Waterbury Democrat., 1900-12-13
Ml)NICIPAL PLANT,
Discussing the Advisability of
 City Ownership.
ELECTRIC LIGHT AGITATION.

1 '-"Hit cope 1ioiu mat The 'Clty
 Lighting Will Cost Nothing If a
 Plant Is Introduced-NIen Who For
 merly Opposed It Now In Favor Of It.
 The acton of the board of public I WHfkS iii calling attention to the ad- Visibility ot tHe cI!y doing it's own llShrlnG received a handsome endorse iIIrht yesterday when ;l dozen or more prominent Clj!ZcnS. who untII recent " Would not !lS1r!l to such q propOsi- oioll, got together and concluded that 1he time WaS ripe fni munIclp;I uWner-
 ship Of ;ln electric lighting plant and N"tlUtt iU take steps to petition the | Legislature fog permission to bond the
 cl}T 10 the amount of SlUOU0O for tne purpose uf going into tLu business of ! municipal lighting. It was stated that with the "onSOhUat@n of the town and ! city governments, which tIt meeting rrhSlucrpd an assured thing, t!Ie ie- i nNtn0 for electric lights will Dp 50 great that the city could net think uf meeting it at the price asked by the 1 local cO!EpanT and. that ill any case, it 1 Was the height Ui folly for Waterbury to h~ l}a,iii.s over $;lt'U ;t wear each for H!ectrlc lights when by doing it's own
 lighting il can have them for cunsider- ! ably less than half that amoUnj.f It i WAS stated that tiie t0SJ per light to 13~ Connections Lighting and Power | (" does not uX,'rel! S2., a year and l!.;it with proper management the city ! can conduct t!I~ business ill such q way
 No aS lo get it's own lighting fer notN- ing, the TcVpuUo from such lights and 1 electricity &S il r0Uld sell tu private i parties a!!u corporations meeting the
 
 . thInE k Fu>hVh and Tllr results should 1 prove altythinG at all like what these
 gentlemen claimed can h;' accomplish
 ~d, ttirn WatVrlurE will have rid -itSclf | of "!it pretty big item of expense and
 people in the outlEi.G districts aS well
 ;2% many right ill the heart of the city
 who have been cl!mUyin% for better : light in the nighttime. might hope to
 -ctt their petitions receive the atien-
 tt0: they think ought to have been l':.lu tO them long ago. but which W:3S out or tine question On account of the ' fact that the amount of IuuIlt.y ;IDDr0- 1 prI0ted every year fer this purpose i never W;!5 sufficient to go Epre or
 here upon meeting tie demands uf | the people. and it We have consolida- l ti0u the sit ts!u}i3u will }.e WOr,t. than ! ever, UnivSS We should sucrvrd i'll get i ling li@i:J; cheaper. either j,y going i into the business ourselves Ur hy d. r niG drop i'll prices on the part of the company.
 The agitation in favor of municipal 1 li&hlin- i'll Watcrbuly is nothing new. { The subject has been one of Mayor 1 hllHUii > pet hobbies for yvnrs but i Uniortuli"tply for Ill" taxpayers. the 1 Proposition never was regarded with i nal"h favor l,y any great number of 1 citizens until the last year or so when
 d lew thinking men who il;lI TcpCated- l Y SiI"VTtFi af Mayor I<ii@lun:$ position
 on this question began tu see ht, mat ter in a IlyW light and passed lh. word around that N'aterIury waS Iosins, ground every day by not doing its own lighting and soon half the town
 was ill favor of tic proposition. hu Ut thlI stag" of the %Hu?e the local ( pm Nany had get such :i grip on tGe people nlAnT thought that it would he folly to try ii. Things QTa@3t.1 f!Ollw this way until Il few weeks since when | Commissioner Whiting of the board of public works called attention 10 the matter at a meeting of the board and stated that he had it upon excellent authority that by doing it's own light ! ing 1hc city could save more than it i< now paying for lights and urged the apoiiitmunt of committee to in- Quirc into the situation and report ! back to the board at an early date. l The committed has not reported vet but the figures they have obtained as to the actual cost of an electric light plant will Startle the people when they hear them and no doubt will do much rewards prompting the public 10 urge the powers that be to do all in their power to secure such IegiSla- ton as iS necessary to authorize them to engage i'll the business and then go into it as soon a> possible.
 One of the most encouraging signs in connection with this renewal of agitation for municipal ownership re- @ardiu@ lighting. and other things are being talked of. too. is that men who opposed the question tooth and nail within th" past five years are now strongly in favor of il and if they mean business. and there is no good reason to question their honesty of purpose. their position upon these questions il: the past should not he held up against them. foE. perhaps. at that time they thought such q course would not pay and worked against il from the best Of motives ani continued to oppose it until they saw the error of their way and as soon as they saw their mistake haStencd to make amends for their l%ck of judgment in the past. when Il . united effort would save the city q vast amount of expense and no end of litigation before it rcgainS the valua- hle rights and privileges it gave to private corporations without any com pGnSation. It iS q hi" question and it will he interesting to see some of our neighhorS who always stood prepared to shout for the Traction company up iii arms against it now. Whatcver the outcome of the impending struggle. it is a big victory for Mayor Kildun. who c0nrcnded from the outset that the city should do it's own lighting and that the people would some day rise up en maSSe and demand a return of the franchises which their rcpresen- tativeS at Hartford and on the board Gf aldermen were passing out gratuit. ously to private corporations.
 FRIENDS OF BOERS.