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THE OREGON SUNDAY JOURNAL; PORTL'AND. . SUNDAY -. MORNING. .MAY t 28;-190J.
-:'----v
our Judgment, ther la nothing, so far
as th past U encrnel, requiring leg
islative action. As tO"th tuture,-th
prioe to b paid fOn gaslights may
-v- : : 'Xit'sImerelyajviatter of pressure. " '-- -J-"-;
) -r hi : . : rrr i .
.'.-'
i j 'ir ;sr r - " r ; i ixt
- i 'rfmC'" 1 ... ' : rr-yy i i ' i
i i T-T-. - -ltumiiiu uiiinn . - -mi - -
""' ' " J :' ' - V " ''' 'Lly-'
; r How the Nww York Amirfettr Viawa lh 'Cat Grab.- - -
G AS everyVhVrlk In . tha ." New
TorK legislature. Greater New
-'ToHt "city "council." Phlladet
. -1 -1 T phlacotwcil. New Jersey and
he ' other eastern centers tuara
aaf'for weeks; 3osl f
few leaks hera and there. Oaa mont
la aald. to hava Taatherad, aevaial ta
for legislators, who defeated tha bill to
gtra -eent gaa to New Torn.
PhlladelDHIa had tha next wonder.
which ranks higher than- tn-aeventhv
of tha political world. Tha council or
the boss-ridden. Quaker city has agreed
to convey to the Philadelphia, gas trust
for 125,000,000 righta and Interests con
servatively valued at from 1100.090.000
to 1150,000,000. All-of thle cam to
pass through the Influence of gas, which
la aald to deaden tha councilman's sense
of values. In other words, tha vener
able elty fathere went to alp without
turning the gaa off. and the fat of
their progeny whan they awoke was en
tangled In a 70-yar contract with a
gaa combine. Tha people's protest
against this Iniquity; however, has not
yet been silenced. ' "
- Tammanyhallggald to hav smelt
"gas." Three of the wigwam's proud sen-tera'-who-weBiit-
to Albany have
not had the courage to return to their
homes since the legislature adjourned
May 6. It la feared that they are wholly
asphyxiated, while their friends freely
forecast a worse fate should they face
an tneensed constituency.
Municipal ownership has been given
a tiemendoua impetus by revelations in
bolh. JJewJfprk and Philadelphia. New
York's legislative committee, headed by
Senator Btevene, found, that the cost of
manufacturing gas lnr-New York City,
and delivering It to -the receiver waa
from to to 85 'cents a thousand cubic
feet. Distribution was estimated at It
to 20 cents. Fifty cents was placed as
.a safe maximum for all the cost of man
; uj acture, - distribution, administration,
tile. This same product was being sold
to the consumer at II per 1,000 cubic
feet, representing a profit, so the inves
tlgatora aay, of nearly 100 per cent.
. But the man who sees In public own
ership the panacea for ilia, la confronted
with the Philadelphia Instsrrce, and
a,xkeI to explain. Philadelphia con
cluded to lease its plant In 1897, and
now tha council, before the lease ex
pire. Im lying the city up in a lease of
nearly 100 years' duration, receiving in
return what th city urgently needs Im
mediately rash. Phlladelphln Is said
to preaent a poor prospect of the mu
nicipal ownership or even munlolpal
control policy. ' But it la not taken, by
Dunne following as final. That city
, By Kargarst S. Sang-stsr.
I WAS talking one day with sur Kng-
Ish girl of good family whose
' father had been on Intimate terms
wiln a certain great parsopage.
"Do you mean to ssy," I said, "that this
man Of world-wide fame actually was
a guest at your house more than onceT"
--"Ye," she said. - "h i "'dlnea" ther
"quite often." , .
' '"And did you ever ee him?"' I said. -
Oh, no." waa the reply; '"certainly
not. I was a child and in the nursery
or the schoolroom, as It happened to be
-wherever I belonged In those days."
" The remark Indicates the difference
between therys' of tralnlnr to which
children are subjected In English and
American homes. Over her psrents are
so proud of their offspring and so snx
lous to show them off that th little
things are trotted out and mad to 'go
through their paces, and put on exhibi
tion whsnevfr-.visitors are preaent or
ther la an opportunity todrply their
elvernei. . - . v
Aj tew weeks ago. on a atrsmer en
ijo-U' to Jamaica, ihrr were a nutnocr
was the homa of Tjoar f 1 now,TUled
by a hew and mightier boss. Israel W.
