THE PAEKWAYS 



181 



TEACTIOX COILPANT's FEAXCHISE. 



The change in control of the county avenues from the 

 Essex Eoad Board to the Board of Freeholders was, as re- 

 gards the manipnlation by the corporations, a change in 

 name and party shadow only. The substance of corporate 

 dictation remained the same. In October, 189-i, the Free- 

 holders granted to the Consolidated Traction Company a 

 perpetual blanket franchise for Park avenue in Xewark, 

 East Orange, and Orange, Bloomfield avenue, and Freling- 

 huysen avenue. The Call, in its next issue, characterized 

 this action as completing "the surrender of the Eoad Board 

 highways to the street railroads." The prodigal liberality 

 of that "surrender' to the traction company of that most 

 valuable grant of public property was, and is, amazing. 

 The scheme was defeated on a technicality in the courts the 

 same year, 1894. 



In like manner, the East Orange Township Committee 

 had, on May 1, 1891, given the Eapid Transit Street 

 Eailway Company an equally favorable perpetual fran- 

 chise for Central avenue from the Xewark terminus 

 to the Orange line. This was before the company's 

 lines were constructed in Xewark; hence, prior to 

 the leasing of that short line to the Consolidated Traction 

 Company, as was afterward done, at a clear profit to the 

 promoters and owners of "a round million of dollars." The 

 I?apid Transit finances were not then — 1891 — in very flush 

 <?ondition. It was largel}' a paper compan}', organized to 

 build and equip the road from the sale of bonds, and with- 

 out the investment of much money in promotion or con- 

 struction. The company was advised that the franchise 

 could be extended, or a new franchise had "'at any time," 

 in East Orange, and Thomas Xevins promised the same 

 result in Orange. The company for once failed to recog- 

 nize the uncertainty of (franchise) human events, or to 

 appreciate "a good thing when they had it," and the fran- 

 chise was^ tkereime, allowed to lapse, and the rails, which 



