The New York Herald Newspaper, September 7, 1875, Page 3

NEW YORK HERALD, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1875.-TRIPLE SHEET. PUSHED THROUGH! | The Quick Transit Problem Settled at Last. REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS. History of Their Troubles and lLabors. maximum rates to be paid for transportation and con- veyance over such railway or railways, and the hours during which special cars or trains shall be run at reduced rates ‘of fare; therefore be it Resolved, That the said Commissioners of Rapid Transit be fequested to incorporate in the charter of each and every company authorized to build and main- tain a railway a clause providing that said company or companies shall ran a eufficient number of cars for the accommodation of passengers between the hours of six and eight in the morning and five and seven in the evening, for which the fare below Forty-second street shall not be more than three cents and south of 125th street not more than five cents per passenger. Mr. Blessing said that the resolution was a simple re- quest, and remarked that between the hours he had mentioned the working classes were either going from orto work, and 4 low rate of fares during those hours would be a great advantage to the lavoring classes, The resolution was adopted, THE THIRD AVENUE OPPOSITION, Tho Board then resolved itself into Committee of the Whole, with Alderman Reilly in the chair, and it was moved by Mr. Seery that Mr. Henry P, Smith be heard THE RAPID TRANSIT ROUTES. Map of the City of New York to Harlem Bridge, Showing the Lines, Hast and West, Adopted for Steam Elevated Railways. Po. York Elevated, and wnue he would vote for the latta he could not vote for the former. If the question wat not aivided, despite the fact that he was in favor of rapid transit, he would have to vote no, Mr. Gross and Mr. McCarthy pointed out the fact that the two roads had CHARTERS FROM THE LEGISLATURE and were in a great measure, 80 far as certain streets were concerned, independent of the Board, while Mr Strack argued that though the roads did have charters to run in certain streetg the Rapid Transit Commissioners in their fixed routes allowed them to run tracks over streets not mentioned in their charters. Mr. Purroy scouted the idea of trying to divide the question, as the resolution before the Board in point of fact embodied but one question. The only way, in his opinion, that Mr. Reilly could get at the object he was aiming for was to move to strike out any portion of the routes he disliked, Mr. Seery again expressed the hope that no action should be taken on the resolution until all property holders along the proposed routes should THE ROUTES SELECTED, | ™ half of tho Third avenue property holders who were opposed to an elevated road on that avenue, Mr. Dean Inquired if it did not require unanimous consent for any person not a member to address the be heard. President Lewis then ruled that the resolu- tion could not be divided, although, of course, it might be amended, Taking advantage of this ruling Mr. VENUE |ziz 3 Two Through Lines, East and West. FUN FOR FACETIOUS PHILLIPS. Relief for the Travellers of New York. ACTION OF THE ALDERMEN. An Exciting Night Session of the Board. Board. The Chair decided that it did; that it was a matter of courtesy entirely whether the Board would allow any person not a member to address the Board. It was finally decided that, as it was not officially known whether the Third avenue had been chosen as one of the routes by the Rapid Transit Commissioners, it would be time enough to hear the Third avenue property owners on the subject, The committee thereupon rose with leave to sit again, Tt was now four o'clock and no report had been re- ceived from the Rapid Transit Commissioners, and some of the mombers made up their minds that none would be made until late at night and good natured!y DETERMINED TO STAY IT OUT. In order to while away the time the republicans amused themselves by calling up general orders which had been offered at previous meetings, aimed at the Corporation Counsel and his office when that official was a republican, The democrats quictly voted them down and then retaliated by moving the passage of resolutions on the unfinished business list which were distasteful to the republicans, This WARD'S ISLAND . Reilly moved an amendment that so much of the resolution as gave consent to the Gilbert