Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1889-01-23
TIE ELEcrRIc LIeHrs.
NJ. r,,ner Gets Back at the Aldermen for
Their structures on Hin 81 the Last
Council Meeting.

Mr.. Tupper Gets Back at the Aldermen Tor
Their structures On Him at the Last
Council Meeting.
The severe structures passed BY the Alder.
men at the meeting Of the City Council last
Wednesday night upon the in which
the electric lights furnished to the city have
been maintained, have had anything but a
soothing effect on Mr.. Upper, the lessee oil
the Electric Light Works. Meeting q re-
norter Yesterday afternoon he stated that
he had lust received a letter from the man
seer Of the works in Helena concerning the
price paid by that city for it's electric light
ing which is $40 q month per lamp. The
light there is not as strong as that fur
nished in Butte, their candle power being
only 1000 while that Of Butte is 1000.
He continued: "This Council is pursuing
the same tactics as the last. Ihey wan
to cut me down utterly regardless OF une
amount they are paying. 1 gee 2
month for all-night outside lamps, ana l
have no trouble from them. Yousee, ifany-
thing goes wrong with the lamp OF a private
CONSUMER he telephones meat the works at
once that something is the matter and 1
nave it rectifed at once. But II one OF the
CITY lights does not work, I'm never noti-
fed. First one policeman comes along and
notes it down; then another comes by and
notes it and there may be two
sor three notes OF the same lamp
each of which is made a separ-
9ate fault OF mine. | got a buggy
especially to attend to these city lights and
every night after they are turned on / or
one OF the men goround to each one to see
1 khau all rsuh< prt t eonff no 00inp /
round to them all night. II they were mott
fled at the works when one oil the city
lights goes out as private consumers DO,
there would be no trouble"
docs il cost any more to an electric
plant here thar in other places?n
''The expense OF running the plant here
is Just double what it is in Salt Lake, Hell
,ena or anywhere else. These aldermen have
sized me up and they want to swamp nae.
II the city does not want my lights at the
price it can leave them, | am supplying it
at a loss. / ought to get at least as much
here as they pay in Helena; in fact, mure,
for they only three-ffths of the light there
that / furnish. The Aldermen here have
no idea OF what q proper remuneration is.
All they want is to cut me down. Why,
when q committee OF the last Council came
to me and talked about the extravagant
price the city We paying, | asked them
how much it was inc they didn't know.
But my lease only has a short time to run"
"How does the price OF lighting here COM
pare with other places2" !
"I'm lighting cheaper here than it is fur , ,
nished in any other town in the United !
States. / can satisfy n private consum- !
er and do. do twice the work that was =
done before I came here. When / assumed 9
charge Of these works they were fur '
nishing forty-nine lamps: now, there !
are over a hundred and I claim they are Il
better than they ever were-clearer, 9
burn more sceadily. maintain :
the electric lights are giving better service I
than they ever did. The expenses at the ! !
electric works are great, and there is an =
other cause that I nave to contend with 9
here that does net exist anywhere else" :
What is that?" !
''The smoke stains the rod and it can't !
feed. The chemicals just settle on it thick l
and corrode the rod, completely running g
v