The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-04-13
MUNICIPAL OWNERSHIP
IS NOT s0CIALIsM-MAYOR
 DUNNE OF CHICAGO.
Gives Definition of the Difference Be- tween the Two-Public should Own All Public
 UtfIitfes.

- am no Soclalists Said Judge Dunno,
 the eAsquare-jawed. newly elected Mayor | or Chicago, yesterday. as he sat up- | right in splendid gilt chair in the waldorf Astoria Hotel and locked his
 strong hands over one knee. About
 They were very bitter and aggressive
 in their opposition. The people of
 Chicago, in adopting the plan of mu- nicipal ownership of tpublic utilities. vague theory aimed at our principle of government, but have indorsed a prac- teal sensible idea. which Is working hundred and forty-six British cities. to say nothing of It's splendid results Tn other municipalities of Europe and
 It was in that same gilt chair that Governor Folk of Missouri sat a few days before and uttered his solemn sa,1ig wa,T1ining against the graft system pre- of America. Judge Dunne has stronger race than the Missouri leader There Is q singular sense of bone and muscle and unbendable backbone about him. His hazel eyes shine with enthu- siasm. He speaks with a swinging di- rectness, without evasion and appa- rently without elf-consciousness.
 Institute last night" he continued, q am satisfied that this idea has struck It's roots into the mind of New York T,. aiso. You are face to face with 1t.
 
 ing. No attempt to confound the pub iic ownership of public utilities with state Socialism or any other economic or political dream can succeed The issue Is too real too simple and too we'll worked out in practice. From every, part of the country I get word mat the movement which won such q victory in Chicago last Tuesday Is gain ing strength.
 T suppose that, roughly, about s2oo,- oo0.o0O of private capital IS invested in a htr1 T.F in Chicago. That does not cover bonds. There will be bonds under the public ownership plan. It Is fair to estimate the money invested in stocks covering public utilities all over the country af something like $8.000, 900, ,00O The ob- Ject of our movement is to convert that private ownership into a public owner
 With movement on such a large scale. and involving the conversion of | such a vast property, how. will 1t be | mergedlg into State Socialism, Judge |
 Public Ownership Is Not Socialism.
 The line of demarkation Is very | clear. Every privilege which carries | property should be owned and exercised | by the. public. That Is our central | thought. Socialism is opposed to the would close the door of private enter prise and private opportunity. That is absolutely unsound. While we believe | that that the he public property should be used earnest in our support of the rights of private property. Nor do we aim at | any scheme of confseation. We be- law and with fair compensation.
 T did not arrive at my present con- clusion on this subject through read result of attrition. I came in contact with hard facts, with practical reme- dies growing out of practical condl- Switzerland. sent telegram to Lu- eerne. l had to pay only 6 or cents, I forgot which. When I asked why the Cove Government ne owned 1S a the telegraph Sta % ticket of Sydney New South Wales which cost only one and and half ago I lived in an outlying district of Chicago, now covered by the general system of the city. was supplied nine days was s22os. My last water bill paid to tho city for a six months seventeen rooms occupied by seventeen persons-was only $5A0. My electric light bill for the month of July, 1901, was $4.S0. I paid that to private a part of the summer at Southampton, Ill, where the electric light plant is owned by the town. My bill for the month of July and for at least the same amount of electric light was only $1.S6. could spend hours in giving you illustrations of that kind.
 Tt was these stubborn facts that me. The injustice revealed by them could not be ignored. It is facts like these that form the chief argument of the Socialists. They point to the crushing and demoralizing effect of private ownership of public utilities and call for the overturning of our whole theoryof government and civilization. Our public ownership movement aims at correction of &C., tual evils. Its. success would take Any reasonable man ought 10, be able to see that. Our movement is on different plane and covers different area than the Socialist program. We are fighting for plan consistent with the principles of our institutions. We name the evils and propose definite, practical and thoroughly proved rem
 in the vote of last Tuesday the peo- pie of Chicago approved the idea of ownership of the street rail- roads. Not only that. but by separate ballots they voted two to one of the whole vote cast against the extension of any street railway franchise to any private corporation, in the future. ! It | requires another vote under our refer endum system to Authorize the city of Chicago to operate the street railroads, | which it is already authorized to, own There is not the slightest doubt that the municipal government twill receive that authority whenever it is asked for. l. the ownership of the street railroads | .