road to rum through certain streets should be stricken out, This was strenuously opposed by Mr. McCarthy, who warmly advocated, in a vigorous little speech the adoption of the resolution as it stood. The subject of rapid transit had been agitated for years, and it was not a question whether the roads were to run over Second or Third or any other avenue orstreet, but it was @ question in which the people of every district was inter. ested, It was not a question whether the roads would be injurious to the Third or Second Avenue Railpoad Company or any other monopoly, but one which way asked for by TUE HONEST, HARD TOILING MECHANIC and working woman; by the people in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Senatorial districts, as well as inthe Eighth, The poor man wanted rapid transit to go of a Sunday in summer with his family to the Park’ in @ comfortable and cheap way to get a breath of — fresh air. Mri Reilly said he would repeat that ho was as an individual in favor of rapid transit, but he believed that the route proposed for his district would depreciate the value of property that his constituents had labored TMH THE SURFACE ROADS DEFEATED: | by.vey. could, not Jest forever, ond i wan finally moved that a recess be taken for twenty-five minutes, After considerable sparring, some of the members being anxious to adjourn for tho day, with a Adoption of the Report by a | view, douvtiess, of defeating rapid transit altogether, Vote of 12 to 7. the motion was carried. When the Board reassembled { it was found that tho Rapid ‘Transit’ Come missioners were not yet ready to report, and Alderman Morris at onco called up General Order The Railroad Companies Routed, Horse, Cars | 465. yeing the rosolution offered by ie Commissioners and Conductors. asking the Board to give their consent to fix the routes of the roads before making them known to the Board. Mr. Seery objected on the ground that the report of the Commissioners would soon be presented, and so the NOW FOR THE PLANS. | members of tho Board might as well wait until they for years to secure, and he did not want Mr. McCarthy’ or anybody else’s district to be benefited at the expens¢ of the people in his district, Mr, Gross took an oppo- site view to Mr, Reilly's, and contended that property would rise in value all over the city after rapid transit had become an accomplished fact, and that it would be the means of stimulating capital to renewed activity, Mr. Purroy took the same view and said that it was nota question of districts, He believed when he was elected an Alderman he was to represent not merely a district but the whole city, so far us making city laws for the general welfare wag concerned. If a vote was taken in the city of the prop erty owners aud the working classes combined @ vast majority, he believed, would be in favor of rapid transit. Mr. ‘Reilly at this stage renewed his motion for a division of the question, but President Lewia ruled it out of order, whereupon Mr. Gilon made a briet speech, in which, ‘While advocating rapid transit, he I il g (Moo ii SP: saw what 1 socal Aa motion was ie seae for Y =| fi; [Bae (se: i a \ : — IS \ SY fof eek spearloretgisyn eocienn gona nobheey a recess of ten minutes,@ ‘committee of two having rj a Seapets = DEPRECIATED PROPERTY ‘When the Mayor appointed Messrs. Seligman, Mott, | eon appointed meanwhile’ to wait upon the to pane a 7 NR 7 = Z along its route, the Commission should gee to it that the Ni St. ¢ | ai ion \ y rouds should be so built as not to have the same objeo- Canda, Delamater aud Brown a special commission | Commissioners and ask them what time their report i AC A (Sy 5 tions as could be brought agamst the lout ander the Husted bill to select rapid transit routes for | would be ready. This motion was supplemented by ; pn (aaenl [st 2 road which took possession of so much of the city of New York, and to perform other acts speci- ‘pan ate adjourn bey ten o'clock, but it ae ae Pro- : (ial Sat i — Og aga rote ne a cient age wn 4 vail, and the recess of ten minutes was taken, It was 5B st} [St. Deano’s resolution, and resulted = as fol. Qed therein, many of our cltizens feared that their | 1, nait-past five when the members got together cera lows:—Yeas, President Lewis, Messrs, Bless. efforts would result in nothing. Tho Board was to | again, and the committee that had waited upon tho \ 3 SS wean se ing, Deane, Gilon, Gross, Howland, Lysaght, McCarthy, solve