Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-10-11


sipyuishipg and repairing street lamps aud p4s,ss
all Government tax, viii he - - per 900. and
in order ID justify 60 high price, he enumerated
the hIgh price Of articles ussd. as coal & 70 ~
cenu PIC iron SIS TO ESQ per ton. lime 90 to ;
cents castings. $40 TO $3.50 PER ton. De also
states that each bushel Of col makes one and
one fifth OF coke and thatihe Company sells ous
third Of TIE coke they make. equal to two-9ft.
the coal they buy. This. a, one bali the price.
would pay the cost of one fifth OF the coal. This
is. however 81 under- estimate. Oae busbei OF
coal will, after having been ssed for he gas.
leave one aud one.:hirt bushels OF coke. and vs
have Autheutic statements that the Gas Com
panies of Cincinnati aud Piitsburg both sell "a
much IL quantity "a eo.e tney buy Of cosi
Thus. given quantity Of osal is purchased, the
gas IL tsken out OF Il aud there IS suficien. coke
left 20 furnish the beat necessary and much
stll left IS equals in quantity the original coal
used and worth half the price aud the tar will pay
for the lime 20 that Of the coal and lime used She
real eapense Il only shout one bali the price OF
The coal the residuum paying the balance
la a few years. at most. whea the Danville and
Evansville Railroads ere flushed we will have
coal and iron as cheap any city in the United
States; and lime is found OF superior quality and
ine1haustible quantity within fifty miles Of ths
city, aud must. ia few ears. become very cheap:
and the same nav be said OF FIRE clay as there is
enough on the Tere Haute Railroad 10 supply
! the world
IL will be seen then that the GA item in which
there can DO much difference between us aud Gin
cinnAti, is the item of coal. Perhaps wo may
always be dependent upon the Ohio River for
gas coal. Three bushels will mako ]. 900 feet Of
gas. Suppose we allow Ten cents per bushel for
| the lacrosse In price here over CINCINNATI and
this Is more than enough aud then the cost for
900 feet would be 80 CENTS greater here than in
| Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Company proposes
to furnish to citizens for 81 60: adding 80 cents
would make 81 30 here. Ia CincinnEti they
propose 10 furnish the public lamps for
81 81 for the gas add 30 cents. making
81 81 for which it could tie furnished here
The Cincinnati Company propose TO furnish
cit zens at 81 60; Indianapolis. s. IL; difference
So cents Cincinnati street lamps. 81 or: Ind.
annapolis. 81 Il; difference. 81 81.
1 The President CT the Cincinnati Comp,ny said
the reason, OF one OF the reasons, they we're
obliged 20 fix the price OF gas so high as 81 4s
per 900 feet, was shat shs coal cos: them 30 10
DO cents. IL eau be delivered here for % cents
or cents per bushel less .hsn the least Cincin-
naH estimate so that Instead OF adding Oh 80
cents 10 the 900 fes. for the difference Ia the
price of coal between here and Cincinnati. We
would be'justIhable in taking OH IL, making
tne price to street lamps 81 -. and TO pgi, ate
consumers ~ I5.
The Cincinnati Company estimated pig iron a,
SIS u $50 per ton. IL i worth here $50 90
They estimate lime at 90 10 - cents per 5ushel
Its worth here 40 cents o.
| They estimated castings at Sll0 - $i30 per
ton worth here 500.
The Cincinnati Company were anxious to ob.
tain the grant at these proposed figures. much
below he offer here. aud based upon estimates
OF costs OF the main TENS much above what they
are here this time
Ii will be Remembered that she Cincinnati
| Company were exceedingly anxious to obtain an
| extension OF their grant upon these terms from
which we may infer they knew il would be profit
able.
by a provision OF their present charter, the CITY
has the right to buy ths works at price to be
| liked by appraisers. two selected by the Council
two by the Gas Company. and the iifth BY the
| four The Company do not wish to sell them at
. fair estmais. but desire to renew upon tho fore
gong terms, and hence We must inter that they
| regard il as desirable. and they have had
sufhclepI eIperlence 10 be able - rightly de
eide. t1 -
| Although their grant expires juno, aud
no probability Of their being able TO renew il upon
even these terms. for they we're rejected by tho
Council and regarded universally as too high,
YET their stock is nov worth Al H., which means
| that they are confident of renewal and yet
they Know It can only be hsd by proposing much
better terms than those above named
| There seems 10 be disposition the part Of
the Gas Company TO oifer to fx their prices by
those OF others throughout the country. This is
| not, however, a fair mode of determining the
question, Mos. OF these Companies were char.
tered q long time go and when their respective
cities were small and the matter but little under
stood. aud the charters in nearly every case leav
ing II to themselves to hx their own prices. The
COMMITTEE have found but one city in which there
| Is limit upon the prices the Gas Company might
charge. VIZ: Fttsbnrg, Pa; aud in Philadelphia
| aud Alexandra, Va, they are owned by the city
and when they have thus all over the country
fixed their prices at the very highest, they arc
then each willing 10 take for their standard OF
prices that Of the others whose interest and policy
Is Identical With their and il is in reality al
lowing them 10 be again the sole parties in o..
tsbiishing their own prices. to consent to follow
the prices of other Companies which had no limit
but their own will.
The true standard is not what prices other
Oompsnie', with no restraints but their own will
ara charging, but for what price can il &c reason
ably Afforded
I. is true there sre other considerations than
the mere cost Of the generation of the gas. Tie 4
amount OF capital invested in real estate mains
&c, and the amount consumed lie material cir /
cumstapce. indianapolis cannot expect gas as
cheap as city that consumes Z much larger
quantity. The cost of production is decreased |
IN proportion to the amount consumed ia in |
creased Indianapolis IS rapidly growing, and |
IL i. lair 10 iiX The price in view Of this fact In
granting charter for fifteen years. il would be |
fair 20 divide the advantages Of this expectancy
OF increase, and establish the price at rate ad
justed to A middle point OF consumption and as |
the Company would reap the benefit after il Was
passed. they could .ford TO be somewhat mod |
srato until II was reached. We must not est ab-
llsh the price upon the bsss of the present cor
sumption, which few years will largely ia !
cresss-indeed, increase every day after the date
OF the grant.
Tour Committee, ia view OF all the facts are |
willing to recommend extension Of the grant
TO the present Company FOR ffteea years, paying
them 81 40 per 900 feet FOR street lamps and |
city buildings, metre to be attached to each one
hundredth lamp, and taken as an average for the |
others; payment 10 be made. at present in |
city orders, and private consumers TO pay 50 per |
l 900 feet; the consumers to pay the Government
tax. and the CITY &c light. eItnguish. and repair
the street lamps. This is allowing 40 cents per /
QUO Tor private consumers. and 10 cents Der 0e0
for street lamps more than the Offer Of the Ciucn
natl Company, which they were anxious should /
be taken. aud which the Cosncil refused because |
they considered the charge as too high, ami thai;
too, after The matter had received careful iuves-
tgston
The SommiiIee ~Oali recommend Sue 10 ser
ton OF provision in the grant. in substance as
follows: That In the event of any invention I
=