The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-02-04
an s. EREp. hoauE.

:
OF Manchester have turned out most Of
tho Socialist faddists and have elected
in their stead conservative mon OF
affairs to the Council.
Tho last straw In the case Of Man
chester proved to BIO the attempt to
turn the electric lines into freight
carrying service. The citizens have
taken stock of freight carrying ac-
counts and have found that the city
has lost about 100000 outright, and has
unsuitable junk In tho corporation yards
representing 100000 more.
Manchester apparently went into tho
freight business to crafty an election
grudge Of one OF It's councillors. a pri-
vate package delivery company. opposed
Councilman Boyle for re- election. Boyle
won an appointment to the chairmnn-
ship Of tho tramways department and
promptly inaugurated municipal pack
age and freight delivery Us IN adjunct
to the municipal tramways.
In order that the service might be
complete he ordered several scores OF
expensive delivery wagons. purchased
druught horses all over the United
Kingdom ut cxtravagant prices. and
proceeded to establish a package de-
livery on n more elaborate scale than
England had before seen.
For a. number OF years the city has
carried parcels on the electric cars and
has some times carried freight through
tho streets ut night Councilman Boyle
established the new service independent
OF the tramway system. The city en-
poyed solicitors and attempted to cons
duct regular van and storage business.
cut was made In the price of pack
t,n MN 81
in q fair way to force Boyle's political
enemy to the we'll.
But in place Of cutting prices, the
private company applied to the courts
for an Injunction restraining the 'nl-
nicipality from embarking IN the pack
age delivery business without first Sc
curing a concession from Parliament
The Boyle administration expended
several thousand pounds of the tax
payers money in employing eminent So
licltors to defend it's case: but the city
lost. The highest court of the kingdom
decided that the city has nc authority
to expend the rate payers money for
wholesale private trading ventures.
This decision leaves the city with
| half a million dollars invested in a
| freight and express service which 1t
| has no authority to conduct. Councll-
| Tor Boyle no longer represents his ward
at tho City Hall, and a transfer mas
| been made from another fund to cover
| the deficit in the package delivery nc-
| count. A Conservative Council Is now
| in control, and the Socialists have gone
| into forced retirement.
DoCToRED ACCOUNTS.
This city is of itself q good illus
| tration of the manner In which municl-
/, pal accounts are taken by Socialist
| writers and made to show a surplus
in the face of a glarlng deficit The
!, tables Of the Municipal Year Book, q
| London Socialist publication. have
! been generally accepted by statistician
/ as correct I have seen them quoted
as authority in United States Eovern-
nent reports. But they are cunningly
! profits are made without any referen ce
to depreciation or reserve for renewals
4 The Huddersaeld table will suffice to
4 illustrate the entire system. The M,.-
{, nlcipal Year Book for 1906 states nat
for the years 1903-4 the Hudderstl lid
tramways show q. surplus of G6.oJQ
Tho publications Of tho municipality
4 show q tranlway deficit OF 6 5000 fuI
4 the same year.
/, Tho Year Book craftily covers up tho
! deficit by taking no account OF a sum
1 OF $1,000 which tho city set aside as
e fund for depreciation and reserve in es-
tmatng It's surplus. But this sum was set
aside and deficit Of G5,o00 was made up
from the rates.
! tho Fuddarsfeld tramways, made the fol-
lowing frank statement explaining the de-
hcits In the tramway accounts:
I'm Huddersheld We are wearing out
our third set Of rails, and yet prepay
ment for tho first set will not be COM
pleted until 1857. In our capital account,
:c414,oO0 for thirty miles of tramways,
there is at least G1Oooo0 for which VIC
cannot produce any asset whatever.
1--WE put aside every year 8 per cent
of the whole capital for depreciation and
renewals We show loss annually and
go to the rates for the deficiency. while
the corporations who are In a far worse
position take much credit to themselves
for their profits.
II admit the 8 per cent. Is insufficient
even after allowing for the sinking fund
which so many corporations delude them
selves IS alone sufficient Before we trans
fer any profits to reduce the rates we
shall increase the allowance. In the
meantime the present generation Is pay.
ing its own way and partially wping of
tho legacy OF Insolvency inherited from
the pioneer municipal traders"
Experts who testified before tho roya
commission appointed by the House Of
Commons to investigate municipal trading
conditions all a;reed TINT at least PEI
cont. should be set aside by any gas. cleo
tric Or tramway corporation each year fo
depreciation and renewals. Statistics o
400 municipal trading enterprises In Grea
Britain, as compiled by the Natona
Board of Trade, show that less than one
third of one per cent. is set aside fo
this purpose.
I'hIs means that the municipalities n
Il whole have set aside only one-cigh
tecnth Of the requisite amount for deprc
citation. IL an adequate reserve for re
newals were maintained there are no
ten municipal trading enterprises In nj
ENGLAND that would show profit.
The following editorial from recer
issue OF the Preston Daily Post siiow
that the ratc-payers OF the Enslis
municipalities are becoming alive to II
real municipal trading situation:
| EDITORIAL,
, "a very important point has bee
raised at Newcastle-on,Iyne hheclin
municipal trading. In stating the resor'
accounts of the municipal tramwnya no
stands at a1as,l7a. the auditor quotes vii
approval tho opinion It should be flS9, IL
) or fGo,954 more. against which there is
. surplus last year on the revenue accoul
"a