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Newspaper Page Text
HOW TO STOP THAT STREET CAR STRIKE T If the street railways and theiremployes fail to agree, Mayor Harrison will have the opportunity of his life to show just how big he is. For he will then have a chance to show the big guns of the street railway companies thatrthe interests of the people of Chicago are vastly more important than the interests of the bondholders and stockholders of the companies. 5 x And he will have a chance to show that Chicago, through its mayor, is big enough to run the street railways if the bondholders and stockholders can't. The old way would be to make all the thugs and desperadoes the companies hire deputy policemen, andsgive them badges and guns. Then they could commit wholesale murder, and do it in the name of the law.. And if the imported gunmen couldn't kill people fast enough, the mayor could call, on the. governor to fill Chicago with state soldiers. With policemen and soldiers in the employ of the rich bond holders and stockholders, and obeying their orders, probably enough Chicago people could be killed to reduce them to subjection; and the bondholders and stockholders could go on grinding out profits, while'their employes walked the streets and starved. But there are better ways than the old way; and a mayor earnestly trying to serve the people could find a way. If the companies can't operate the railways except with hired thugs and gunmen, then let the mayor take charge vof the railways himself, in the city's name, and operate them for the benefit of the people of Chicago. These companies are operating under franchises granted by the people"bf Chicago; they occupy the streets only by permission of the people of Chicago, and thevstreets belong to the people of Chicago. And 55 per cent of the net receipts of the companies be long to the people of Chicago. If the city goyernment can't take possession of the roads and operate.them, theh go into the courts, get receivers appointed on the ground that the city's share of the receipts is about to be jeopar dized bythe company's action, or because the peace and order of the town are about to be disturbed any old ground to get hold of the railways and run them for the benefit of the public. Private corporations don't seem to have any trouble finding ground for judges to let them do as they please; and the city's law yers ought to be smart enough to get some judge to twist things around for the. people.