The San Francisco call., 1908-03-25
REFORM SUPERVISORS AND THE GREEDY PUBLIC
SERVICE CORPORATIONS


municipal Francisco the newly elected supervisors
their vtay important legislate favor OF the
public corporations and against the people
beyond the daring Of the late and infamous Doodle board And
unless public opinion brought bear powerfully
the supervisors that precisely what happen that precisely
what apparent majority OF the board conempate dong But tor
the OF few public spirited civic organizations and
newspapers would have been accomplished before
singing review of this situation has been the Saca
Bee by its well informed San Francisco correspondent and
dgsted here order show how neghbor may be led
regard This correspondent goes
public corporations firm grip
upon the community they had through the old RueSchmz
corporation bbed and corporation corrupted organization
prove presentation of facts
and figures taken from the records He does asend he did
would beevtha members Of the board Of
supervisors have been brbed but he shows the results far
they have developed appear be rather for public interests
than they when Ruef ruled.
The history controversy gone with much
detail the fact brought the company
for years collecting illegal for the part under njunc
tons issued by the federal and yet adjudcated 1t is
shown that these rates OF 1902 since illegally collected
seriously offered by supervisors the best that be done
the and the only alternative that weight
in the board proposes still higher schedule.
Supervisor Com who appears be favorng the corporation
the board fact he did in former boards
first proposed that the Of 1902 be enacted That by itself
might the limit of possible retrogesson but apparently
did satisfy the Spring Valley company Here is the Bees
Of what happened in the board last week:
Monday ordinance up
able But there sharper the world than Johnson
MURPHY and before they had an to open their mouths the
that the Of 1902 satisfactory
whole
The chief result OF this parliamentary uggle is to leave the
proponents OF reduced in the position of making fight
the 1902 the best that be for the
For years the company has been with the 1902
and asked for nothing but with the help of
sociud corporations they hope
to transfer to the rate payers the burden OF making good their
losses by the FIRE
The situation regards for is reviewed by the
quite fully shown how the Ruef supervisors brbed
with $4,000 rpudate their pledges OF Is gas
IS per 1000 In those days the corporation
well content with that price and regarded the $4,000
good investment But the persuaded that they
do still better with hypocical appeal the generosity of the
board and have the pudence 9
feet This when Los Angeles, manufacturing virtually
identical conditions gets gas per feet The
correspondent of the Bee concludes
All this show what has been demonstrated time
public 1t all likely
involved the problems pending
their points and the people foot the bills
The facts they disputed there
any escape from the conclusion stated The best that
choice OF evils with intmation we shall be
lucky if escape the
The motives OF the supervisors important they
viii be judged IN these matters by their If their idea Of
begin by cnng the payer profit grossly
capitalized public service corporations they themselves
badly Of joint with public inclined any to be
apatIetc about such matters