Durham,-tinder whom every publlo-Tfrt-
Irons ge pi posal bl e-ouro - o rre ve n ue
i da political spnll. ano tnis,
It la aald. eliminates . PMiadeipUUiis.
an exAmpXTTTor- ai(j' thing except . per
fection In political corruptlon--
- "kew TorK isveVrtigatee. r. - ---
Owing, to th- outcry agalnat the gas
trust In New York, which floats under
the legal cognomen of Consolidated Gas
company, " there" was a legislative 'In
quiry, which covered much of the 10
daya of' the State's legislative session.
Senator Btevene headed thia Inquiry.
It proceeded In New York, calling before
the. Inquisitors the management of the
gas company. The results of this in
quiry caused something of a sensa
tion,' and is embodied In the following
recommendations mad to the legisla
ture: . ' : T"-"
-""That the price eof gar sold lntn
boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn
and in that of the borough of Bronx
west of the Bronx river should be fixed
at a maximum, of jt .cents perl,000
cublo feet.- - -
"Tbat. Ihn 'jirraauraof gas In any of
the street mains should not be permit
ted to exceed A Inches ;or;to be less
than 1 Inch. " ' I
That the sUndard of purltjTand of
Illuminating power of gas be fixed.
"That a proper system of Inspection
be provided to secure the enforcement of
the law with reference to - pressure,
purity. Illuminating power and accurato
measurement of th gas dellvered.l!.-rr
That the price of electric current
forTheatrilghfhapower-puTposeslnjof gas"poorenhan the standard - re -
the boroughs of Manhattan and Brook
lyn and In that part of the borough of
Bronx west of the Bronx rlrer, ahould'
be fixed at a maximum of 10 cents per
kilowatt hour of current actually con
sumed, and that provision should be
msde for Inspection to secure accurate
metering.
"That the price of are lamps for street
lighting in the c(ty of New York should
be fixed at tl00 per lamp per year for
single are lamps or. J.OOO candle power,
consuming 450 datts at the are, and that
the price of twin are lampa, consuming
2T.0 watta each at the arc, should be
fixed at MS each per year. '
"That the city of New York be given
authority to utilise water! power, now
owned, or hereafter a on ill red by It, for
the purpose of generating electric cur
rent for- the. us of the municipality,
provided that no additional water ahall
b used for said purpose than would
otherwise be required by the city.
. ''That provision ahould b made for
the creation of a commission, the mem-
- .---'.-'i -
of children. Severn! belonged to Amer
ican families, while others to perhaps
in fl.ua.r number were of foreign par
entage. Th little German children be
haved with perfect propriety. ' The lit
tle English maidens, on their way to
a station to which their father, a Brit
ish officer, had bewn ordered, obeyed
with - military - precision and unruffled
sweetness whenever they were to,ld to
do this or that at th wish of their
parent. They were little girls of I and
10, but they had" their slmpl supper
at half par.t five, and wer seen no
more for the rest of the day. In con
trast with the well-bred little foreigners
was an American boy who did nothing
that h was told to, who trampled
rudely over everybody's rights, and re
versed . th proper order of things by
commanding Wa mother) Instead of ac
cepting command from ' her. "Young
America," observed a tourist from over
the sea. sol to voce, to a friend from
the Dominion' of Canada. in other
nnddtd . cnmprehendlngly. The feet Is
that Amertaen. children are brought up
loo much In public,, and that loo much
ber of which' ahould be"appoIhtedy
the governor, with the conaent of the
senate, to be paid by the State, and to
of all persons
corporations having authority " to
rss and nilwtalu wires or. pipes
for the purpose of furnishing gas or elec'
trlclty . for light, heat nr nnwar, with
power to investigate and ascertain the
character of the service and reaaonabl
ness of charges, and th methods em
ployed In manufacture and distribution;
to subpoena witnesses sod to take tes
timony to supervls Issues and In
creases cf securities. Investments In the
stocks or bonds of th companies an
transfers of franchises."
