The New York herald., 1922-06-16
.HYLAN CALLS UPON
M'ANENY TO RESIGN
Says Chairman and Hardness
Are Acting as Barriers for
/. r. T, Against City.
SHEARN CUTS MILLIONS
Brings S70,8O9,681 Valuation
Of B. r. T. Near $23,-
146,576 Estimate.

Mayor Hylan yesterday made public
statement aimed at George McAneny.
chairman. and LIE Roy T. Harkness.
member of the State Transit Commits
sion. He concluded 1t with this decla-
ration:
'They must hang upon either horn
Of their own dilemma and the sooner
the public DEGREES the date Of this off,
cial hanging the better for all con-
cerned."
His Honor called upon the gentlemen
named to resign and not continue to
'act as protective barrier for the
tlnterborough) company against the in
terests Of the city and the public" The
Mayors statement was by way of
comment upon the Transit Commits.
sion's refusal to take steps. at the be-
hest of the Board Of Estimate. for
recapture Of the Interborough lines and
their municipal operation on the ground
Of service defaults. Mayor Hylan said:
"The reason for the Traction Com.
missions refusal as now stated is that
the commission will consider such mat.
ters from the viewpoint of the traction
companies instead OF from the view
point Of the public and the rights ac-
cruing to the public through the city
under the contracts. That Is. forsooth,
II the commission should view the mat
ter from the public viewpoint rather
than from the company viewpoint and
act accordingly, a receivership might
ensue. From this peril the Transit
Commission must save the company. no
matter how great the cost to the pub
lie. corporation service. not public serv-
ice being the controlling principle.
The Dilemma Hylan Sees.
IF this is not the correct view of
the Transit Commissions answer. then
Mr.. McAneny and his associate, Mr.
Hardness should resign at once. They
negotiated and prepared for the city In
1913 the contracts, the provisions Of
which the city has invoked and de-
manded that the Transit Commission
carry out. They should resign because
they now say that those provisions,
even on concededly valid grounds for
action. do not afford the city or the pub
lie any remedy, when the company is In
default. because the remedy that the
language respecting II, 'senseless.' Since
they negotiated the contracts with these
provisions which they denominate as
'senseless. after holding them out as
beneficial to the public, they should
have the decency not to denominate
them as 'senseless' when they are in
voked against the company.
IF their own appraisal Of these pro-
visions and the action invoked under
L - l.
terization, 'senseless,' and really are, as
they were held out to be. beneficial to
the public they should make way for
officials who will enforce them in the
manner in which the contracts provide
and contemplate and not act as a pro-
tective barrier for the company against
the interests Of the city and the public.
Either the action Of Messrs. Nc
Aneny and Hardness In incorporating
these ostensibly beneficial provisions in
the contract In 1913. which they now call
'senseless,' was hypocritical. asinine and
a dereliction OF duty at the time. or
their present position in insisting upon
treating them as 'senseless.' II in fact
they are not. Is hypocritical and asinine
and also a dereliction of duty.
They must hang upon either horn Of
their own dilema, and the sooner the
public decree the date of this official
COnCeTne0.
even including Messrs. McAneny and
Harkness."
Full Moon Price Fades.
While Mayor Hylan was promulgating
this comment the Transit Commission,
sitting from 1890 A. M. until nearly $50
p. NJ. with the aid Of its chief counsel.
Clarence j. Shearn. was at work putting
the hydraulic press upon a $70S09. .6S1
appraisal placed alphabetically by Allen
l.. Snyder. Stone e. Webster engineer.
upon the old original lines Of the New
York Consolidated. which is the operat-
ing company Of the elevated and subway
properties of the B. r. T. Mr. Snyder.
who had been retained by the Consoli-
dated to make this valuation. regarded
the figure named as a reasonable asking
price IL the city desired to take over
the properties indicated for ABSORPTION
in the unification plan proposed by the
commission for reorganizing all traction
lines under city ownership.
These same properties. which do not
include any Of the subway lines united
with the b. r. T. system through the
New York Municipal Railway Company.
had been appraised tentatively by the
Transit Commissions valuation bureau
engineers at $23,164.576. While the
commission, which the Mayor charges
with Corporation service rather than
public service" based it's conservative
valuation upon original cost, less the
amount necessary for rehabilitation,
the particular corporation concerned
here constructed it's Stone & Webster
full moon" price upon estimated cost
to reproduce the system at 1921 prices
After Judge Shearn finished with Mr.
Snyder's figures. though they had been
at the outset nearly $4,000, 900 In ex-
cess of the commissions tentative ap-
praisal. the disparity did not look so
startling. The commissions chief coun-
sci kept hacking off hypothetical mil
lions until It was evident that the ulti-
mate bidding price offered will not vary
much from the commissions tentative
figures.
The inquiry win be resumed this
morning.