The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-08-30

most extensive experiments with fare
increase have been tried in Massachu-
sets: The financial condition and
needs of the Boston Elevated Railway
Company were the subject Of repeat
ed investigations before the rest of
the country walked up to the fact that
there was an electric railway problem,
and the entire street railway situation !
in the state under recent operating |
conditions has been the subject of in |
quiry by special legislative commits !
siens: Based upon the experience of !
that state and a general study eff
street railway conditions there; the
Massa chusetts Public Service Com
mission, in it's Sixth Annual Report
| issued early In 1919, a few months
before the Federal Electric Railways
Commission was created, said:
tit is difficult to escape the eenclu-
| sion that the only plan which can be
| really effective in meeting the needs
| of the existing situation is the out
| right purchase or taking of the rail-
ways by the municipalities OF by the
| common wealth"
| Hon. Frederick j. Mcleod. chair
man of the Massachusetts, Commis-
| sion, and Interstate Commerce Com
| missioner, Joseph B. Eastman, for
| merly q member of that Commission,
| both appeared before the Federal
Commission and testified to this eff
| feet. Mayor Ceuzens of Detroit, ex-
Governor Foss of Massa chusetts, City
Street Railroad Commissioner Sand
| ers of Cleveland, Samuel R. Bertren,
| the investment banker of Chicago
| Marion NJ. Jackson. representing
Mayor Key Of Atlanta, Corporation
Counsel Burr Of New York City, and
other witnesses. strongly favored mu-
nictpa1 ownership and operation as
the solution of the problem. In my
own testimony before the Commis-
sion urged this view.
Oficia1 proceedings of Federal Com
mission minus Wilcox report to be
printed at expense of Electric Rail-
way ASS ton.
After the public hearings were
. closed, the Commission engaged me to
Fanalyze the testimony and submit
recommendations for its report to
the president. I spent several months
going over the testimony from every
angle and studying the collateral data
available to the Commission. This
analysis and study confirmed me in
} the position I had originally taken
t namely that the logic of events, the
driving force of circumstance. the
imperative command of public
l necessity, the breakdown of al
other expedients, all point to pub
tic ownership and operation as
the necessary and only posi-
> BILE solution of the street railway
problem consistent with the public
welfare In its report the Commission
refers to my anlysis as "a complete
t and masterful study Of the whole
: electric railway problem" but re
i grets that it cannot publish this analy
sis with the proceedings" The Com
mission does not explain why 1t can
+ | not publish the analysis, but that /
r easily accounted for by the meagre
ness of the government funds place.
: at the Commissions disposal. Its or
: iginal and only appropriation wa
e $4,000, paid out of the president
8 contingent fund The Commissio,
It states that it's report. together wit
s "a complete record of the testimony,
- will be printed and will be placed i
- the Congressional Library and othe
C leading libraries of the country an
y with all regulatory commissions an
e the mayors of the leading cities of tn
Z United States Incidentally, it Shout
:, be stated that at the outset of tn
n Comm ission's investigation the Amer
lean Electric Railway Association OF
d fered to bear the expense of Prlntln
81 and distributing the record. and nc
. having funds of it's own for this pun
!, pose the Commission accepted the OF
fer. If my an1ysis had been made
= part of the record, it would have ado
- | ed considera bly, to the printing Dill
and it may be that the CommlsS1o
, thought the Association could not a
,s | ford it.
~ Under the circumsta noes, it is to
re- regretted that the Commission wa
not provided with a sufficient fund, b
10 Congressional appropriation or othel
al wise to pay the expenses of the lnVe$
tigation of the record. Large sums
money were expended by the Amer
- can Electrical Railway Association
- the preparation of evidence and tf
~ presentation of its case to the Con
~ mission Even the labor men. repre-
- scented by the Amalgamated Assoc,s
l. ton of Street and Electric RalIWa
y Employees, spent considerably mol
~ than the Commissions entire apprt
- priation in preparing and presenur
their special claims. The pubic We
- represented by with esses selected
- the Commission and invited to appel
= at the hearings at their own expens
= After giving several months close al
er nlication to the Commissions woT
- with the understanding that I was &C
81 Ting as an expert selected to analyz
a. the testimony on behalf of the gener
u public and to guard the Commlsslo
IL against any possible pitfalls in tt
~ evidence submitted on behalf OF II
" special interests, I cannot escape
as feeling of keen regret that the resul
III of my work, though referred TO
n such complimentary terms by U
ee Commission, are to be consigned
ay oblivion The Commission states TIL
be an outline of my analysis prepared
n, me will be printed with the recor
lie But this brief outline, consisting OF
lie typewriter pages, to be deposited
a a part of the record with the libra RI
n of the country, will be a very po
is substitute indeed for the complete a.
w aIysis of S23 pages which contains n
only a summary of the oral testmo1
MS but also important information TAXI
a. from correspondence and documen
ii not a part of the printed record al
i'd from outside sources.
r. Traffic Analysis Showing Effect