Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1908-06-01
ports of private corporation to its
stockholders.

Let the city sell the bonds and with
the proceeds buy capital stock in the
department. When the department
wants to make extensions that it can
not pay for out of it's earnings. let it
call for further stock subscriptions.
Let the department be required by the
stockholders to keep up their property
in proper shape keep the assets un-
impaired in value) by maintaining a
sufficient depreciation reserve. Let
the city pay the department pretty
good price (about the same as pri-
vate company would charge) for the
lighting it uses, and let the depart
ment charge private consumers pref
ty good price, so as to be on the safe
side as regards both branches of the
business. The department, on the
other hand, is to be required to include
in its operating expenses besides de-
probation insurance on all classes of
risks in full, taxes, both state and To-
cal, rents for city property, water
bills-in short, everything for which a
private company would pay, either the
city or somebody else. And finally
the department is to pay the city, in
lieu of the dividends of a private COM
pany, regular annual fixed payment
''for the service of the debt" part of
which last is to cover the interest
(Which the city itself shall take care
of and part to be invested by the city
in sinking fund. This.second portion
is to be xactly figured so as to be
sufficient, with earnings, to pay offsthe
debt in a definite number of years.
| (Our so-called payments to sinking
fund thus far of hap-hazard amounts
some years and some years not: is
largely bluff and no adequate handling
of that matter at all.) If under these
conditions the department comes out
at the end of each year with surplus
it is succeeding is doing mighty
well-and the managers ought (be-
sides being we'll paid to have as sort
of reward the surplus they have earned
to put into improvements in the prop
erty in such ways as they see fit. The
surplus should snever be covered into
the city treasury at the end of each
year; that vicious practice furnishes
an incentive for extravaganza. It,
after a time, indeed, regular recur-
ring SURPRISES should appear to be sue
cessive Especially after all the bonds
were paid off and the annualspayment
for service of the debit were reduced
by the amount of the former contrib
utions to the sinking fund.-, then the
price paid by the city for its lights
should be increased. Of course, it
should be seen to that nothing is
charged to new construction that should
be charged to repairs and renewals !;
otherwise the department if it were
running behind might keep calling for
new stock subscriptions in place OF
confessing failure by asking for an in
creased price lighting. The lcity
should have an official, not a member
Of the managing board Of the depart
ment, to constantly supervise and aud
it the accounts of the department.. He
|, should not, of course, interfere with
the technical management, but simply
act as a much-needed watchdog. 1t
, is human nature for Ethe managers ito
develop a OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES and to
. run things for the department, if not
tractural relations thus established be.
tween the department and the city
= and with the loop holes for depart.
e mental humbug and.dishonesty stopped
t up grating and 'making good show.
: ing" are twin sisters born of mora
: weakness), the city would know exact
: ly month by month and'year by year
a how it was coming out. The municipal
e ownership experiment would then be
e conducted like any experiment that is tt
Y prove anything; needless rows, recrim
8 nations, tomfoolery, clap-trap, ano
t buncombe of all sorts would be cut off
e and reat--deal of money destined
i otherwise inevitably. to be loss would
: be saved.
: AS municipal electric light depart
IS ments are now organized the way to de
d termine what the lights are really cost
it ing the city is to get as near as may b.
IS the surplus or deficit each year ant
n then deduct the one or add the othe
to the nominal price for the lights a
It per the appropriation for the same
lie In dividing the amount so obtainedib
IS the number of lights to ascertain tn
.e actual cost per light, care should b
"A taken, by those who do not want tn
ID city humbugged, to deduct any ar
IS lights used by the department itsel
al and which do not furnish light for tn
# public uses. We would not pay pr