Evening journal., 1902-04-02
!. EDWARD ADDICKS AGAIN
WORRIES BOSTON CITIZENS
Ills AudaciOuS Financiering Is a
Poser to the Lighting Com
mitteO

A dispatch from Boston shows that
~. Edward Addicks still has grip on
the throat of the lighting interests in
that city. and that ne has for twenty
years been in the fight and again is In
the saddle. The dispatch is rs follows
Boston. Macs, April 2.-The Com
mittee on Public Lighting is in state
Of semi-eXpectancy Il does not know
whether or not a direct attempt will be
made TO obtain a consolidation OF the
Boston gas interests. Some matters
which come before the general court
are considered hardy ANIMALS, others
are often termed chestnuts, but the
thing which interests the average man
when studying the Boston gas situa-
ton is the Kaleidoscope changes
which come over thefaeeOf the situa-
ton from year to year Some years
ago. the question was whether or not
water gas should be manufactured; to-
! day. Mr. McNary would have the ques-
| hOn whether or not the manufacture
shall be prohibited
A peculiarity of the existing condi-
tions is that while twenty years ago
the ruling spirit in the great water gas
controversy was J. Edward Addicks,
of Delaware. and since that time a
number of gas magnates have risen
and fallen. today, If one may judge
i from all the indications. Mr.. Addicks
is again in the saddle in Boston, and
/ Henry NJ Whitney, who invented a
bene6cent scheme for lowering the
price of gas through the operations OF
the New England Gas and Coke Com
Dany. and the Massachusetts, Pipe Line
tCompany. is eliminated as factor in
the situation.
So long as it was Addicks against
Whitney. there was force in the de-
mand Of Messrs. Parker. Clifford and
Schah. OF the gas commission, that
the Boston gas companies should be
compelled TO consolidate With Mr.
AddIcks and his friends apparently
controlling all the output of the com
panies in Boston. the situation is diff
ferent.
The only reason why there should
be consolidation would be to obtain
a reduction in the price of gas. There
Is absolutely no evidence whatever
that consolidation would bring this
reduction about. Then. again, we have
confronting us the fact that the Cen
eral Court of Massachusetts, could not
consistently with its present attitude
and the record Of its predecessors. au,
thorize the creation of new company
to assume the gas business in BOs.
ton. with a capital and bonus larger
than that sufficient to cover the value
Of its property and its Indebtedness.
X For the General Court to take such
a course would be to precipitate tn,
most serious questions as TO what shal
be done with the great mass of securi
ties which have been ioated through
the operations Of Boston gas magnate'
in the last dozen OF fifteen years. II
other words. as far as one can judge
Mr.. Addicks is the master of the situa
Ition and his audacious flnanciering hal
IDroved altogether too much OF a pose
for the Committee on Public Lighting
and the General Court A tinge of in
terest is added to the situation from
the fact that the committee is still
waiting TO find out what Robert NJ
Burnett, son-in-law OF James Russel
Lowell. and once congressman, is 30
ing TO do about the matter