New-York tribune., 1922-05-10
Hardness Warns Trolley
companies I Violation of
Mandate Invites Civil
and Criminal Action
Penalty Is $1,000
For Each OHense
Corporations Expected to
Defy Order and Insist
Passengers Pay Twice

Transit Commissioners McAucnv o,r
h"rkncSs, through the medium of s
legal opinion written by COMMISSIONS,
harkncSs. warned the receivers Of the
Ntclnway Railway COMPANY and tn,
New ork E. Queens County Railwa,
company last night that the double
isrc they propose to inaugurate this
morning at o'clock is without war
rant OF Law. Informally they sup
sested to the receivers that disregard
or the commissions Interpretation of
the transit law might result in thei,
pcihg prosecuted, both civlly and
The law provides for nenaI,v Of
$4,000 FOR each separate violation and
subjects the violator at the same tjmn
TO criminal action at the instance Of
the District Attorney.
III was understood at tho Transit
commission offices last night that
slaughter W. Huff and Robert c.. Lee.
appointed by Justice Callaghan as re
covers Of the Stcinway Company, and
VINO issued new tariffs which will make
IL necessary for Manhattan-bound pa
irons of the Queens County line to pav
an extra fivecent fare at Woodside. III .
BIG transfer point, will adhere to the
new tariffs, collect the extra fare and
test IN the courts any action to restrain
them
darkness Outlaws Action
Commissioner Hardness. whose inter.
ference last Friday DELAYED the imposi- j.
ton of the extra fare. which was TO
No
day morning at o'clock. after n hear
ing Yesterday attended bv counsel for
the Stelnway and the New York md
Queens Company. and by Corporation
Counsel O'Brien, issued an opinion late
last night which in effect puts tse
SteInway Company in the outlaw class
II 1t forces the collection of a doub)e
fare
1t was expected that the Transit
Commission would issue an explicit
order suspendlng the new tariffs pend.
ing q further hearing on the question
OF the necessity for an Increased fave
Tor patrons Of the New York and
Queens lines who have to use the Stein
way system TO get TO Manhattan. After
consultation the commissioners de-
cided that a notice to the comranies
that imposition OF more than a single
five-cent fare for a through ride. with
out explicit permission of the commls-
sion, would be in violation of tine
transit law.
Commissioner Aarkness ruled that
Section % OF the transit law controls,
and that under this section new rate
cannot take effect under thirty days
unless special permission be given by
the commission.
II is asserted by counsel for the re
celvers that the splitting apart of the
old companies constitutes tho Steinwav
company a new line" under the pro
visions Of Section s. Commissioner
Hardness says this is not prop. =
view of the law. and he holds that the
filing Of schedule Of tariffs must be
demcd TO fall within the provisions Of
Section %, which. as stated. stipulates
that such schedule cannot become of
tectve for thirty days, unless perms-
SION be given Tor shorter period.
Commissioner Organ was out of tne
city yesterday
Basis of Opinion Stated
The opinion by Commissioner Hank
ness is in part as follows:
"Under Section Is a new rate takes
effect at once; under Section % it does
NV t"nO ctUH" VI ,''i ~ ia >, uhlcSS
special permission be given by com
mission
after a most thorough and pains
taking consideration of the ques ton,
this seems 20 me 10 be the common
sense view Of the proper functions of
these two sections Of the act: Section
28 was placed in the law on its original
enactment in 1907. There were then
no tariff schedules on file, so that Sec
ton 20 covered all cases, and was then
the all important one of the two pro-
visions. After schedules had been filed
in accordance with Its provisions, Sec
ton 2S merely functioned with respect
to future new lines, and Section 20 took
care Of all changes in rates on existing
lines.
at is now claimed by counsel FOR
(ContIrued paue Six)