The Irish standard., 1907-03-30
GETS A SET BACK.
In Elections Recently Held in
L0ndol: the Question
of Municipal Ownership Met
With Marked Defeat.

Municipal ownership received a
staggering blow on Saturday in the
home of its friends. says recent issue
Of the Boston Republic.
At the London elections emphatic
protest was uttered against the ex-
pensive experiments, and the munici-
pal ownership in the county council
wiped out
There is sorrowful tale Of munici-
pal ownership. 1t has all the vital
interest which true story must have
and it warns with seemingly provi-
Dental favor the mad enthusiast who
is striving to thrust American cities
into the slough Of municipal social
ism. Most people will say that this
thing doesn't interest them; no. but
1t will interest you, and interest you
vitality, just as it has interested-and
exaspera ted-the people of London.
Young men in this country prate
prettily in debates about municipal
ownership. Some Socialist started
talking it years ago and argued it as
the great boom for progressive gov
ernment. Maybe it is; but it is also
the most expensive game ever played.
There is something more to the ques-
tion than the mere details which de-
light interested listeners in social halls
who like to hear the thing talked, and
there is mighty good reason why more
than that passing interest should be
man who essayed the role of negating
the proposition of municipal owner
ship at fraternal lodge debate was
told by a senator that it was too bad
he was on the wrong side.
Maybe he was. None but the rash
judger of men and of things assert
that the problem is by any means set
tied. Meanwhile, he does noble serv-
ice who calls attention to experiments
which will help towards reflection be-
fore taking sides for or against the
issue. Altogether we are too fond of
remedyins abuses; seldom do we
think to prevent them. On so vital
topic as this. therefore, contribu-
tions to the sum of knowledge are in
order always.
This thing has come up just now,
because there begins in England the
regime Of new county council. The
Socialism, municipal socialism, which
means municipal ownership, was on
trial at the polls. A return of the
progressive socialist majority which
| has stacked London knee deep in debt.
| meant an endorsement. The present
Socialist majority has been in power
for years. They have brought the city
of London to the verge of bankruptcy.
The difficulty in London has been
the difficulty which had everywhere
been experienced. 1t Is the trouble
inherent in the system. London start
ed the multiplication of its indus
tries and with commendable zeal
worked hard to accomplish success
But the enormous expense entailed in
taking over the existing plants worked
so great havoc that the city has
loss. London, they say. is ahead Of
us in municipal progress. Thanks. q
thousand times, that it is. Its blum
ders may save us some few millions
of dollars. Today. with the prospect
Of an electric plant capitalization Of
$12O 900 900 staring them in the face,
the voters Of London are going to the
polls in final attempt to save their
pocket books from taxation robberies.
The experimenting has been going on
merrily and the citizens of London
have been paying for It,
| The London situation is intensely
interesting. When private companies
operated the municipal industries, the
debt Of the city was $35 per head. To-
day it is $50 per head-and the diff
| leIeHCo UOeSu De8Iu u CONSlSL merely
in the increased expense inevitable to
a great and growing municipality.
The other feature of municipal ac-
tivity has brought the London tax
payers to grief. The council decided
some time ago to make its own bricks.
Bricks then sold at 1925 per thou
sand. So soon as the city began to
make bricks for itself, there seemed
everywhere a disposition to do the
city. Materials cost the municipal
plant more than it cost private plants,
and when they had their system per-
fected. they found that they were pay
ing $7.75 per thousand for municipal
products. In other words, the cost of
making bricks under municipal owner
ship increased 2s.2 per cent over their