New-York tribune., 1922-04-20
Miller Warns
City to Speed
Transit Jobs

!
absurd proposal to scrap the existing
facilities and to substitute others
which the city was without means to
| provide,
Nov, both of those positions were
wrong The companies were wrong in
demanding an increased fare They
were not entitled TO an increased fare
Ihey had entered into contracts. under
which, for a stipulated fare, they had
undertaken TO discharge a public duty.
ana they were not entitled to more.
BESIDES, an increased fare would have
merely postponed the solution of the
real problem which was beyond and
above any question of fare The city
administration was equally wrong, first
IN proposing to scrap the facilities of
which there was public need, and, sec
ond, IN proposing to substitute others
Whlch there was no means to provide.
even if practical And so betweco
those two issues. or two positions
both wrong battle ragged and
nothing was done.
Meanwhile. what happened While
you were discussing the fiVc-cent fare
you lost the fve-cent farc-.for, by &C
curatc computations, it is now costing
the people Of this city on the average
more than six cents q ride. That
means the rcntpaycrs are paying an
additional cent and more for services
which would be dear at any price
"Now, that is the situation to-day.
That was the situation year ago when
| raised storm of disapproVR in this
city by proposing that the time had
come to undertake constructive solu-
tion of this problem. There is q natural
resentment against outsiders butting
into family Quarrels. People like to
attend TO their own affairs, even though
they DO it badly, and | respect that
sentiment and that desire AS Gov
crnor Of this state | have troubles
enough without seeking them. and !
have not undertaken to solve your
transit problem for you. All that |
proposed was that tho State LeCisla-
turc, the only body having the power
to do it, should create an authority
and clothc it with the power to solve
this problem. Some people, even those
who are quite ready TO run to the
Legislature when they want something
seem to forget that the state had re
sponsibility in this matter. This was
not wholly q family affair. The state
had already become involvcd in the
problem; but the people seem to for
rapid transit lines or subWays were
constructed, and every dollar Of the
city's three hundred millions Of credit
invested or pledged under contracts
made in the name Of the city, either
by the original Rapid Transit Commits
sion. or it's successor, the Public SerY-
ice Commission, both agencies created
by the State Legislature.
Home Rule Already Decided
I'm the city's appeal to the courts,
in which it was found necessary to
employ imported counsel to defend
home rule, not single point was
raised which had not already been
finally decided by the courts on the
various acts under which your exist
ing lines were constructed. and so the
courts said.
"Well, the respo1 siblty was there
on the state, already assumed; the
gravity Of the situation was here, daily
shirked that esponsibility. The Legis-
lature could have shirked its respon-
sbility. We could both have allowed
matters to so from bad to worse as
they had been drifting, and could have
passed the blame upon others But
we preferred to discharge rather than
to evade responsibility. And. as the
result, you have the Transit Commits
sion, three of your own citizens work
ing IN the light OF day, developing the
facts pertinent to these problems, lay
ing the cards all out on the table face
up, undertaking to effect a solution
of this very difficult and complex prob
lem. They have been at work now al
most a year. The people have had an
opportunity for year to judge of the
work Of the commission, and ! think
the people themselves are quite able
now to pass Judgment upon the charge
that was made that the commission
had been delivered over in advance to
the interests-to the interests, who,
it is said, as a part of the conspiracy
to mulct the people and to discredit
the city administration, are now stag
ing the hold-ups and the robberies
which the Police Department has sud
denly realized are being committed
in this town.
eve did do one thing. 1T was not
novel. We merely restored the situa-
tion as it existed under the old Rapid
Transit Commission. We did limit the
power indefinitely to obstruct action
Anybody can obstruct 1t requires
brains to construct. And if it had not
been demonstrated year ago that it
was necessary to curb the power to OBJ |
struct, then that demonstration has |
been made within the last year Whv. /
do you know at this very hour the city |
administration is holding up work nee
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