Prodaotlon "dost Low.
The report says that tha average cost
to the Consolidated for manufacturing
gaa In th paat four years, was 16.
cents per 1,000 cublo feet, distribution
lt.t cents and general ., expenses t.5
cents, making a total coat of 67.7 centa,
and contlnuea: '
"Wo are satisfied that a price of 76
cent per 1,000 cublo feet will b fair to
th consumer- and -will- afford -tothe
companies a reasonable return upon
capital-. ."" . w-
"Thla appllea to. the borough of Man
hattan, the. borough, of. Brooklyn and -a
large part of the borough of The Bronx.
In our opinion It would not be just to
mske such a rate applicable to the more
sparsely settled sections of the city of
New York, in which, owing to local
conditions, the coat of manufacture and
distribution la necessarily higher.
The inveatlgatlon has shown- dearly
that hv InnrMsinar tha nreaaiir a aualltvl
quired by law may b mad to furnish
a required degree of Illumination, thus
entailing an increased consumption at
an Increaaed coat to the consumer.
"The evidence has also Shown that
there is at preaent no official Inspection
in any borough of the city except Man
hattan, and that the Inspection In the
last-named borough is too .Infrequent
to be adequate. - -
"We are also satisfied that electric
current can be furnished for light, heat
and power purposes st a maximum
prlc of 1Q cents per kilowatt hour for
the current actually consumed, and thet
this rate will permit a proper return to
the companies, over and above all ele
ments of cost, upon their sctusl Invest
ments In the business. We also think
that there should.be an adequate sys
tem , Of Inspection, particularly of me
ters, so ss to assure a charge only for
the actual current furnished.
'The question of ths city's liability
for lights furnished in the years 10J
and 110 Is now before the courts. In
FAILURE .vTOTRAIN-GHILDREN
attention is paid to them, and that ths
cardinal foundation stone of good man
ners and good morale. Implicit "Obedi
ence, haa been largely left out Jn the
Character building'' of American child
ren. While It Is true thst ths children
of wealth ere vry carefully instructed,
that they have every advantage, tha
their health la carefully looked after,
and. that they have eoclal training froni
kindergarten to college, It Is still equally
true that they die tat too much and are
entirely too much In th foreground of
lif. Our atmospher Is extremely stim
ulatlng. and Jt Is a mournful fact that
little men and women of 10 and 12, ven
In guarded and protected affmea, know
far, too much of th evils that are In
the world. They are often left by faeh
lonabl mothers snd , money-making
fathers to th doubtful Influeno t
servants wh6 sre both vulgar and im
scrupulous. r - '
- Coming to th horn of the, middle
olass. of the people .who lltfa In a good
deal of comfort, w find mucH toiromi'
plalrf of In the undue freedom accorded
to childhood. la great city like New
citye orncers : . .... .
--?-Wirn-Tegrar"tolectritcurrenCf,f
arc lamps, however,, -we are of .the
opinion that the price -'per-lamp of the
tncroeed are lamp tar atreet lighting
of 2.00Q "candle-power? Consuming atthe
are 460 watt of electric current, should
not txcMd ttOO'Ter 1amp"",per"yerr and
that the price of twin lampa that la.
two lamp suspended from a single poet
anil consuming each-ISO watta at the
arc ahould " not " exceed- tt& each -per
lamp per year. - ; i , y
' "We are alao of the opinion that the
city ahould be given authority to utlllie
water-power now owned, or ,. hereafter
acquired bv It for the purpose of gen
erating electric current for th uaetof
ha municipality, provided th
dltlonal water, shall be used for said
purposes than would, ptherwlae.be. re- I
quirea ty the city, we are aavisea mil
there w(TI be no difficulty In utllialng
the watcr-powen of the city for th
purpose of generating electrlo current
for. Its -user without increasing the total
consumption of water by tha elty. - ;.
rTaklne Into "consideration th origi
nal coat of lta properties, we. hav no
reason to believe that the company has
underestimated . their. . value, and our
conclusion based upon th sworn state
ments of the officers of th Company,
la thaf"ln faliTvalu "Of "IJsTgas-Jmalrtng
plant, Includlngwhatever franchises It
may own. does not exceed ths -sum of
$jo.ooo.eo ;, ;
- Tha algnlflcanre of this estimate on
the value of the gaa company's tangible
assets Is appreciated when considered
wrththa fact that tha-mpanyaiq
corporated for 1 100,000,000, and that
last year It is credited with, earning IT
per cent on thia cepltalliatlon. of which
earning percent "waa paid - In-dlvW
denda and the remainder held aa da-
preclatlon charges.
