The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1921-02-21
20
Lines Badly Managed.
Costs Creep Up.
Real Loss Appears.
Why? WHY? WHY?

Why? WHY? WHY? |
TT THERE has been fraud or cor
i ruption. the city is entitled TO re.
lief from the ne-Webster contract.
No one questions that, and no one
can question that.
Has there been fraudf
There Is only one way TO find that
out namely. hy a suit directed
THE TRACTION COM.
pANY.
1 No such suit has been filed. tho the
mayor has talked about II for more
than year.
In the absence OF such a suit. We
must assume that the street cars will
continue 20 belong TO tho city.
And so our important business is
to sec that the street car system Is
managed efficiently.
WE'RE ENTITLED To
BETTER MANAGEMENT
The city Is entitled 10 better man.
agement than II has had during tho
past year. Tho city Is entitled 10
have something else than mere polst-
icai operation OF its street car sys-
term.
A little over q year awo. Mayor
Caldwell began this political attack
upon the street railway. He began
first with attacking the manage
nent He claimed that the manage
ment was attempting 20 show a prof
IL en- the system. but that no deprect-
alton vas being charged
II depreciation were charged. the
losu would Be $500. 600. he claimed
You remember those figures. do you
uposs
After . year Of Caidwcri's manage
ment what have wei
Not oniy the depreciation Item. but
4 aT1FsAL los. where none had existed
b<fcre.
UNDER CALDWELL
FARES AXE ADVANCED
We have. under Caldwell. an ad
vance IN car fares. too. where before
his time we continued on nickel
basis.
We have. under Caldwell. an inroad
into the general fund for some sss..
see. the first time the railway dipped
into the general fund.
We have. under Caldwell. the ctr
eunnstance OF drawing upon interest
money tina, had been laid aside 20
meet obligations as they fell due.
Nothing like that had been done un-
der the previous administration.
so, uader Caidwcif's one year In
offfcc. shfs k1s happened.
]. Fares raised twice.
2. A real loss. ss well ~ the
loss thru depreciation charges.
:. The first inruad into the
general fund.
{. The first inroad into the In
terest fund.
These are lndisputabic facts. There
are other circumstances. too.
II Is cfain.d that the street rail-
way departments expense has been
enormously high. that the cost OF
maintenance and operation has been
extraordinarily big.
CALDWELL MANAGEMENT
A DEAD FAILURE
There IL but one conclusion
namely. that the Caldwell manage
rent has been n dead failure In the
past year.
You will remember that, tho Calf-
well first started HIS campaign with
an attack on the MANAGEMENT
under the previous administration,
Tits was soon forgotten tperhaps for
the reasons above enumeratedD and
the air was filled with charges Of cor
ruptlon. He wanted to probe the
deal. tho he himself sat In the con-
ferences that led 20 the $4,000. 600
offer. The council voted him $40. 900
for the rroDs. He spent 5000 or
more 10 get the opinion OF an engi-
neer BY the name OF whipple on the
value ~ the system. That same opin-
ion could have been gotten for $3.50.
A dozen more opinions could have
been gotten at the same rate from
experts y equal prominence"
The result was that the mayors
profe 1nearthed nothing that had
not feen printed in the newspapers
publicly at the time the deal was
put thru The mayor knows H. But
demagozs must have their fling. And
80 tie street car system is the foot.
ball Of politics. The Stone-W Webster
deal IL attacked, but no suit Is
brought. yet all the while the one
REAL issue is the management and
operation Of the railway.
That's one issue Mayor Caldwell Is
skillfuIly lodging.