Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-06-05

ings of the convention. although President
Williams in his opening address gave some
good advice to central station managers re-
garding their relations with the public.
Arthur H. Grant of the Municipal Owner
ship Publishing Bureau. represented al this
weeks gathering, said today to a Star re-
porter this subject:
misunderstanding regarding municipal
ownership, l believe, are due largely to the
reticence of those who are opposed to this
propaganda in presenting their side of the
case, while the affirmative of the PROPOSE
ton is constantly active.
1.-The result is that the public hears many
more arguments for than against it. Fur
thermore, if people were confident that the
corporations would be fair with them, that
monopoly would not resolve itself into OPP
preston, We should not hear so much Of
the great benefits to be derived from mu-
nicipal ownership.
Municipal Ownership.
'If every citizen were perfect, If every
public official could be made to put his own
interests. and, what is more important. his
own friends, in the background. there might
be some chance for successful municipal
ownership
Public opinion, as conceived by the poll
ticians who usually PROFOUND it, involves
ideal conditions of business sagacity, hon
esty and personal Observation-Disclosures in pub
. lie officials. 1t calls for these qualities in
degrees that has never actually existed and
never will exist as long man Is what he
is From a strictly financial standpoint 1t
is easy to see that municipal utilities must
cost more than private ones. Red tape Is
always expensive
THE other questions of good manage
ment attitude toward the public and quail
ity Of service vary in individual cases.
Personally, I do not believe in municipal
ownership Of any public utility. although at
one time l was led astray by unverified
statements of municipal success. Since
then l have analysed great many city
reports and the results are surprising. In
some cases the reported cost is less than
half the actual cost. The chief cause of
these honestly-juggled reports Is that the
people making them do not realize that a
city and an individual are subject to the
same laws of profit and loss, and that
higher taxes leave as big deficit in the
citizens pockets as do bills for lighting
or any other service"
That 1906-T was the record-breaking year
In electrical development was the summing
up Of the progress report submitted by T.
Cummerford Martin. The number of new
central-station enterprises was in excess Of
three hundred. In the six months I'D to
March Of this year, a gain Of 133 new
electrical power enterprises was reported
making a total of 1902 for the United
States, Mexico and the West Indies.
Out Of Proportion.
"The total" Mr. Martin said, "does not
increase In proportion to new plants be-
cause the constant tendency toward con-
solidation operates steadily in the direction
of lessening the gross number. The same
tendency toward consolidation has had the
effect of increasing capitalization on ac-
count Of the new money thus brought into
the industry and the larger body Of secur-
tiles that can be f1oated and made profit able
by increased economies and greater eff
cheney"
Assuming that capital increased 20 per
cent during the past year, the total
amount, Mr.. Martin said, invested in the
American central station of Industry at
present reaches the enormous sum of $780,
| 100000. Gross earnings of the central sta
ton industry have increased $50 900 In
| the past year. Many of the larger COM