Xxpsr Xerealed Traod.
Whlle the legislative commute was
nroMOutlng Its inquiry, Professor IJal-
Hck-r- the Columbia university was
secured lo make teete or th purity or
th gas. Its pressure and other condi
tions as the same was furnished to the
univaraitv. H testified that th com
" pan y w s-ushig-an-lnf r lorquallty . o f
gaa, jtna cringing in luuraiwimu up
th atandard st 2i candle-power by In.
creasing the pressure. The effect ol this
practice would be to increase the bill
of the consumer "60 to 180 per cent
while- obtainingthe same amount -of
light. His examination before the com
mute Is en Interesting chapter on gas
standards and -requirements:
Q. Can an .Inferior quality or gas
amount of light T"Ar 1 1 an;r If th flow
of gaa be permitted to increase,
Q: "" A nd "can that xtra- amount be
obtained by Increased pressurT A. Yes,
It can. -.- - ---. - ' V" -i - -
Q. Dld -y ou. observe that w'hen an
inferior ualUjr-aa-jent-thrqughlh e
mains there wai an Increase of pres
sureT A. That - fact - was-apparaut i.
q nid that' lncrcadUrssur- al
low 'a greater.r quantity to b delivered
at-the burner to maintain, th required
amount of 'llgtu? A. --H aid. -
Q. What effect "upon- the consumer
has Increased - pressure wits -Inferior
the consumer DumrThoTe gas.
For ths
aM IHwmlnatlon I
gas and pays mors money. rr-
"A rertain amount or niuminawun
lats 1ft a cubic foot of gas." explained
the witness. . 'Tf the quality be good
It produces a high candle power; if the
quality be poor th cubic foot of gas
produces a smaller quantity of light,
if.; however, an Inferior Quality--- be
forced through the pipes by greater
pressure, the candle power at the bur
ner may still be maintained.
"For example. If you have one euble
foot of good gas snd that be mixed
with one half a cubic foot of air you
get a lower candle power. But If you
Increase the pressure and force that, one
and' one half cublo feet of gas and atr
through the burner In th sam spacf
of time required by the one foot of
good gaa, you get the same amount of
Illumination. -- 'w-" " "
"In making these calculations I have
taken gaa at It candle power as ths
baals, rstlng that as 100 and figuring
my percentages accordingly."
..---i- ajelllBf .Impure Air. "
"Now;-xe!almedT- Mrv-Hughs-"ll
gas of tt candle power la charted at tl
per 1.000 cubic feet, what would be the
cost to the consumer of various Inferior
grades, sufficient to produce the sams
illumination T" -
"Seventy-five per cent quality, or It. I
candle powerljeplled ProfessorlIalT
lock. "WOUla COST, in BUCn a case, I in
f4 - rdliiaopenfl
tl.tO In the Welabach burner, to pro
duce the same amount of illumination
as 1,000 cublo feet of 13 candle power
gas." .
"Let us have this 'clear.' said -Mr.
Hughes. "If a man paid tl per 1.000
for 31 candle power gaa and was fur
nished only lt.t candle power, but the
additional amount of gaa required to
make up the tt candle power was forced
through the pipes by Increased pressure
'would he have to pay $3 to get his full
amount of ltghtf
"Yes, approximately thai sum."
