Perth Amboy evening news., 1904-10-08
CITIES AND PUBLIC UTILITIES.

lH'rom the Newark Evening NeWs).
The question whether municipal
cities should sell their valuable fran
chises or should own and maintain
their public utilities, is being forced
upon many of the cities of this and
other States for solution. Heretofore
cities have not only sold but have
given away franchises, and have
placed themselves, by perpetual con
tracts, in the power of the corpora
tions, to whom they have presented
properties and privileges of great
value.
One result has been, in this State
particularly, the consolidation of
various public utility corporations
into one vast company, practically
controlling certain kinds Of public
service and making competition i'm
possible. Wherever such conditions
exist the arrogance of the corporation
is practically unlimited and the cities
are compelled to pay far more for ser
vice than they ought to or than they
would If there were competing com
panies, simply because the oonsoli-
dated corporation has a monopoly of
all the privileges and can dictate
terms.
For these and other reasons no
franchises that any city is yet fortu-
nate enough to retain, should be
granted in perpstuity. They should
be parted with, only for q period of
years, and readjustment of the terms
should be insisted upon, every
twenty-five years at longest. Grad
19afy the psoplo are coming to ap-
1breciate this fact, for in most cities
they find themselves in the grip of the
public utilities corporations and I'M
able to obtain water or gas or electric
lights or power except at ..such prices.
as the consolidated companies choose
to demand.
A case in point is furnished in
Paterson, WheEe fora year or more
the gas <Ses belonging to the Public
Service Corporation have been lying
on the pavements and usting. simply
because the city would not grant per-
mission to lay the pipes, without be-
ing first compensated for this new ana
valuable franchise. The Public Ser
vice, Corporation even went to the
courts to compel the city to grant
permission to extend the gas mains,
but the court has decided that the
city is clearly within its rights. If
there were competition, a fair price
would be paid for the privilege, the
mains would be laid before snow flies
and the price of gas would also be re-
duced.
Asbnry Park is also facing this
question Of public utilities, and is
convinced that the only way it can
get gas, electric lights, telephones,
etc., at reasonable rates is through
competition. AT a recent meeting Of
the council steps were taken to invite
competition and a significant feature
of the councils official action was the
adoption of a provision that i'll the
event of competing companies CON
solidating the low rates should be
maintained. Only bitter experience
or shrewd observation could have
suggested suoh a proviso.
When cities find themselves at the
mercy Of the corporations they have
fostered, but that have grown arrog-
ant and demand excessive rates, they
are right in retaliating by exacting
the best terms possible for all remain
ing or incidental franchises, and no
public officials who have the best in
terests of their cities at heart will
consent to perpetual franchises upon
any conditions. If the utilities cor
porations will not listen to reason the
best solution of the question is NUM-
cipal ownership, and this is what
several of the cities of the State are
now seriously considering.