The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1907-05-11

Great Movement for Control Of
Public Service Corpora
tions in Syracuse.
Opposition Forces Are Driven to
Rout in Their Attempt to
Discourage Us.

Discourage Us.
BY c. A. Baker, General Auditor U. G.
w. Of A., in the Syracuse Industrial
Weekly" -:
The fact that the daily papers are
claiming the failure of municipal con-
troll of public utilities through the in
ability Of some cities to produce gas
or brick on par with private corpora
tons, is no more argument against
municipal ownership than is the failure
Of one company to compete with an
other in our present competitive sys-
tenn an argument that the whole sys-
tenn is wrong.
When newspapers pick out individ-
ual failures without pointing out con-
crete evidence Of the causes of the
failure, or without pres enting any Of
the ground work in great movement
of this kind, thereby knowingly or un-
knowingly try to mislead the people,
they should be made to realize they
are dealing in small politics.
In order to place the blame for the
mismanagemento of affairs of this kind,
let us suppose that the people of SYRIA
cnse had voted for municipal control
Of their gas and electric light. Would
the changing Of the management
change the efficiency of the help en-
ployed in the production Of gas?
1t is not reasonable to suppose that
| the city could pay these men just as
we'll as the present corporation pays
| them, and that they would be just as
willing to work for the city, and more
so, than for the present management?
| If the present directors who superin-
! tend the scientific part of gas produce
| ton cannot be retained by the city at
a reasonable price there are others
who are just as good, if not better,
who can be secured. Therefore, con-
sidering the swollen gas stock Of Syra-
cuse on which dividends are amply
paid, outside of poor or crooked man.
agement, or dirty politics, there is
nothing to interfere with a successful
operation Of cheaper and better gas
production.
| If the municipal operation Of public
utilities can be made to work success
fully in places where it has been hon.
estly tried, it can be made to work to
the peoples advantage in all places, If
| properly conducted, and any newspa-
per who holds to the contrary does so
either self1shly or ignorantly, and for
an o-date newspaper it is hard for
one to decide which of the two offenses
is the more harmful.
In order to get the ground work of
municipal ownership properly before
the workingmen Of Syracuse, let us
carefully lay its plans before their
minds eye.
Municipal ownership means the pub
lie ownership Of public utilities, or. in
other words, things that are used
socially by the people should be So
cially owned by the people.
f. For an illustration let us take our
city water works. We all need water,
without 1t we could not live. So the
people Of Syracuse have concluded that
in place of having private corpora
ton furnish them with any kind of
water totally regardless of it's purity,
charging exhorbitant prices for such
product, they decided to supply their
own water at a much cheaper rate
than private concerns are furnishing
the people of other cities and Of far
better quality.
| Is there workingman in Syracuse
who would be foolish enough to want
| to turn our citys water supply back
into the hands Of some private corpor-
alton? I think not If he knows where
he is at.
Again. let us take our school system.
Education in this fierce competitive
strife Is indispensable. This we all
know. Under our present social own
| ership Of the school system a. child's
| right to common or even q higher
school education Is preserved from one
end of the country to the other. I
leave it to you, Mr.. Workingman, what
would be your child's chance in secur-
ing any kind Of an education If the
| schools were owned and operated by
greedy capitalists?
Less than a. century ago there were
no great cities, no large factories, no
budding together In tenement houses;
people lived rs farmers on the land,
making their own home, spun cloth for
clothes. making their own shoes on the
cobbler's bench. The change has
brought forth the socially owned fire
and police department for mutual pro-
lection.
When the bell rings for our fire lad
dies, do they stop to ask who Is in
danger of destruction in life and prop
erty? Not at all. they are on the job
whether it be the pauper's shack OF
the millionaire's palace. Sometimes the
police hesitate where property rights
are concerned, but the fire laddies
never fail to do justice. to all alike.
Let me ask you, how would the peo-
pie generally fare If a private corpora.
ton owned these departments, instead
of having them run by the people an6
for the people?
Aside from the part politics plays ir
the hinderance of proper management
private ownership in the affairs of the
people is not in it with municipal
ownership and every fair minded per-
son who understands both sides knows
it.
Who has not stood on the streets OF
Syracuse and seen the working chill.
dren of this city, girls, women anG