"If this quality supplied was II" can
dle power, what would he have lb pay 7"
'"He would have to pay somewhere
between tl-76 end tt per 1,000 cublo
feet because so mucn more gas or in
ferior quality Is required to produce
the same smount of Illumination. I do
not mean that the company's rate of
charge .Is hanged, but the consumer
would have to pay from tl.7 to tl
for the amount of gas it II eandle
power. burned to produce the asm 11-
York there Is no pi ace where children
can play- blttle boya and girls st sn
age when games begirt td be an absorb
ing Interest, snd real necessity, have no
playground. They muat work off their
superfluous, energy somehow", and they
do It by making perfect terrors of them
taelves. They throw atones at automo
biles, they tie tin pells to the tails of
unoffending dogs, they pursue unfor
tunat cat srltu .. ticks' and missiles,
they draw strings over th sidewalk,
which trip tip unwary feel. It Is diffi
cult to say what mischief they leave
undone. A great deal of this Is due to
pure thoughtlessness, . and . It not
meant In malic, but th results to a
long suffering publlo ar the sams. '
We expect modesty and sweetness and
gentle decorum from our tittle girls, but.
in our crowoea lown, unvra ones, large
families ar crammed Into vary close
quarters, now that summer le earning
on.lhe children, boys and girls alike, are
thrust Into the streets to play. .Th lit
tl girls learn to utter rude repartee,
they grow familiar with profanity, they
see sights , whlchv should never-b-us-
i eT ;
7-M - --,4, --7 - -
' - , ' ' -; --y .-: . Another New York American Cartoon. , r fc ,r
il
lumination
tLthaLh-lTiyilfJ llAHCfcUEfic4
vortli of 23 candle power gaa..'
"Jtr'oni'iirwortu
'.'I made-further leal
consumed in various forms ofburners.
The ordinary lava tip burner Is. rated
to consume Ave cubic feet per hour, 1
On March 29 the tests showed that this
burner consumed . cublo feet per hour
ht giving ll.t candle power."
following thia Inquiry and Ihe repert
to the legislature nidh'gted aogVe7tTl
bills 4o red u7-the prk)-f - ga and
electricity. The bills fixed a schedule
for- both lllumlnanta, graduating it ac
cording to conditions attending manu
facture. Qas was . fixed for most of
New York at the general figure of 55
cents snd electricity for 10 cents a kilo-"
wat hour. Th committee had alao rc
ommended a state . gaa . commission,
which was to Investigate conditions, re
garding Illumination and endeavor to
regulate auch publlo convenlencea. All
portion of the bill xop ht ervatlng
th commission, were defeated, which
cauaed an uproar In New York when
the newa waa sent down.
Boss Murphy of Tammany hall, was
- ssld to-favor T6cent gas-and 10 ,cent
electrlclty, even though his men had a
minority position on the Stevena Inves
tigating committee, but they were re
ported to be agalnat a state commission.
Despite this announced standing of
Murphy, It was noted that Just enough
Tammany legislators voted to defeat
the bill, which In its final form had been
amended-to make to cent gas. Publlo
roraor Tia-rt-thatMurphy-was-dlB-
pleaaea witn tnis action or ni
men.
and that he would -read them out fit
th organisation, but th public was not
disposed to credit this proceeding as
more than a program to keep up ap
pearances. - - -. - ,, r
rhOadslphia's aoads.
In Philadelphia the situation was set
ef OM " "City Tuunell Instead of a iegla
lature. and the queatlon was of a differ
ent order. In this, Philadelphia aeeks
to sell its rights In the publlo service,
the council has tied th city by a long
time contract, and the agreement pre
vents . any material, reduction of - th
price of gas for a generation or more.
Kor more than a acor of years po
litical scandal has centered to a greater
or less degree about ths Philadelphia
gas works. In the early eighties, when
the plant waa administered by a close
municipal corporation known as the
gas trust and endowed with extraordi
nary powers, ths members of that body
became th. moat powerful political fac
tors In the Quaker City. -The names
of McManra and Leeds were names to
conjure with In those days. " Vaat was
the patronage of the old gas trust and
almost unlimited was the power of the
men who used It for partisan or per
sonal ends. . Maladministration arrd
scandal 'left a malodorous -trail liOhe
wake of the gae trust. Not a few of
veiled before their eyes.' One cannot
wslk through certain quarters of New
T or sr "downtown tnthe populous east
side, or In some portions of the west
side, wlthotit having a bitter heartache
at the loss of sweet Innocence that al
ready Is written , on many a . childish
face. '''..' . - .. .. '
One-may suggest that tha" school
should do more than they do In the way
of prevention and cure. Alt honor to
th hard-working teoher.--They ara a
refining and elevating force. By precept
and example, by untiring energy, they
strive to mold the youthful mind, and
they .Instill principles of altruism and
of correct-deportment.. No words tn
their praise ran be overestimated, or
reach th limit of exaggeration. But
they hav th children for. only a part
f th day," It Is Idle to expect much im-.
