The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1903-07-22
MUNICIPAL FRANCHISES.
Cities Should Own and Operate
Their Public Utilities.
By Prof. E. W. bemis, superinten-

By Prof. E. W. bemis, Superinten-
dent of Waterworks, Cleveland, 0.
By the franchise question in
cities is meant the relation that cities
bear, or should bear, to street rail
ways, lighting, water, telephones
and other companies that receive
rights from the city to lay pipes and
conduits under the streets, or to occu-
pv right of way upon them or over
them. It is recognized that these en-
terprises are vital to the development
of the modern city, and the welfare
of it's citizens. The health as well as
the comfort of a community depends
upon the extent to which cheap and
convenient transportation is furnished
to suburbs, and an abundance OF light,
pure water, etc., are supplied to the
streets and buildings. The larger the
city grows the larger even the per
capita use of such public utilities,
that are in their nature monopolles.
The fact that they must look to the
city for rights in the streets, and that
in cities of much size they are able to
earn much larger return on the cost
of their physical property than is the
case in other business involving SINH
lar slight risk, places these monopolles
in most intimate relations with the
city governments and taxing bodies.
The owners may be our best, as they
are often our ablest citizens, but they
have a tremendously larger temptation
to secure weak and inefficient city
governments than have physicians,
merchants, manufacturers, 5wage-earn-
ers, or other social classes. No other
business, unless it be saloons, or
school textbooks, is at once so prof.
table and so dependent upon the favor
Of all city governments as are public
utilities.
Everyone is familiar with the scan
daIs that have attended these enter
prises in nearly all our large cities,
although in few cases has so much
publicity attended them as in the re-
cent cases of st. Louis and Phlladel-
phia. But it is more important to
consider some ways of improving the
situation than to further unfold the
grewsome tale of existing demorallza-
ton. that the fault of this condition
has not always lain in the management
of these companies, but often with
INSCRIPTIONS city councils. The fault
seems to be rather in the nature OF the
case than in any particular badness OF
character in the men IN charge OF
these public necessities.
Turning to remedies, there is much
to learn from the recommendatlons on
this subject of the National Municipal
league, in its famous municipal pro-
gramme, or model charter and pro-
posals Of necessary State legislation.
It was there proposed that the State
should have very little control OF the
subiect outside of a limitation OF the
life of the franchise to 20 or 25 years,
but should throw the responsibility
rpon the communities concerned. They
should have the right entirely untram-
meled by State legislation to either
own and operate or lease any OF these
utilities, and in case of lease to tx
such terms as they may wish and be
able to secure from the operating COM
panies.
Carrying out this thought somewhat
further than the league has done, the
writer would urge that all cities should
arrange as soon as possible to have all
their franchises Of a certain type, such
as street railways, expire at the same
time, and should therefore refuse to
grant any franchises for any definite
term, but should provide that at any
time. or soon as State legislation
should be secured rendering it legal,
cities might have the right to buy
these enterprises on paying the struc-
tural value plus some fair percentage,
perhars Is per cent, to cover
net monopoly values, but not
such value as might accrue
to such business merely from
its being a ''going concern. " Such
power Of purchase, however, and such
leases and renewals, should always be
referred to popular vote by the coun-
ell. or should be subject to such vote
whenever 10 or l5 per cent. Of the
voters might sigma petition demanding
such referendum.
1t is not here meant that all cities
should at once proceed to the owner
ship and operation of such public
necessities; in fact, it is believed that
the time is. not yet ripe for this, in
many places, anu Guab Gilo peopio mooIo
not vote for it. A somewhat general
belief in civil service reform, OF the
merit system, and the ability of the
people to own their own government,
and not submit it to be Sboss rid
den," is the prime requisite for any
large success in municipal ownership.
Ali that is here contended is thaat
every community should have the right
to determine it's own policy in these
matters, and in taxes for local pur-
poses of such public necessities. When
communities once possess the right it
will not be important in many cases
to actually exercise it, as it now ap-
pers to be. When, Nashville thus
secured the right to issue $500, 600 OF
bonds to construct gas plant in 1892
the price of gas at once fell from 81. 10
to sl.50 and has subsequently been re-
duced to a much lower figure. A
similar decline took place in Baltimore
within the past three years. A COM
pany that declared that it could not
sell street arc lights in that city for