Morgan County republican. (Versailles, Mo.) 1906-1914, 1906-10-18
CITY OWNERSHIP
REPuOIA1Eo
REPEATED FAILURES PROVE
THEORY NOT PRACTICAL.
Investigations show Results Different
from Those Painted by Social.
istle Speakers.

WbtIt IdNc DeeTI IUuuc III OIlhIlh COHs
corning the failure of municipal owner
ship In that city have attracted wide
spread attention over the entire country.
and adjoining states watched the devel-
opments with great interest,", both be.
cause Of the proximity Of Omaha az well
volved in the Omaha troubles.
Some time ago the entire middle west
and .fads. but the showing. made in oma-
ha has set up a train of Investigations
by those who really wanted to know the
utilities. and the result has been that
thousands who formerly were advocates
Of this idea have now changed their
minds and are as much opposed to their
cities owning the street cars, electric
lights, gas systems, telephones. ETC., as
they formerly were In favor of such
When the Iowans began looking
around and investigating municipal own
that system a failure in Omaha but that
In various other parts of the .country
similar reports were being made. For
years owned It's electric light plant, has
3ust abandoned the city-owned plant and
has gone back to a privately owned
Ind. the mayor. who, was elected three
times on a municipal ownership ticket.
has recommended that the city sell its
electric light plant and go back to n
private corporation; Logansport. Marion
and several other Indiana cities are ad-
NOcutlUE tne same tnlnH, ana tncrc al
ways remains the city OF Hamilton, Ohio.
whose waterworks claimed at one time
to be Il model of municipal ownership
showed itself to be reeking with graft
and Il source of constantly increasing
burden for the tax payers.
was IL complete failure and a total loss
and to-day stands without a tenant.
This. together with the asphalt plant
and the waterworks muddle, has stirred
Omaha taxpayers. to a point where they
are declaring that Omaha has had
enough of municipal ownership; must get
must then give the fad a wide berth for
all time to come.
Because of the political unrest of Iowa,
Wisconsin and other middle west states.
the agltators who arc preaching munich
pal ownership. socialism, and other. the
cries of this kind. gained a ready hear
ing and for n time seemed to be making
Roadway and gaining adherents In every
direction. But the fundamental hard
not permit them to accept the mere word
or the sOcialistic siren. however sweetly
sung They BEGUN investigating for
far the municipal ownership theory jibed
with the results.
One OF the very first results OF these
Investigations was the discovery that the
greatest tax for municipal ownership
emanated from socialistic, headquarters
In milwaukee,. Paterson, N. j., and Chi
ago. The socialists openly boosted that
they had inausnrated the. campaign as
an entering wedge for their beliefs with
the expectation that their cause would
benefit thereby.
Then. again, it was found that whcr-
ever municipal ownership was in opera
ton. taxes had been increased, the serv-
ices rendered were Inadequate and that
a horde of political heelers were kept In
work nowhere was conducted as eco
nomlcally as where private enterprises
had developed the business; waste was
at Its height. Political rings were
strengthened on every side and the party
which CHANGED to be in power when the
s syytem r, whs a inIausura Ths n SSntln1 of'c,. II
were not men with the proper training
to handle business Of that kind, usually
ness suffered. Individual effort was dis
couraged and young men filed with en-
thusiasm to make something OF them
selves found that their services were
really not wanted by the political bosses
who usually ruled the municipality owned
not skill in the work in question that
was wanted or that was employed.
demanded, was political %''pull'-the rec.
ommendation of some peanut political
boss. who. in the majority Of cases was
The non-pr0perty owners who were in
vestlgating the subject suddenly discov-
cred that whereas they had been taught
caused by municipal ownership were
paid by the rich and by the owners of
real estate, that eventually the increased
taxation was shifted to the shoulders OF
the poor man himself in the way OF In
creased rents and increased cost of sup
plies and raw materials. This point was
one of the clinchers which caused many
a western man to change his mind con-
corning the beauties Of municipal own
ership.
According to reports. tho citizens of
Omaha are concentrating themselves
that they discovered early In the game
hat the municipal owner1hip road was
not altogether rosy. and that they did
not rush pellmcll to acquire tile public
service. corporations OF their city at n
cost Of many millions. which would
Of high taxes and higher rents. On the
other hand, the average Omaha citizen
seems to have decided that he wants no
more municipal ownership, but would
the system which the city already has
taken on.
This sentiment Is gaining ground rap
Idly all over the middle west. The solid
they will think a good many times be-
fore they make themselves the cat's-paw
for a lot OF long-haired socialistic cranks.
They have seen through the sOcialistIc
used as entering wedges for rank social
Ism by voting for the gradual extension
Of Its un-Anerican doctrines through the
preliminary process of extending munjc-
prises which experience on every hand
In the middle west and everywhere else
including Europe, as the former mu-
nicipal ownership advocate. Mayor Nc
Gently testlfed-has shown are better ad-
ministered under the good old American
system of private control and individual
Initiation.
Oman Air Work for Women.