The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1904-09-30

Tie corporations committee OF
the council has killed of a scheme
% the Diamond Ice a Storage com.
pany 70 procure blanket ga
franchise simultaneously giving the
American Improvement company y
deadly bios aud Swing Itself an
opportunity 90 Ket In out Of the
dampneaa II IL prepared nov To
recommend 90 the council the
granting Of q franchise 10 the Ola
mond Ice a storage company which
u more liberal than that which Il
refused 20 give 10 the American I'm
pruxemsnt company
The committee Nill refuse to give
20 the company a blanket gas fran
ch iae. which u slylf attempted 60
procure. but b. agreeing % FUR
nish the company With a franchise
that will reasonably protect the
city II az once puts the American
Improvement company n the bad.
There are many complications In
the situation. and the Indications
are that within a month Seattle
viii b. IN the midst ~ the greatest
ras corporation struggle that ever
occurred on the pariflc eaaat
On the one hand all De- the Sc.
attic Lighting company noN con
trolling the entire local EaH bus
ineaa For several months past II
has been advertising the sale 81
s1e1 600 81 3 per cent bonds In east
ern financial ccnfera. but with what
success b unknown. The
MONEY Is NEEDED
10 extend ita mains. 90 m0derulze
its plant and 10 fEht the coming
battle
To obtain funds. this monopoly Is
nov claimed % be pumping air
through IT, gas mains to such a
large extent that consumers have
discovered recently that their Eaa
bills are az high ~ before the re
duetion 20 81 per 1000 cubic feet
was made n f. stated on good
authority that Chicago capital alone
is nov back OF r. the local bust
ness men who formerly controlled
stock IN Il having sold out,
On the other hand will be the
American Improvement company
an organization fathered by New
York promoters and recently
strengthened By local business men.
which has been trying 90 obtain a
franeh lae 10 sell Ena Mt 50 cents
per 900 cubic feet for the past
year This company claims to b.
able 90 install a modern plant more
cheaply than the present company
and 10 have ample capital TO do the
work Others claim that / If
merely specializing with the pur-
pose 81 selling out N ita fran.
chlae is turned down Il IL prepared
20 take II before the people
we are going % make
4 FINISH FIGHT"
said one of lts Officers this morn
ing. 1T looks nov as thought there
was n merry fight on hand but We
have not fears for the outcome
The Diamond Ice a. Storage com.
pauy's franchise puts third I'm.
portant factor into the field nj
though Manager Crane said this
morning that the company had ne
present Intentions OF going into the
gas business There would Ger
tainly be nothing 10 stop II II It
wanted 10. Mr. Crane said II would
be d shame for the council 10 turn
down his original blanket franchise
because the capital for the Inn
provements which It coutomplntea
was enlisted under the superstition
that the franchise would be grant
ed without opposition.
However that may be. the fact ~
mains that the franchise. n grant
ed, would be- worth ST.. 600 or $780,
600 10 tho Diamond lee & Storage
company. This would bo true even
although. aa Mr. Crane says. no
more privileges were granted In the
franchise than II already retains.
The present franchise gives the
company the right 20 distribute gas
without any restrictions whatever,
bn # does not amount to much,
because tho district which II Is al
lowed TO accommodate ia confined
70 that part OF the city lying be-
tween Madison and Pike streets
ana west Of Fifth avenue
The company simply wants this
franchise fixed up 80 that the
TERRITORY WILL BE LIMITED
10 the whole district north Of Mad