The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-01-07
Local Taxation--The Water Question.
Continued from Fourth Page. ]

city should have done it. or for sani-
 tary purposes, and the public conven- fence, even if it had been done at loss,
 but as an investment, no good reason could have been offered. When in vestors were solicited to enter into this ! enterprise was there any scramble to | get the stock, The late Henry S. Daw- son. so long connected with the Water ! company, told the writer not long be-
 fore his death, in speaking of the diffi-
 culties at first in inducing people to 1 take stock in the company, and by 1 many, the enterprise was considered
 chimericaL. It was said Sell water! Who will buy water? Why. everybody has a we'll" It is a matter of history how the project might have been de- layed many years except for one man of large means, and much public spirit. It may be that at that time some might
 have been found who objected to hav- ing the streets torn up, and the public disconnected, and thought 1t would be
 a good thing to prevent such unwise
 persons from fooing away their money. The investment, after many years.
 having proved to be profitable far be- yond expectations, is this good reason why the public should share in this
 good luck? If it is, then every fortu-
 nate investor ought to divide up with
 the public. and when this is done, in
 order to be consistent, the public in
 turn should reimburse the unfortunate
 investor for his losses. Then we are
 swiftly on the highway to socialism,
 pure and simple. There are some great
 principles involved here, which are far
 reaching, more so than many are aware
 of. The investor, desiring to get re-
 turn for the use of his money, finds @
 great variety of securities. if he desires
 what seems to be an absolute security,
 there is government and state bonds,
 but the income from these is small;
 then the savings banks, which pay
 some more; next real estate security,
 which is some higher, but may involve
 loss, because of depreciation of values
 in the security The list of what is
 called first class securities is limited,
 and beyond these, putting all classes to-
 gotber the losses in this country the
 last one hundred years have been enor-
 nous, probably exceeding one half the
 original investments. This is especial
 ly true at the west, of railroad invest
 ments. What sad history, usually the
 first stockholders lost all, and often
 the bondholders lost also, because when
 they got hold of the property it would
 not pay running expenses. Then fol- low ''reorganizations," till all semblance of original ownership was wholly wiped out. But the early building of these means of communication was a great ta on ha ba,l,> In an early development, not only the west but the manufacturing sections of the country, by enlarging the markets for cur goods and greatly reducing the price of what we needed to buy of them. Those communities at the west who granted assistance to help build these roads got some advantage in return. but to others it was absolute loss. But some few of these enterprises, from favorable conditions. have after a few years been successful in the way of re- turns on the investment. When this is so the local feeling towards them Is about what it is towards our water hence this granger" legisla- ton in many states, in efforts to compel a divide up,' because the stockholders are getting little more than If in gov- ornment bonds. The writer for many years travelled much in the west and is with this matter
 But to come nearer home: one of the . first railroads built in our state was the Housatonic, running from Bridge port 100 miles to the State line making a connection with the Boston and AL bany railroad to the city of Albany | It was thought this must be safe in- vestment with a good patronage, es- pecially in the winter, when the Hud- son river was closed Passengers had then to come to Bridgeport by boat as 1t was not thought that a railroad from New York could pay, running parallel with the sound and water commun- cation. The Hudson River railroad was rot built till later, as it was said that the river, with cheap water freights md passenger fares would prevent any competition, except for ,mall part of the year. I will not delay 10 go over the sad financial history of he Housatonic road for nearly sixty years, and all the money sunk in 1t, md at the time 1t was built 1t was con- :idered by the promoters as the best Jiott ipi uli investment III tlllS IilG III
 he state I will not stop to dwell on
 he Hartford Providence and Fishkil 'ailroad the Connecticut Western, and ,ther similar enterprises, and the money sunk in them. Uncertain as it eemed at first, the railroad from our ity to New York has proved one of he most profitable investments in this inc in the state. And this has not been tt the public expense, for the rates harged are reasonable the service of he best, and when this company has bsorbed other roads they have greatly the service without increased harges, and yet at times a great hue nd cry has been raised about a grasp lg monopoly" absorbing and controll- ng everything in their line" as if we we're bound in the bands of a monster. lost of this finds it's inspiration in the act that the stock of this road pays fight per cent, and if it does the fortu- ate investors have no right to such eturns. I might multiply these illus rations even in the case of the trolley pads, which less than twenty years ago i'd not pay running expenses and went ito the hands of the bond holders. but nally proved very fortunate to those ' 'ho held on. Was the original franchise = 'orth anything, even the smallest