the problem that has agitated property | Commissioners reported that they had been officially i iL Wo sth; | Pp ei Reilly. Robinson, See aban ar hee tiwonth? owners for fifteen years, baffled the ciril authorities, | {Mormed that the report would be ready at five o'clock, omen Strack—8. ‘As it required 12 ‘votes to carry the reso- [tm Ti Oye RE | ‘This announcement being made at half-past five, and as Jution it was declared lost. Mr, Blessing, in explaining mystified legislatures and terrified tho street railroad | 110 44 —=59in 1B i oe 21 [760s (i) \ his vote, said he had opposed. the resolutions of the port had not yet come te hand, created rot a 7 = > FOAN Sonnentonl y monopolies, and it was surmigod that tho effort would, V Ades hae ae cae, Sy \SS5 ovata ise—I ES} ae = ) rts ae ean aust re rat crema | ¥ i yy NI MADE KNOWN TO THE ROARD, like all previous movements in the same direction, fall Finally at six minutes to six Jordan L, Mott, one of t— but now that he heard the routes read, ‘and in view of (Weta nd (8 : } Willborn and leave us no nearer a realization of the | ‘he binary Ba ae chat pea bpp id (Wo7raty iS HM) MWA the fact that the Gilbert railroad had the right by legis. up to President Lewis, whispered in his car. The mem- Wo in Mise ik s / AU jative enactment anyhow to run in Sixth avenue, he Yong sought relicf than when the matter first | 1015 of the Board eyed him keenly, but as he prosented en at ; A poate hn Aaa ih mi. arse rap ei became a subject of concern to those who | no document to the President before leaving, as he aerticl se 9 a p io” because Worst he thought the roads would depreciate property in hig district; Mr. Reilly forthe same reason, and becausa the question hed not been divided so as to allow him ta give his approvai to the New York Elevated road and notto the Gilbert, Mr. Strack satd he voted na for the same reasons given by Mr. Guntzer. Tho vote being declared, Mr. Purroy moved to have it recon. sidered, which was done, Whereupon Mr. Seery moved for an’ adjournment. This was lost by a vote of nays to3 yeas, and finally a recess was taken Yor ahalf hour, it being at this time twenty minutes to eight. It must be borne im mind that there were three Aldermen absent during the meeting—Cole, Vance and Billings—all three friends of rapid transit, Mr, Billings, it was learned, was in Saratoga, Mr. Vancq sick at his residence and Mr, Cole had gone to Delmoni- co’s to dine With the American team, ‘The latter wary, therefore, the man to be captured at all haz. ards, and it seems that President Lewis, seeing how the vote would be from the turn the debate had taken during the evening, had, while the discussion was at ita height, senta carriage With an assistant /sergeantat- arms up town to bring Mr. Cole to the City Hall, hurriedly did, a murmur of dissatisfaction arose from the semicircle of Aldermanic seats, They had not much longer to wait, however, for Mr, Mott had scarcely left the room before Colonel Harrison, the secretary of the Commissioners, entered with a big roll with closed doors, some began to lose confidence in | of manuscript under his arm. Everybody was on the them they persevered in the face of great obstacles, as qui vive at once, and the clerk, on receiving the docu- | ment, immediately began to read the Mayor's only men who havo the public weal at heart can, and | 71.0’ nore, transinitting the report to the Board. worked silently and surely. They have now been inses- The reading of the report and the appendix sion sixty days—the time named in the act in which they | containing the routes, which are herewith appended, must select the route or rontes, and our columns to- | °ccupied a very long time, it being half-past_seven be- , fore it was concluded. When tho reading was at an day bear testimony to tho thorougn manner in which | O14 yy, sforris again moved thi adoption of General ‘these gentlemen have met the issue, Ordor 468, but the motion failed, It will be seen by their report and the Hxraup map desire means of travel commensurate with the enlargement of the city northward, The commission selected by Mayor Wickham gave general satisfaction, and, although, as they deliberated | aa] CUOUULOUOoG Ly Mr, Reilly said that he was heartily in favor of rapid which accompanies it, that they have laid out four transit, He was in favor of the New York Elevated main lines between the Battery and the upper end of