provement through the efforts of the
police:' To arrest a child and commit It
to a cell la to glve.lt th first fatal
downward push. Th children Of the
poorer portion of the community regard
the poll. ss their Natural tnemlf. and
often keep a sTuard stationed on tlm out
skirts of their play, at the edge pf a lot
aid. At IhkIt it passed out or existence
1 iu-XS8S. Nw Jaadsts-cama to ths front
i anith cur administered. Jhe sTSS woiti
as a municipal bureau wun-varying
deg.ree.s.xt. profit. anLJbsbut usually
'with the profligacy that tainted all
Philadelphia politics of the period. -This-cosdttlon
continued untltlt9T,
-when h United Oaa Improvement com
'hly capitalised -concern, tl J
rhlra rrn Thomas Imlan
and .other -Phttadelphlana ot-Jarge
jnea ns. made a propos ltlon to leas and
pperate the gas works. By th terms
of this lease the United OA Improve
ment company bound Itself to operate
4 h plant for a period-of 10- yeara; or
until December 1.- IttT;- to. urrender
the plant to th. city at th expiration
of JO years, or In 1107, ahould tha .city
elect to take it back at that time, upon
payment of the actual coat of all exten
sions snd Improvements made during
the interim-- by - t h lease - - company,
with per) "cent Interest; to surren
der the plant, with sll extensions and
Improvements, free of charge to the city
at the expiration of the full term of the
lease (n 1127. - ' - - - ;- -
Terms of Old Xtsaaa.
It was; alao agreed that the com
pany leasing the works should reduce
the price of gas to ths consumer at any
time after the expiration of the first 10
year period to such a figure as ths city
might name, - provided the percentage
of the reduction ahould not be greater
than the city's percentage of the reve-
nner-Trom-nhe-Bal-of-gas--The--cm4
pany further bound Itself to pay to the
city In returw for the leas th follow
ing proportions of Its gross revenues
from the sale of gas:
"On gas sold prior to January 1,1108,
all receipts in excess o 90 cents per
1.000 cublo feeU.OE.10 per cent st the
l AAA aala
" ' m . ' " .... I
fJrn "r.? n? 'uttZftT ToliTconflrmlng thaleas "becomes a law; til.-,
enues in excess of 15 cents per l.OOi I ."iw.k.. ions- ssnnnAnA ni -
revenu
cublo feet-
"During the next five year period sll
in excess of -10 cents per 1,000 cublo
feet.- -
-"During -the -next and concluding -10
year period all revenues In excees of It
cents per 1,000 cublo feet."
Under this plsn it will be seen, pro
vision, was made for k gradual scaling
down of the price of gas to the con
sumer at the will of the city councils
during the 10 year leasehold from tl to
71 cents per 1.000 feet, the latter figure
to be realised during the final 10 yeara
should the municipality so elect. If.
on the other hand, the city preferred -to
maintain , tha price at tl per 1,000
throughout th entire 10 year term the
leaae waa ao drawn that the municipal
ity would get the full benefit of the ad
ditional revenues, for meeting Its current-expenses
and during the concluding
10 year period would receive St per cent
of the gross receipts from the sa'.a of
or on a" curbstone, or somewhere on ths
rim of the smaller parks, to. give warn
ing should "YOp"-appr.-One moment
the children are tn full cry; the next
moment tbeyjiuve disappeared a -If th
earth had opened and swallowed them,"
and- not Infrequently in their - frantic
ruah to cover they upset soma old gen
tleman or timid lady who is pursuing
a homeward way In a dignified peace.
The real hope for Improvement and
oetterment-Mn . this particular may be
aummed up In a word. Better horn eon
dltlons will solve the problem. To
reach the children hne must reach the
parents..,rarentai Ideal must be raised
and parental Intelligence Increaaed. We
need all of us to realise th true impor
tance of chlld-Ilfe aoclety. The 'neigh
borhood settlements which ar spring
ing up sit over New York City ar bea
con lights hi the surrounding darknaas.
