Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-22
FILES A STATEMENT.
Mr.. George w. Kings Views Of the
- Cost of Gas.

Mr.. George w King of 1925 32d street
northwest this morning transmitted to the
District Commissioners a statement in line
with his remarks Wednesday before the
board at the public hearing on Senator Fos-
ters bill providing for the reduction in the
price of gas to Washington consumers
from mot exceeding 81 per 1000 cubic feet
to not exceeding 70 cents per 1000 cubic
feet. a. -
The letter to the Commissioners. in part.
follows:
II would respectfully call your attention
to an investigation made by the legislature
of the state of New York, which extended
over period of six weeks in the year of
1897 In which Prof. Remis, who Is oEecOg-
nized. both in this country and abroad as
the leading expert on gas, figured Prof.
Remis stated conclusively and to theeentire
satisfaction of the investigating committee
that a charge of more than - cents per
1000 feet for gas was an imposition on the
public. He showed that the cost of gas III
the gasometer in Boston, Mass. at that
time was 1873 cents per 1000 cubic feet He
showed, further, that the cost of the new
material was less in New York, and COM
puted the cost of gas in the gasometer in
that locality at $40 cents, estimating the
cost at 80 cents per LOCO feet; the distribu-
ton at Is cents; for depreciation in plant,
improvements and extension he added 10
cents more. bringing the cost of the produc-
ton up to 90 cents per 1000 feet, He fur
Their said that 20 cents was not too low a
price for gas. -
1.-The gas companies did not produce their
books, as requested, or contrad dict the state
ments. Inside facts showed that there was
an enormous profit in gas at 500 per 1000
cubic feet. AS before stated. the New York
gas companies refused to produce their
books to disprove these statements, but
simply employed lawyers to combat the ex-
position. 50 -s 80 H.
1.-The legislature to reduce the price Of
gas, growing out of this investigation, while
supported by the leading men in the city,
was by political influence, defea ted. A year
later Prof. Remis, who occupied the chair
of political economy at the University of
Chicago, was forced to resign, through the
influence of the Standard Oil Company,
backing up the gas monopolies.
&C. F. Chandler and Ira Remsis who are
experts on gas, state that oil gas is made
at cost of one-half of that of coal gas
They stated that 8.63 gallons of oil will
make LOCO cubic feet of gas For brief ref
erence see Johnson's Encyclopedia page
694, of the third volume.
Since these statements were published
many improvements have been made in the
method of using the oil, whereby a cheaper
grade of oil can be used, and Aat.the same
time a large number of retOrts. probably
one-half can be done away with and about
the same amount of labor dispensed with
thereby causing another great reduction.
Taking the figures of Chandler and Rem
sis, 1t will be seen that on the basis of 5
cents per gallon which was the cost of OIL
as stated by the representatives of the Wash
ington Gas Company that was expected
would have to be paid, S.63 gallonsef oil (be-
ing the quantity required to make 1000 feet
of gaS) would be about 43 cents The labor
Of manufacturing gas is so much less, sim
pier and cheaper, at the present time that
1t is impossible to get a gas engineer to teS-
tlfy as to the cost of gas, because they get
their living from gas COMPANIES