the island. That along Greenwich street and Ninth avenue is the present Green- wich street road, which, erécted and in operation as far as Thirtieth street, has demonstrated the feasi- bility of rapid transit. The Sixth avenue, South Fifth avenue, West Broadway and Church street line is the west side route covered by the Gilbert charter, which, having been granted before the passage of the constitu- tional amendments, requires’ neither the consent of the Common Council nor that of the property owners. The. more easterly line above the City Hall on the east sido, as well as the connection between the Brooklyn Bridge and the Battery, is also on ‘the route of the Gilbert | charter, and, like tho Sixth avenue line, requires no | confirmation, The Third avenue route and a fow of the connections with depots and ferries are not covered by previous charters. These will be known as ‘‘com- missioners’ routes,” in contradistinction to “char- tered’? routes. The desire of the Commissioners, who understand public sentiment, is to take the Third avenue line, but lest difficulties of a legal character should prevent them from building it there, they have wisely selected a route contiguous for the accommodation of east-siders that will stand, it ts believed, all assaults, both legal and monetary, that may be made upon it by tho cnemies of | tapid transit, : It is gratifying, however, to see that in spite of all the | lobbying done yesterday in the Board of Aldermen in the interests of the horse car monopolies that body has confirmed @l the routes selected. Half the battle has now been fought and won, and with the evidences the people now have of the determination of this commis- sion to settle the vexed question “they can afford to | commend them and confidently await the completion of | their labors, ACTION OF THE ALDERMEN. The most exciting meeting held by the Board of | Aldermen since January took place yesterday over a | resolution which was offered after the report of tho Commissioners nad been received, giving the consent of | the Common Council to the routes decided upon by the | Commissioners. The session began at two o'clock and was continued, interrupted by two or three brief recesses, until balf-past nine o'clock, the members opposed to the routes doing everything in their power during the meeting, by all sorts of specious arguments and parlia- hentary dodges, to either kill the resolution outright or to force the Board to an adjournment for the day, which would have been, if obtained, equivalent, in the opinion of the friends of the Commissioners, to an utter defeat of the rapid transit question for this year at least, i Mr Scery was the first to broach the subject by offering a numerously signed petition of property owners slong the Bowery and Third avenue, protesting against the construction of an elevated railroad on those Railroad, but not in favor of the Gilbert, so he would like A DIVISION OF THE QUESTION. Mr. Seery moved that the whole subject be referred to the Committee on Rapid Transit. Thereport did not state the truth when it said that they had found no op- position to their plans and routes, as he himself had shown that very day that the property owners on Third avenue were opposed to an clevated road algng that thoroughfare. He believed the residents and property owners to a man were opposed to a road on the avenue. Mr. Deane then, after considerable debate of no gen- eral interest, motions and counter motions, offered the following resolution :— Resolved, That this Board, on behalf of the corporate authorities of the city of New York, hereby gives its consent to the routes adopted by' the Rapid Transit Commissioners as contained in the report of said com- mission transmitted to the Board to-day, THE STRUGGLE FOR THE MASTERY. Mr. Simonson at once offered a substitute for this resolution, which in reality had the same object in | View as the resolution itself, but which was more tech- nical in its terms, Mr. Purroy seconded the substitute, but Mr, Seery, watchful of the interests of his Third avenue constituents, moved to have it referred to the ; Committee on Rapid Transit, and used the same argument to sustain bis motion as he had when a moment before he nad endeavored to have the Commissioners’ report sent to that committee. Mr. Purroy was again in arms at this second attempt to defeat tte adoption of the routes, and said that if Mr, Seory’s motion should