The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1909-01-26
lay being due to legal Instructions
raised by the Public Service Corpora

men. And the point to which we ask
special attention in this connection is,
that the plant of the Public Service
Corporation could not possibly have
carried the load called for by this con-
tract, and that if 1t had not been for
the organization of this Company and
1.-THE work. which those interested in it
have done, the street lighting of Nor
ristOwn would still be in the same un-
satisfactory condition in which it was
at the time Of the investigation.
III. The efforts TO finance the Conn
pany and the Public Service lease.
At the commencement of this Com
pany's existence all our efforts were, as
a#a have said, concentrated upon the
construction of a plant which would
enable us to fulfil our public lighting
contract.
This having been done, we immedi-
ately turned our attention to the pri-
yate lighting situation. 1t was appar-
ent that in order to osupply the private
consumers of electricity with adequate
service very large additional expendi-
lures were necessary our original plant
not being sufficient for that purpose.
At the commencement we believed,
and think we had the right to believe,
In view of the popular sentiment which
had been SO strongly manifested on sew
eral occasions, that our effects to secure
the necessary funds would receive
hearty popular support, not only in the
shape of subscriptions for our stock,
but by way of contracts for service.
We not only believed that this aid
would be forthcoming, but in view of
what had taken place and in view of
the fact that the work done by our di-
rectors was performed without reward
and persuant to sincere effort to
benefit the town, we believed, and
still believe, that we were entitled TO
such support. To our great regret we
are compelled to say that our expecta-
tions were disappointed, and that the
company found itself without adequate
finances for the work it had under
taken.
A few subscriptions, by public spir-
tied citizens, came in with but little
effort, but by far the largest amount
of even the inadequate funds which
we have raised have been produced
only by labor of the very hardest de-
scription, taking not only our best eff
forts but serious amount OF the per-
s0nal time of our directors.
And further than this it certainly
would seem fair that we should have
had, if not the financial aid which we
expected, the good feeling of the citi-
Zens and their moral support, but even
here we have been disappointed. AL
most constant criticism rather than
hearty approval has been onr lot from
the very beginning.
Perhaps we ought not to complain
at this, KNOWN how much easier it is
to criticiSe than o assist, but, never
theiesS, it is the fact that this criti-
cism, based in the great majority of
cases upon the lack OF knowledge OF
the facts, has been most tdiscouraging
to us.
In the face Of these obstacles we,
nevertheless, succeeded in overcoming
one difficulty after another until in
the late spring of 1908 it became ap-
parent that there was not room for
both companies in Morristown.
At this juncture the Public Service
Corporation approached us with an
offer to purchase our property. De-
spite our previous dlscouragementS
and the personal relief which would
have followed an abandonment OF fur
ther efforts, we nevertheless, fatty re-
fused to listen to this offer. We had
undertaken to do certain work and
we determined to prosecute it as long
as any. possible hope OF success re-
mained.
Negotiations were therefore under
taken looking to our leasing the Pub
lie Service plant. Although we knew
their generating station to be almost
valueleSs, we nevertheless knew that
some OF their circuits were in good
condition; and 1t was clear to us that
by consolidation OF this nature upon
proper terms, we would not only take
a long step towards carrying out the
purpose which we had IN mind from
The commencement, OF complete re-
form of the public and private light
ing station as we'll, but that the gem
eral public would moreover benefit by
the non-necessity of duplication of con-
duitS, with all the resulting harm to
the streets, and further, by the eli
mination of paralleling overhead
wires.
The first demands of the Public Ser
vice Corporation were exorbitant, but
after some months of negotiation a
lease was signed upon terms which we.
believed and still believe, despite the
bad condition OF the plant, to be rea-
sonable in view of all the circum-
stances especially in view of the fact
that the yearly rental payable for the
first three years OF the lease is thirty
per cent. less than the net earning Of
the Pnhlic Service Corn0ratiOn in