New-York tribune., 1921-10-27
Flays Duplicity, Evasion
and Hedging in Effort
to Explain 7-Cent Fare
Dicker With Shonts
Defies Mayor to
Answer 9 Queries
Demands Explicit Replies,
So Offer to Traction
Interests May Be known

at six Brooklyn meetings, trained his
batteries again on Mayor Hylan and
the latter's five-cent fare war cry. He
charged the Mayor with duplicity and
an attempt to hedge on the Hylan
dicAer with Shonts, late president of
the lnterborough Rapid Transit Com
pany, for seven-cent fare, the details
of which the coalition candidate has
exposed in recent speeches.
Mayor Hylan's reply to the charge
that he advocated seven-cent fare
while he was shouting to the people
that he would stand for nothing but a
five-cent fare. was evasive and un-
satisfactory to Mr.. Curran. In his
speeches last night the coalition can
didate asked Mr.. Hylan nine specific
questions in regard to the seven-cent
fare dicker, and challenged the Mayor
to make specific answers The ques-
tions were based on the public records
of the deal.
Wants Hylan To Be Specific
"Since | made the whole thing pub
lie several days ago." said Mr.. Curran,
Mr.. Hylan has berated me, as usual.
That won't do. He has got to be more
specific. This is serious business,
when the head Of this great city of
ours is shown up as having attempted
TO put over in secret some kind of q
deal with those whom he would have
us believe were his dearest enemies
the traction companies.
lnst what was going on in the City
Hall three years ago. Will Mr.. Hylan
tell why he attempted to sell out the
people of New York City in secret
conference held at the City Hall. With
Shonts and Boston Mac who handed
his own city 10-cent fare gold brick p"
Mr.. Curran spoke to audiences which
crowded the Republican clubhouses in
the 5th, 10th. 18th and 23d Assembly
Dlstrlcts in Brooklyn, and before the
Harding Italian n-American Republican
Club, at 81 Utica Avenue, and the
League of Women Voters, at 1890 Gates
Avenue. In the afternoon he addressed
the Kiwanis Club, at the Hotel Nc
New York Hospital in Trinity Church
and the League of Women Voters at
Public School 1866, at which Mary Car
rett Hay was chairman.
Wants Subject Cleared Up
Mr.. Curran's speech last night fol-
lows:
II am not going to make q speech to
you tonight. l am just going to ask
Mr.. Hylan some questions, nine Of
them, in fact, about his dicker with
Shonts regarding a seven-cent fare
hope that Mr.. Hylan's answers will
help clear our minds on this subject.
"Here is the story that l brought to
clared, and do continue to declare, alb
solutely refutes Mr.. Hylan's claims
that he never considered anything but
q five-cent fare.
".On January 8, 1919, the people of
this city were astonished to read in
the morning papers that the late Theo-
dore P. Shonts had appeared before the
Public Service Commission on Janu-
ary and had testified that, more than
four months before, he had been in
secret conference with Mayor Hylan
in an effort to work out some plan
of relief for the traction company
Mr.. shonts asserted that sometime in
August, 1919 Mr.. Hylan had invited
him to his office and that he had met
there a Mr.. MacFarland. to whom the
Mayor had introduced him as Mr.
Hearst's lawyer in Boston, remarking:
This gentleman wants to help you
get seven-cent fare for your various
lines, and, think, under certain con-
ditions he can succeed Mr. Shonts
testified that this first meeting was
followed by several other conferences
where he and the Mayor discussed the
situation. On one occasion the Mayor
said to him: Our people will stand
for an increased fare providing they
themselves get the benefit of it and
Shonts made this statement also under
oath.
Quotes Hylan's Statement
"On January 8, 1919, the day after
the facts leaked out, The New York
American, published by Mr. Hearst.
carried Mr. Hylan's answer with big
black headlines: Mayor Hylan Exposes
Shonts Fare Deal The big black
to carry tomorrow: Mr.. Curran ex-
poses Mr.. Hylan's seven-cent fare deal
with Mr.. Shonts.' | quote now from
The American excerpts from this an
swer issued at City Hall, January 8,
which are relevant to Mr.. Shonts's
testimony:
"Tt was Mr.. Shonts himself who,
without any suggestion from me, in
vited himself to call at my Office at the
City Hall, requesting an interview.
"'There was no occasion or desire
for secrecy on my part. The abnormal
conditions created by the war are not
going to last forever. | did, there
fore, make counter suggestion to Mr..
Shonts that some temporary relief
might poss bly, be worked out of the
best features Of the Boston plan and
of the one suggested for Chicago, hav-
ing in mind mainly the operation of
the transit lines by trustees to be ap-
pointed by the Governor of the state or
the Mayor of the city, with proper
regard for the public interests
al still believe that if the traction
lines of the city were in the hands of
trustees appointed by the Governor or
the Mayor, with the watered stock in
each company eliminated, they would
be operated to better advantage for the
people.
"'To get the benefit of the expert
ence of some one who had especial
knowledge of the working of the Bos-
ton plan. and who, at the same time,
was not under the control or under the
influence OF the local traction interests
here, called in G. S. R. MacFarland
tcentlnued on ntxs pass)
AND NOW IT'S THE AREA-REA
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