The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1922-05-07
Multimillionaire Mayor
Brought About Change
in Old System
ONCE PUT OFF A CAR
Refused to Pay 1-Cent Hike
in Fare and Was Kicked
on in Street

upu1lrcg nud mllllonaires llvc,
ID uuIU IUk-muflpu,a man of moro than
ordinary bearing boarded n street
car ono sunny incoming In August,
1918 llo sovc tho conductor a
, "s.v ccnts this morning" an
Z nouuood tho conductor.
"Eothlug d1iug!"
Then OF YOU ROl'
Tho condirtor siEnalcd for n stop,
and tho rohc!llous passenger
, grnnod, A motor car pulled along
side ana stopped.
Another penny. or get off," tho
, conductor demanded with finality
and imp1tieuce.
I There was another grin. and an
other Nothing doing from tho
Z passenger.
An instant later tho doors swung
, open. and tho man Of more than or
/ dinnry bearing hit tho pavement.
, amid tho pleased clicking Of a bat
terry OF movie ana newspaper cam
10 eras.
BE- The conductor didn't know it, but
, he had put James COu2eus. multi
= millionaire caudidnte for mayor OF
, Detroit, of that street car, and un-
u knowingly had done a lot to bring
g about his nomination and election.
Also, no had tason n big step for u
city-owned street car system in the
n fastest growing city in America.
IS There on tho pavement OF Wood
@ ward avenue the broad main street
Of the metropolis OF Michigan, that
II runs from the Windsor ferry at tho
% rlvct miles and miles north through
O. tho business, factory and residence
districts. James Cou2onB got tho
v start on his first political venture
/, that was 10 carry him high In pop
II ulnr favor and was 20 make De-
trOlts dream come true.
Z touhcns and Ills iininbows.
.g All his lIfo James Couzens had
4, been chasing ralnbows, and finding
n. them. lie had found the end OF his
40 own rainbow, and now he was lead.
" ing Detroit In ita quest.
For 30 years Detroit had been at
y, war with its street railway. For 80
~ years Il had been struggling for
~ something better from the corpora
~, tlon. Every city political campaign
VI In three decades had been swung
- on the traction issue. 1t had been
~ the problem of the generation. At
~ tempted franchise grants and n pub
nv llc-be-damned policy started the war
hb away back yonder when Henry
Ford was dreaming of flivvcrs, and
l9- James Couzens was n car checker
he for tho Michigan Central railroad.
ne Hazen \. Plngree, q fighting early
10 day mayor. started Ii by vctoing n
te franchise the council tried to hand
re- to tho old horse car company. The
at council threatened to pass II over
OF tho veto. The night this was TO hap
a pen u mob marched to the city hall,
o- with ropes that looked threatening,
mt The council proceeded TO other bust :
tc ness
There, 80 years ago. was born De-
troits fight for municipal owner
ship.
Tho row II 30 old In Detroit that
this generation doesn't refer to IL
r any more as municipal ownership.
| In Detroit they save lots OF time by
] calling It IN. o." And they have
been cusslng the Detroit United rail-
ways 80 long and so vigorously that
they have cut that down to lust sd.
1S Z, r." which stands for both the
Detroit United Railways and the
damned United Railways"
Tho people erected "A big bronze
statue In Pingreo IN Grand Circus
park, IN tho heart OF downtown De-
-, trot. You pass this monument go
,,h Ing out Woodward avenue TO tho
n FORD plant. Jim" Couzens probably
III looked It over many times In the
~ years that he was chasing rainbows
1S with Henry Ford.
~ All his life James Couzens had
"a been tenacious. He did things in
Z" romantic ana dramatic fashion, al
. ways. No ono can say he ever did
~ u Job Just half way. As mayor OF
m Detroit IN a little over three years,
"6 he ala the things that no other
a mayor ever had been able TO do,
~" lie Kicked the Detroit United Rail-
"y ways Off the streets bought the
~ street railways. smashed the polit-
~, zeal machines. and gave Detroit
20. good government.
Ana before he ran for office he
~ cleaned ug bcirOlts underworld
rH smashed the 9ld alliance between
wv. the police and the dives. and made
~ an Detroit obey not only the big
~" laws, blt the little ordinances that
'' most DciTOiters had forgotten about
'' Hero 81 a man-Jim COuzens OF
10 Detroit Known to his friends as
''N Jim ana "Jlmmio;" to others as
tu. King James" enemy OF grafters;
t boss Ot big buHncss--"tho million.
~" afro arab' Ho came 10 America
''' from his homo ncruss the Detroit
,' river lu Chatham. ontario, Canada
W. when he was II. IL was about that
AZ, tlm0, that Pingrce started in the
'| traction war, hs "A car checker for
"a tho Michigan Central Couzens re.
~, roIvpd $40 a. month, Ho learned
''' bookkeeping, and was thrifty,
Al about this time Henry Ford
was being called "Nutty" Ford be.
a., his gas buggy. Ford was struggling
IiC nlOnE. trying TO interest capital In
his Wild dream Of cheap motor cars
a man named Malc1lmsOn put som,
nay money into Ford's idea, and he pu
l'd iu Cuu2ous as a bookkeeper to at,
"a touI tI the business, while Ford wal
M out lu Tn. shop.
me A Check for 80 Million Dollars.
ma Later MllCOimson decided 10 &c
1u- out. Couzcns had saved money, al
'e. though his salary was meager ant
OF no was married. So he raked ~
his money and bought Malco!msoi
Ia out, Tho wOTli knows what hap
Ter pened. As Ford grew, so diC
In COuzcus
ted In 1916 James Couzens left Ford
The Al the time mo was general man
re- ager OF the great plant AT s1bO,00l
rho "A year. Ia addition TO this he hat
nut his enormous earnings from TN
my stock hp owned. A few years az
CONTINUED on PAGE TWO