The San Francisco call., 1909-02-27
WHY INDIA BASIN
ACT IS OPPOSED
William H. Ford Turns Search
light on interests Behind
Fight
Corporation Greed and Evasion
OF Harbor Tolls Is the Soul
of Movement

Editor Call: The real and only rea-
son why the three lumber companies
are making such a desperate fight
against the passage of the India basin
act is that they want the 10 blocks
long Islais channel excluded from the
proposed basin, which VIII permit them
to have private wharves on Islais chan
mel and avoid payment to the harbor
commissioners of all dockage charges,
competitors and all other business in
terests are now required to pay in the
shape of harbor tolls. 1t would leave
their property on Islais. channel in the
same relative position as now is that
property on the north side of the water
way. known as Channel street. lying
between Third and Fourth streets.
The harbor commissioners were COM
PEELED by the federal government to
keep Channel street an open waterway,
and yet the private property, which
now runs to the waters edge, as above
described, is not under the control OF
the harbOr commissioners, as is all the
rest OF the water front.
WHAT 1T MEANS TO STATE
Ships may only load or discharge
their cargoes at other places on Chan
mel street when permitted TO do so.
and private tax is levied by the owners
OF the property The state gets abSO-
lutely no revenue whatever from pri-
vate property whicn abuts on a state
waterway.
When one realizes that dockage
charges amount TO about cents per
ton, and the state toll is cents per
ton additional. and the wharfage charge
is cents per ton for every as hours
thereafter. and that the monthly rental
is s6250 for a berthright of zoo feet.
il can be readily seen why the three
lumber interests are anxious to have
the state give them club with which
they may beat their competitors and
deprive the state OF any harbor tolls
from ships docking at their private
wharves. They ask the state to exclude
their 19 blocks. They might with
equal audacity. ask the city to grant
them the privilege Of running 10 sa-
looms without paying license, and re-
qufring all other saloon keepers to pay
the license. as prescribed by law Is
there any wonder that they would re-
tain private lobbyists and use every
unfair method, such as placarding
Oakland. Los Angeles and other parts
of the state with posters against the
India basin act?
TOLLS HERE ARE CHEAP
San Francisco harbor tolls are
cheaper than any other harbor OF COM
merciaI Importance in the world, and
are about a third cheaper than the
average of 40 of the most important
European harbors. 1t would be crime
against the state to permit these three
lumber companies to evade paying har-
Dor tolls and 10 levy tribute on any
others who may wish to use their pris =
vate wharves. If the India basin acts
fails of passage before the legislature.
and the voters Of the state. there will
then be created a private harbOr in San
Francisco bay in direct competition
with the state harbor. which the people
should not permit. When the people
at large are properly informed that
the passage of the India basin act costs
the tax payers nothing and simply per-
mfts the harbor commissioners to issue
bonds for the purchase of these 63
blocks of submerged land for $1,000, 600
or less all of which sum, tOge ther
with interest. must be paid from the
harbor revenues only within Is years,
and is no tax upon the people of the
state. then it seems incredible and i'm
probable that the bill will fail to pass.
All Improvement clubs and CONNER
ciaI bodies in San Francisco are now
q unit for the passage of this act. and
the only opposition comes from the
three lumber companies who wish to
create the above described private har-
Dor. WILLIAM Fl. FORD,
Chairman Executive Committee OF
Islais Creek Inland Harbor Association.