Wherever there IS a settlement, whether
of young men or young women, there la
found the nucleus of betterment for Ihe
boys snd .girls of the neighhortmod. 1
am more and more Impressed with the
need and brnetVenre, of the settlement
in -every ,?rt ef a l.r;i c:ty. it give
s-. . - . , . Tr-rr ., r-..- -J.--..-. '-- VI
..: ' 1 ' . ' ..u
'0 1 4 art"' elsw"
during the first 10 year period.
It was not without warm, opposition
that this 0 years' lease to the United
On Improvement company was rati-
fled la-lt7 It -was -urged,--tiowever.
that large expenditure were urgently
needed to make the plant modem and.,
adequate to the- city's needs, that the
file waa mil MrTn'Hiia"HlieiiMiir-
funds - wherewith" to mnk the lm-""
proremcnts except by la f geTyTtwa n fT"
th-ta rate and that an Increased tax ;
rats would be
Vroflta of th City.1 .
Under ths lease of 1S07, now about to
be abrogated, there was actsally paid
into th city treaaury -during th year
ended December 11. 1904, th sum of 66o.
000, as the municipality's share of th r
revenue from the sale of gaa. On this
baals, without taking Into account at alt - '
the Inevitable Increase in gas receipts., ,
which must corns with a rapidly growing, . .
population, the clty'e cash revenues dur
ing the 23 years of lite remaining In th
old leaae would aggregate a total of
more than 2.000,000, or t4.00t.00O tat excess -of
the sum for which, the city councils
ars now preparing to surrender all right
and title In the property during a period
of 75. years. -
Under the old agreement of 1807, taking'
Into account the cash revenue due dur
ing the remaining 21 years, th Inevitable
Increase In the number of consumers and .
tha gas consumed and the Improved and.-,
extended condition of the plant at' the".
tgrmlnatlon.oftha30 year leasehold.
authorities estimate that th true value
of the old lease to th .city for the re
maining; 23 years It should yet run la
from tl50.000.000 to 3176.000,000.
In exchange for all th city give up.
It receives for its treasury from th
United-Oas-Inrprovement companthe
sum of t26.000.000; the first 61.000.000 to b
r iA tvllhln 91. Aavm si ftst Iha flPrllnanril
000,000 on December 15. loot; Is, 500,000 oaf
December 15, W. and U.tOO.OOt oa Decem
ber 15. 1907. 1 These payments the city
sgrees to accept In lieu of all Its rights
In thegssworks during Jhenext75
years. " '
By way of Justification of the bargain
the only argument appears to be that th
city needs th money and needa It lm-.
mediately. It I urged that the treasury
Is almost empty, that th debt limit has '
been almost reached, and that money is
urgently needed not only for publlo Im
provements, suoh as new boulevards and
parkwaya. the elimination of grad
crossings and th1 Improvement of paved
highways, but' also to meet prospective
deficits in current expenses of various
City departments. . i
Again the old argument le revived
that the people win, not- tolerate . an
Increased rate of taxation and that the
practical Bale 'of th gas plsnt Is th
only wsy to raise tha, necessary money.
a social opportunity to th young which
they can receive Just now In no other
way.--Th children ar taught-th la
of kindness. Until something la don
for th right' training of our children
they will continue to menace good or- ,
der, to disturb- society and to bring re- -proarh
upon our good nam. America
children are the brightest and sweetest
and mjost teachable children In th.t
world. It Is .their mlefortune, not their .
fault, thatjn elty Ufa they ar so badly
started. A aavlng breath, pf commort
sense, a recognition of a growing evtl,
and endeavor-on 'the "part ef every
one concerned to right It, would aoon
work an Improvement. It is a cae
wher vr,ybody, rich and poor, learne.l
and unlearned, for the eake of Ihe coun
try we )ov and Ihe next general l.nr.
Should lend a band.
Boat An Aaaww at Oac.
From th Loulsvill llernH,
' ?Men's hearta srs." ssvs I't. I
"filled with lonelng for Borne"' -
and finer.'' v i r, iiin. i
tste shout t I n r i ' f
9--t f r v ?
V