be adopted rapid transit. would be dead forever, The sixty days allotted to the Com- missioners for the fixing and to the Board for giving their consent to the routes expired that night, | and he, for one, hoped the Common Council would not throw any obstacle in the way of & measure which the people had been’ so long demanding, This appeal had no effect on Mr. Shandley, who moved that the Commis: sioners’ report be accepted and made the special order for the next meeting; bat when bis attention was called to the fact that the report could not be “accepted” by the Board, inasmuch as it had been to the Mayor, he speedily withdrew his mouon, Mr. How- land, who made this point, took occasion to remark that whatever action the Board intended to take should be taken before midnight, There was somo doubt as to whether the Board’s acuion was at all necessary, but it was best to be ON THY SAFEST SIDR y when In doubt. If it was necessary, the action could not be postponed to another day without killing rapid transit outright until another Legislature gave the question a new lease of life, Mr, Gross, in w short, pithy speech, argued in favor of speedy action, and closed by saying he was ready then and there to vote for Mr, Deane’s or Mr, Simonson’s reso- lutions. He wanted no further hght on a subject which every member had had the same chance of obtaining ag to the routes as he had bad, Mr. Shandley retorted by saying that the Commissioners had had sixty days to make up their minds, and he didn’t think it quite fair that the Board should only be given twenty minutes, and go thinking, he moved that the entire subject in dispute be laid over, To put an end to the wrangling, Mr. Purroy then suggested that the best way to reach the end the friends of rapid transit had in view was to vote down all amendments that would be offered to the original resolution Thea Mr, Gross, TAKING THE CU JOO000H o a i> z i} Cos ian Ope Eni THE FESTIVE ALDERMAN i was just entering Delmonico’s when the gigantic Luke Welsh touched him gently on the shoulder, expdained the situation to him hurriedly, and in a minute after- wards the coach came tearing down Broadway as fast ag the horses could ee The Alderman arrived in good season, having in his hurry forgotten to take off bis lilaq kid gloves or his swallow-tailed coat. When th¢ Board had reassembled all the members whe had been in attendance previous to the reces¢ were in their seats with the exception ol Mr. Shack, who had voted in the negative on the Deane resolution. The resolution was at once called up and, after many attempts by motions to lay over, refer and amend, the reading of the roll was begun, Mr. Blessing rose to explain his vote again, and asserted that during the recess he had heard that the Gil- bert Elevated Railway were to sell out to the 'Yhird Avenue Company and*go over on the Second avenue. ‘Shis got Lygaght’s dander up, and he asked t¢ be excused from voting, saying he had some interest stake on Second avenue. for @moment the friends the Deane resolution looked aghast, as Lysaght had voted “aye” before the recess, and now they feared that the securing of Cole would leave them in the same box as before if Lysaght should change hut vote, But when his name was called he hesitated for§ moment, as if enjoying the suspense of the “ayo' members, and then quietly voted for the resolution, The vote stood as follows:— Yeas—President Lewis, Messrs. Blessing, Cola, Deane, Gilon, Gross, Howland, Lysaght, McCarthy, Morris, Purroy, Simonson—12, Nays—Messrs, Guntzer, Power, Reilly, Robinson, Seery, Shandley, Southworth—7, ‘And thus ended the fight in the Board of Aldermen, with a victory tor Rapid Transit, MAYOR WICKHAM TO THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN. Exxcutive DePartMEnt, Crry Hatt, New York, Sept. 6, 1st. To THe HonoraBLE THE Common Councit:— GextLemeN—I herewith transmit for your informa. tion, and for such action as may be proper, a report from the Board ot Commissioners of Rapid Transit, ap» winted by me under an ber of chapter 608, aws of 1875. . H, WICKHAM, Mayor, THE REPORT, Orrick Boarp oF Comaussioners or RArrp Transtr, New York, Sept. 6, 1875, To His Honor Wruttam H, Wicknam, Mayor:— Sm—The undersigned, constituting the Board of Cominissioners appointed by you under the provision: of chapter 606, Laws of 1876, having by the selection routes for rapid transit railways in this city concluded a portion of the