New-York tribune., 1905-01-15
OWNS ITS LIGHTING PLANT
Success in Nashville of Municipal
Experiment.

The city of Nashville Tenn. affords an excelene
example OF the ability Of municipality 20 conouo'
successfully It's lighting plant, as wen as MUS
tration OF the power OF a community TO eompei
tribute from corporations and force them 10 Do the
servants rather than the overlords or the peopie-
Under the old regime the city was paying d ms"
price and receiving poor electric hghIis
the gas rate was excessive and the street raii"@y
service was miserable and when 1t was propOseu
by the three companies to unite their in'e, ~
many citizens believed that the intended cohsonuA
tion was only cloak for conspiracy Onaer 'no
leadership of Mayor James NJ Head tne suu
OF the people for a square deal was begun anu mas
resulted In a municipal electric lighting plant
dollar gas and an improved street railway service
all OF these interests contributing to the reVehue
OF the city.
Mr. Head after a thorough investigation OF the
subject had become earnest advocate OF hiuAii0A
pal ownership of public utilities. and being placed
in nomination for Mayor. he mace LIE Can saS0 - -
that ISSUE pIedgiug his best endeayors. II eec'eu,
to secure for the city its own hgntins piS"'' an"
on this platform he was successful.
The Cumberland Electric Light Company hau' at
the time a monopoly OF the city business ana. pc
ins the onIv company in the city II was entirety
free from the single restraint known Tor corporate
extortion, competition Its charges 10 the CITY lor
nominal 2OOO-candlepower arc light. on an an hen1
and every night schedule was $50. wnieh was Ho''
perhaps as excessive as the price paid oy soine
cities except "a IL was claimed that the lights were
really not moro than 800 candlepower' and tna'
there were from 20 to IS per cent or the lamps
not lighted each night But the private consumer
was proport1onately the greater sulIerer' as ll'
company charged him Is cents a kilowatt The
nopu1arlv understood fact that the net annual
profits OF the company were regularly In excess
of the entire amount invested emphasized the ioea
that the charges were exorbitant
Authority to build and operate lighting plant
for municipal purposes was charter right but
the city had no authority to sell electricity to the
consumer and this privilege was deemed or even
greater Importance for the protection or tne cltl-
zens than the public lighting An appeal was haue
to the State Legislature TO grant the addiuonal
power and the effort to pass the necessary measure
was met by the most determined opposition on the
part OF tho company whose interests were thus
teopardized. After long and bitter struggle the
city was finally successful
Before the foundation wall OF the city's plant
was compisted the Cumberland company reduced
its charge for electricity to II cents klowatt,
saving OF onethird the former price, and 1t has
more recently been making term contracts at hve
cents a kilowatt which has been regarded as
tacit admission that it's former charges were ex-
cessive The belief Is also held that the mere
threat OF competiton-the big stick element OF the
municipal scheme-will even though the city should
not undertake to supply private parties result IN
SO great saving to consumers that indirectly the
city plant will pay for itself IN two years
The Nashville plant was designed by Professor
Charles 8. Brown. OF Vanderbilt University who
had complete supervision Of the interior, the ex-
terror construction being directed by j. w. Pente-
cost the present superintendent OF the plant, Two
down draft furnaces and supply two Corllss en-
Sators Of 400 kiiowattss The switchboards, trans
formers and other apparatus are or the latest ana
The cost Of construction was originally estimated
Installed brought the actual figures up to 1854 600
The grounds and buildings cost SIS se6, the EQUIP
amounted to sS3s7s. the amount estimated FOR the
line wire poles equipment scs I9r % m rS m ana the a
ditional lamps and equipment oouSht laIer III
In the srst year Of operation the capacity the
plant vas made greater BY increasing e. the @ P0sr S0rse
power and there have been added nearly seventy
piles 81 OF n ne amp %Te B9 ea5 ncressed from $40 to
CAS- and incandescent lights from 15o1 70 SsS The
makes the total cost Of the plant TO date $ss, sos
The plant has now been IN operation +o n i
profitable investment. The total expense OF main
ing interest on the bonds and liberal allowance
SSr the depreciation Of the e9uiPInIs,1t was
oi4 hiowatts The. cost a kilowatt by compute, s,
02 from these M arc seht ap ana Sure
on an all might and every night Sehsdule Is SP
OF cities of about the same population Nash
Mich. manufactures it's own light at cost Of $62
an arc lamp or the gsn and paT rQs
local company s75 lamp, Portland Ore. is sup
Piled h ant aS M e0a that as eSs @ to
sideraton the conditions must be similar or the
variations reduced to common basis, as lamps
should be reduced to single candlepower and to a
given schedule Municipal plants required by law
to regard eight hours as a fun day have p per
Coal is more costly than city refuse for fuel and
varies in different localities in cost. Steam power
| is more expensive than water power and wires IN
! conduits more expensive than those strung on
poles.
Taking these points into consideration. the average
Of arc lights in the cities OF Massachusetts, Is
ss1 CO. and. IN eight cities Of the country the
! average Is sSS 90. The success OF the Nashville
| plant is. therefore fattering to the taxpayers.
The point that cities have leased their plants
| to private corporations is not strong argument
against municipal ownership and operation, for by
the terms Of such lease the interests OF the citi
| Eens secured against extortton by the private
/ corporation.
The one solid and unassailable fact IS that Nash
| vile manufactures its own light at cost OF s5S
| arc light, where It formerly cost SS5: that 27l
| cents pays for kilowatt OF electricity which
| the private company formerly sold for IS cents
that the city lighting bill formerly SAT 900 for
$50 inferior lights and 53s gas lights in the city
buildings. and II now pays only $4,000 for 642 arc
| lights and 1888 incandescent lamps and IN the
homes and business places OF the people electricity
for light and power Is obtainable at less than one
/ third of its former price.