Omaha daily bee., 1903-03-22

a wide area or circumscribed area-all
enter into the cost of service and tend to
vitiate comparisons OF cost between differ
emit cities. In the matter OF municipal
lighting plants, we have as yet no uni
formity OF bookkeeping by which we may
be sure similar entries are made up OF the
same items. In many cases, moreover, we
have a system of joint production in which
an electric lighting plant is conducted in
conjunction with other monopolies OF serv-
Ice with water works, for example), which
almost deHes statistical separation OF cost
elements.
The geographical situation also has much
to do with determining the cost Of the
motive ~power-whether or not water power
may be used, or II steam, the quantity and
the quality OF the fuel. Still another vari-
ant lies in the percentage OF depreciation
which must always be more or less arbi-
trary. What l will admit, with reference
to the use Of cost statistics, is that the So
called average cost is deceptive, that 1t is
useless to seek TO represent complicated
processes by a single numerical figure, that
cost statistics, while 10 themselves most
valuable, must be employed as a basis of
comparison only with the utmost care with
the fullest knowledge Of special conditions
anu Win uue ALLOWANCE IOT the many uml-
tatiOns which affect their accuracy. It
must not be assumed, however, that I
argue for the descrediting Of cost statistics
altogether; for they embody the financial
experience of the various undertakings,
both private and municipal. and our course
for the future must be guided largely by
the experiments and experiences Of the
past.
II In mt NV Durnoaa II snread out an i'm
posing array Of figures contrasting public
and private lighting plants. The ~oficials
of the census bureau have been collecting
data relating to electric lighting through
cut the country. but their schedules have
not yet been tabulated and are, therefore,
still inaccessible. When published they
will doubtless supply all the materials
necessary for a careful study Of the con-
ditions as they exist today.
Departne nt of Labor Inquiry.
The most comprehensive inquiry into
electric lighting plants that has been made
with any Official authority is that Of which
the results are contained in the fourteenth
annual report Of the commissioned OF labor
being for the year 1893. In this report
Commissioner Carroll d. Wright and his
assistants iucceeded in gathering data FOL
952 plants In the United States, Of which
800 were Municipality owned and controlled
while 6S2 we're operated under private Of
corporate ownership.
Realizint the difficulties OF handling tn,
statistics and the utter impossibility o
finding a Jingle unit to which the produe.
could be reduced, Commissioner WTigh
divided TIE plants into groups according L
the total horsepower capacity Of their en-.
gines and classified all his material by cor
responding groups. The total investmen.
to the cd Of the last previous fiscal yea
In the 20 municipal plants operated wa
SO, sos, $40, and that In the 632 privati
plants was S1l3.9l7. SIS. His final con
c~lusiOni expressed in the summaries bring
ing together by groups all the facts whicl
could Properly be brought into comparison
are as follows:
l. Average price per kiiowatt hour charge
In areservtce: Taking up the average pric
charged per hloWatt hour by private plant
I'm eath grOup and comparing II with IN
~avergge price charged 70 private users pc
kiloyatt hour by municipal plants. Il Is seel
that In all OF the groups subject 70 com
parton except one, the average pnc