labors imposed upon them by law deem it proper to make an official record of their action in the form of a report to you, The statute has failed to provide or direct any specifi method in which the record of our official action may be filed, But the evident necessity that authentie evidence of that action should be somewhere preserved, and the fact that this Board of Commissioners exists by appoimtment of the Mayor, lea us to regard your oftica as THE PROPER PLACE OF DEPOSIT for such record. The law itself under which we were appointed would never have been enacted but for your efforts, and we are enabled by this occasion to bear testimony to tho zeal and high purpose by which you have been moved to accomplish, if possible, during your term of offic this great beneft to the people of New York. Shoul jt come to pass, as we now hope, that the present ef- forts in that direction shall result in establishing rapid and cheap means of communication through this city, we shail always cheerfully declare that among the moi efficient aids’ to that great benefaction, to poor and rich alike, will have been the wise counsel and intelli. gent support which this Board of Commissioners hag received from you, Upon receiving our appointment and being duly qualified as required by statute, we organized on the Sth day of July, 1875, by the election of William Setige man as President and Burton N. Harrison as Secretary, We afterward formally retained Mr, Harrison as coun. sel also to the Board, To Mr. Seligman’s courtes: firmness and good sense we ro indebted for harmony with which we have we om fener rand for the unanimity with which our conclusions were reached, In considering the numerous and diflicull questions of law which arose under this statute the ao fares, c at the ‘ thoroughfares, and asking permission that the | v4 aay ate, Shandley's motion be tad on the | curate and legal learning of Mr, Harrison have Board would allow their representatives to be! oi we Morris made the point thas Mr Shandte been invaluable, Acting under his advice, we have beard before the Board, Mr. Henry P. Smith, had hed de good an opportunity as any ‘aches is esl eevna Keteg-) eee ee carreras 0 Hon, a vet ad had as good ” er member | james Emott and Mr. Stephen P. Nash as special counsel, ‘one of the property owners, being present, Mr. Seery of the Board to know what the routes were, and | Upon one of the questions ited to us we have asked that he should be permitted to speak on the SUb- | 1 saad ofa vote being takon on Mr, Grow | had the — advice — of r. George W. Vae es tion, & vote wat directly taken on Mn hand. | been.” advised’ uy" Mr “Grosvenor "P, ‘Lewreyy . McCarthy thought that th a Me iad aad is td Pp ree i eon adie y Mr. Grosvenor P. wrey} Mr, McCarthy thought that the Board, before gran ley's to lay the subject. «over and was | and we have been guided by the opinions those several ing this permission, ought to wait until the roport of carried by ® voto of 16 naysto 8 yeas; The | gentlemen expressed. ‘The Board has also selected at the Rapid Transit Commissioners bad een presented, x i 5 #4 The ques. | consulting engmeers Samuel H. Shreve and Isaac New: THR QUESTION OF CIKAP PARKS, | tion then came up on Mr. Simonson's substitute, which | ton, civil engineers, who have been and still aro em Mr. Blessing then offered the following resolution: — Whereas section 6 of chapter 606 of the Laws of 1875°| | was again read, a8 Was Mr, Deane’s more simple reso- lution, when Mr, Simonson withdrew his substitute gaged in careful study of the numerous plans of strue ture which have been submitted to us, Very soon after we had organized the Board we caused proper adver. provides that the Commissioners of Rapid Transit shall | This brought Mr, Deane’s resolution squarely before tisements to be inserted in the newspapers, calling for Within the pemod of ninety days after their organiza | the Bout Realizing this, Mr, Reilly again called for a PLANS FOR CONSTRUCTION tonneten thon fix and determine the time within which a raiiway: estion. He said that there wi and also asking for suggestions as to routes to an OF Failways, or portions of the same, shall be. con- | “!¥sion of the question. ti sepia any and all parties interested in the subject. We have Structed and ready for operation, together with the | roads mentioned in the routes, the Gilbert and the New recvived aud are still coneidering many communications