The Bridgeport times and evening farmer. (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1918-1924, 1920-07-30
Expected That No Matter
What Relief is Given By
the New Fare System the
Trolleys Will Have to
Close Down AS the New
Fare Will Not Give the
Increased Revenue-Dis-
gust With the Manage
ment.
Especial to The Times)

Hartford, July 3O-No mat
ter what the Public Utilities
board may do to aid the Con-
necticut company and no mat
ter what fare it is allowed to
collect the general opinion is
that the company will close
down its state service within
two months and then wait for
legislation by a special session
of the legislature to aid in pull
ing it out of the mud.
That seemed to be the gen
eral opinion as the result of
the public hearing yesterday. 1t
was generally admitted by re-
personalities of the company
that the chances were that the
seven cent flat fare would be a
failure as was the zone system
in the matter of recouping the
finances of the company and it
was also very generally believ-
ed that the higher fare the
company charges the less
money it will get, for the fewer
passengers it will carry.
Hence there seems to be
nothing in sight except suspen.
sion and an appeal to the state
? to do something to help it ou
of the situation.
The testimony yesterday showed
that the Connecticut company 1.
sinking deeper into the bankruptc,
Infre every day and with all the hare
thinking of its high salaried official.
and retainers it will be unable to pay
the salaries of these officials or re
tainers no matter what scheme O,
collecting fares or conditional prom
1ses they hold out to the public
1t may run for six weeks more OF
perhaps two months, but President L
s. Storrs and Judge Walter c. Moves
chairman of the board of trustees, a
the hearing were not at all certain
that the trolley cars throughout tn,
state would not be compelled to stol
in that time no matter what actor
the commission took on their petition
to allow them to change the fare col
I lection system from the zone system
to a fiat rate
These officials talked like the navi
gators of ship who had lost thei
bearings and We're about to abando
and scuttle the ship.
Disgust and lack of confidence 1,
the management was expressed at tn
meeting and in the corridors of tn
Capitol and the general opinion wa
that If the company was worth saw
ing it would have to be done by tn
people of the state acting tfroug
the legislature.
Even men who have formerly bee
strenuously opposed to state owner
ship of public utilities We're of thi
opinion and stated that the stat
could not make a worse bungle an
muddle of the matter than the pres
ent high salaried officials
The management under the quei
tioning' of the members of the com
mission and the representatives of til
various towns and cities of the stat
showed an amazing lack of knowleds
of what was needed in the transpol
tation crisis which they insisted we
confronting them and said that tn
only reason that they were demand
ing change in the method of collec
ing fares was that something must /
done and that they were doing som,
thing but did not know and had n
means of foretelling that what the
were demanding would be a benefit
detriment to the Connecticut Con
panys financial condition.
Judge Noyes was very muc
wrought up over the statement
Mayor David E. Fitzgerald of Ne
Haven in his letter to the commissic
IN which he said that "the public hs
lost confidence in the management
the Connecticut Company"
Judge Noyes said: II can't belle,
that the people have lost confiden,
In the management of the compan
That would mean that they had 10
confidence in the Government. w
the trustees who are managing TIL
property are working under the o
ders of the United States Court whis
appointed us and this court is a pa
= OF the government. If the peop
have lost confidence in US they ha-
lost confidence in the government"
Judge William S. Bennett, corpor
ton counsel of New Haven during
talk to the Commission said: "Whet
er or not the people of the opinit
that they can do without the troll
service they have no doubt but tn
they can do without the manageme
of the trolley. company"
Corporation Clark of Hamden sa
when asked IL he wanted the Sta
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