100 years ago in The Record
Monday, May 7, 1917
“That some bakers and coal dealers of this city are not giving what they should in weight and measure is the complaint which has been received by Mayor Burns,” The Record reports today. The mayor orders an investigation after the commissioner of weights and measures informs him that “he has discovered loaves of bread which do not weigh the amount required by law, and that coal is being sold to the public in quantities less than paid for.” Our reporter writes that “it is understood that the complaints have been pronounced since the shortage in coal and the increase in coast of the materials from which bread is made.” Americans have been experiencing shortages of produce and home essentials due to increased demand from war-torn Europe. The U.S. joined the European war last month by declaring war on Germany. The mayor, normally a champion of consumers’ interests, tells reporters today that “this was the first time he had heard that any cheating had been going on.” He promises that “proper action would be taken after thorough investigation” and “punishment will follow sufficient proof.”
Half-hour service restored
As a champion of commuters’ rights, Mayor Burns has spent months pressuring local railroads to increase ser- vice between Troy and Albany. His lobbying efforts pay off this morning as the belt line service of the Delaware & Hudson and New York Central railroads resume an every-half-hour schedule for the first time in more than a decade. “The trains ran on a perfect schedule and more than that, they did a good business,” The Record reports. Business appears better than expected despite a belt-line fare increase from ten to fifteen cents. “Of course there are a few who complained that fifteen cents is too much to charge between Troy and Albany,” our writer notes, “and among these was a citizen who declared that the company should be forced to operate trains every fifteen minutes and only charge five cents.” Rate increases also affect intermediate routes on the railroads. It now costs thirteen cents, for instance, to travel by train from Troy to Menands, or from Watervliet to Albany. “A number of passengers went to the ticket offices, slapped down a dime, and had to stop and think a minute while the man behind the screen held out for another nickel,” the writer observes. Demand proves strong for ticket books worth 54 fares on the belt line, and “most of the patrons expressed their satisfaction with the new schedule.” If fifteen cents seems too expensive, the United Traction trolley costs only ten cents from Troy to Albany.