford Electric Company,
and authorize the winding up of that
part of the business. -,
Asked what price the company would
put on the road should the towns or q
new corporation formed In the towns
wished to purchase 1t, Mr.. Gordon said
they would sell 1t at junk price.
Asked what the road would bring for
Junk Mr.. Gordon said he did not know,
but thought somewhere around $40, 900.
William E. Atwood, auditor of the
company, and son of George NJ. Atwood
of the Democrat, was the next and last
witness. Mr.. Atwood had sorted out all
of the items relating to the road from
the other business of the corporation,
and gave statistics from the beginning OF
the road in 1894 to the present time. The
road paid up to and including 1914, but
on each of the four years since there had
been a loss,-that of 1915, 1927 ~; that
of 1915, 81, 2SO Sc; that Of 1917, 81, 451 90;
that of tie nine months operation OF
1918, S2,275 90.
In 1918 for every 800 received by the
road were paid out for expenses ST.; In
1915 for every 800 received was paid out
S94; in 1915 for every 500 received was
paid S145; in 1917 for every 800 received,
SIT was paid out; and in 1918 for every
500 received S148 was paid out.
For some reason patronage OF the ROAD
had fallen off. As sample OF the de-
crease the month of September each year
was cited. That is the banner month OF
the wear because of the Oxford County
Fair. The fret year the road ran 1t car
ried on that month $4,000 passengers.
The greatest number of passengers on
this month. was in the years 1905 and
1907 when $1,000 passengers were car
ried each September. Since that year
there has been decline. In September,
1909, the number carried was $4,000; 10
1910, $4,000; in 1911, $4,000; in 1912,
%, 900; in 1918, 5000; in 1914, 600; 10
1915, 1900; in 1915, $4,000; In 1917
l5, 900; and in 1918, 1902.
Colonel Stesrns, in closing for Norway
said that an electric road between that
village and South Paris was necessity
Both the villages had been built up with
an understanding that there should oe
electric transportation between them. Il
it was advantageous for citizen to worh
or do business in either place 1t was nee
esssry to have transportation between
them. 1t would be against the interests
of both places to have the road closed.
He called attention to the fact that TIT
law provided that, II by stress OF circum
stances q road could not operate without
great difficulty during the wiptsr time
the selectmep, when petitioDed, coult
authorize q discontinusnce. There die
not appear to him to be any difficulty il
operating q street railroad In q winte
like the present one. II 1t had been lik'
the winter OF 1917-1S there might hav'
been reason In it. In fact, the road wa
closed in October when no difficulty wa
presented; and the town had not beef
asked at that time whether they woul'
grant q discoDtinuance or not. The ros'
AZ this time asked simply for ratifica
ton of what IL had already done withou
asking.