Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1905-05-09

1OU ID IuuCu 8IetNSA SAAoA - 49, |
states, but the gas is sold for half as
much, with large and Increasing rev.
niue to the city. When the bonds are
LII paid and the city becomes the absss
ute owner Of the property the price
will be yet further reduced. In the
meantime the profits will have more
Than paid the cost of the plant.
The gross profits last year were near
" 100000, and were 1t not that large
sums had to be diverted to interest
and sinking fund payments and to the
assistance Of the taxpayers it would
be possible today, even with the abnor-
NAL price Of materials, to produce and
sell gas at less than 40 cents thou
sand feet and leave a handsome profit;
There Ii no, theory about this. 1T is
being done on an enormous scale In one
of the worlds largest ctiss,
I have space only to note the other
enterprises in which Birmingham Is
engaged. The city maintains COM
prehensive system of baths, ranging
from open air baths for the poorer
classes to modern Turkish baths. The
ancoms amounts to $4,000 year. The
city burial board has charge Of ceme-
teries in which 1000 were inferred last
year. 1t is the policy Of the board to
so conduct .hia estate as to niakA II
self sustaining, and successive years
show alternating profits and losses in
small amounts.
-Four years ago Birmingham pur-
chased the electric light and power
plant, paying the owners Of the fran
chise more than 100000. For the
first two years the new management
made so many Improvements that there
was a slight deficit, but the third year
yielded a profit, and the last annual
report indicated net gain Of $3.50, 900,
which went into the common treasury.
The city owns its markets, and they
are source OF revenue. Birmingham
IL farmer on large scale. The mu-
nicipal farm comprises 1900 acres, and
1000 more are about to be added. This
land is fortified by the sewage and is
largely devoted to cattle raising and
dairy business There are also i'm
mense herds Of sheep which belong to
the city. There are filtration works
and plant for handling the byprod-
ucts, and these, with the farm, repre-
sent an investment o. about $2.600, 900.
The last report shows that the annual
sales Of STOCK amount to $4,000, while
| Sos, 600 Is realized from milk and about
as much from wool. By these scientific
methods the cost Of disposing Of sew
age is materially reduced.
Birmingham purchased Its water sup
ply In 1870 under the administration Of
Joseph Chamberlain, paying $4,000, 900
for the original plant. 1t has just com
pleted at an expense Of nearly $50, 0oo,-
600 an extension Of the scheme By
which 1t conveys water from Wales,
eighty miles away. It owns outright
100 square miles Of hills and valleys
which Will supply water for popula-
ton Of more than million
] Birmingham has owned it's Hamways
for years, but has pursued the policy of
leasing the lines to private companies.
These leases are now expiring, and the
city has decided to take over their con-
troll The British Traction company is
making hard fight to renew its fran
chises and has offered to pay 15 pei
cent Of Its gross receipts for the priv
lege Of charter for limited number
of years American cities which have
mania for giving such franchises
away may find amusement in estimat
ing how much their revenues woulC
amount to from IS per cent of the re
ceipts Of those companies which have
the free use of their streets. But thu
Birmingham authorities have rejected
all terms. They proceeded to employ
Alfred Baker, formerly in charge o.
tile London tramways and justly re
garded as one Of the most capable eA
perts in Great Britain, and have PLACED
him in charge Of the proposed munich
pal system. Instead Of electricity
which they refused to install until re
Gently, the company which held thu
lease used steam power. The motto
looks like a box freight car with ,
stoyepipe thrust through the roof, ant
when one Of them goes putting ant
churning along the street strangers ar
overcome either with fright or amuse
ment. Such is the service which Biz
mingham proposes to supersede with
strictly modern plant Its experience
with private tramway companies ha
been similar to that OF score Of othe
British cities which in sheer self dc
Tense have been forced into public OWL
ership in order to escape the antiqu
methods Of those stock holders who i'm
agine that improvements war on div
dends.
A Creeping Death.