The Portland daily press., 1897-05-14

If you desire such dividend, and wish
to join with the City of Portland in ask
ing for the same, and passing the neces-
sary votes to obtain it, please sign and
return to us Immediately, the enclosed
proxy, filling in the date. If you have
already signed proxy authorizing some
other person to act for you, without the
knowledge of the foregoing facts, by sign
ing the enclosed proxy you will revoke
the former proxy and authorize us to act
for you.
Very truly yours,
CHARLES II. RANDALL, Mayor,
JOHN T. PAGAN,
Chairman of Board of Aldermen,
HARRY r. VIRGIN,
President of Common Council
Committee
Manifestly this is a move on the part of
the city government to avert the increased
rate of taxation which is threatened this
year by the extraordinary expenditures
necessitated by Tukey's bridge and the
Munjoy schoolhouse. The city owns 100
shares of gas stock, and dividend, such
as is suggested by the circular, would
yield it $42, 500-a sum large enough to
very materially help the taxpayers, in
the present emergency. 1t will be a sur
prise to most people to learn that the Gas
Company has so large a surplus on hand.
We have been told within year or two
that the company had SO reduced it's sur
plus by its previous special dividends as
to make it unsafe to draw upon it any
further, and now we find that it has on
hand an amount nearly equal to its CAPT.
ta1 stock II, Of j, Sc,
company have very exalted ideas as to the
amount necessary to provide for contin-
gencies or the accommodations within the
last year or two have been remarkably
rapid. Most people will be likely to
agree with the committee that surplus
able bounds. The company has an ex-
elusive franchise, which is practically
perpetual, and consequently it need have
no fear of a rival and hence no fear of ru-
inous competition. All the surplus it
needs is enough to renew such portions of
its plant as wear out from time to time
and to provide the necessary insurance
fund. A hundred and fifty thousand dol
lars would seem to be ample to do this.
All above it ought to be divided
among the stockholders.
And while we maintain as purely bust
ness proposition that a part of this surplus
should be handed over to the people to
whom it belongs, we also assert that there
is another good reason why it should
be distributed. No such surplus as is re-
ported could have been accumulated I'M
less the price of gas to consumers in years
past had been unnecessarily high. 1t
must have been wrung out of the tax
payers of the city of Portland. Now the
taxpayers ask that in their distress some
of it be returned to them in the shape of
a special dividend. 1t is a reasonable
and equitable request.
No harm will come to any owner of gas
stock by reason of the special dividend
asked. The market value of the stock
may be temporarily cut down little, but
its income will not be reduced and as
the stock is generally held for investment,
the slight reduction in value will really
affect no one. On the other hand raise
down much lower than will be the case
without this dividend. The request of
the committee seems to be so fair and
just, and its suggestion SO clearly in
the interest of private holders of
gas stock as well as other property
holders, that it is difficult to see how it
can be refused.