Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-04-27
GOING TO COLUMBIA.
catawba Power Company Afraid Of
CharIotte's New Charter.

There Is now no longer any doubt
ny will move its general offices from
Charlotte. One Of the high officials Of
the company last Tuesday night stated
unequivocally to the Observer, that
such a step had been practically de-
cided upon. Asked as to the time, he
stated that it would be something like
eight months, outstanding contracts
and incomplete plans relative to new
work preventing an earlier removal.
While no authoritative statement was
given as to the location of the new
offices, it is little questioned by those
in a position to know that Columbia. s.
c.. will be chosen. Rock Hill, s. c.,
and Salisbury have both made over
lures but the development Of the sys-
tenn makes Columbia the logical CEN
tire and there the general offices will be
placed. 1t is stated that men are now
in Columbia making arrangements for
the transfer.
That Charlotte is to suffer a heavy
blow by the transfer Of the general
offices Of this company Is not to be
denied. The Southern Power COM
pany, with it's s11.OOO,0OO capital, its
backing and it's plans for the future,
was and still, Is the city's premier
corporation. Employed in the general
offices on the first and third floors of
the Trust building are approximately
100 high salaried and able men, three
fourths Of whom are connected with
the engineering and construction de-
partments. From Charlotte went out
bulletins to all sections regarding COM
mercial advantages and possibilities,
not one Of which failed to refer to the
fact that the head offices Of the great
est hydro electric development Of the
south was located in the city The
Southern Power company has also in
duced practically all Of the large elec-
trio machinery manufacturing and sup
ply concerns to open and maintain Of
fees in the city, such as the Westing-
house, General Electric, Western Elec-
trio, Wagner Electric and other con-
Germs, which have added to the citys
progress in no small fashion. Char
lotte has heretofore been the centre Of
operations Of the company whose field
has stretched from Winston and
Greensboro on the north, to Spartan
burg and Columbia on the south, this
being the largest city adjacent to the
centre of the chain of water-powers
along the Catawba.
There are two reasons why the
Southern Power company is to move
its general offices from Charlotte.
First, because the action Of the board
Of aldermen at that memorable meet
ing during the latter part of Febru-
ary inserted a clause into the pro-
posed new charter giving the board
the power to regulate service and es-
pecially rates Of public service cor
porations, which clause was grated
by members Of the legislature to the
amended Harris charter. the charter
which goes into effect early next month.
This clause Is said to have given the
northern interests Of the company, who
took it at its face value and con-
strued 1t as a warning and menace Of
the future, such jar that they have
never been able to reconcile themselves
to anything but change when a
change can be accomplished without
great inconvenience at this time. This
action Of the board, they claim, Will
jeopardize the sale of bonds in the A.
nancial markets as 1t will give the
municipality the right at any time to
say what rates shall be charged and
what not Whether this be true or not
Is not to be argued here. 1t Is enough
to say that the promoters and hackers
of the company did not relish this
treatment, so much so that they are
willing to dispose Of their public util-
tiles contract at any time.
This action Of the board cut the only
string which operated to keep the
general offices Of the Southern Power
company in Charlotte. AS Is we'll
known, the Southern Power company
is engaged principally in the develop
ment Of hydro-electricity and the dis
tribution and sale of 1t in wholesale
quantities, to manufacturing plants,
cities, distributing agencies and the
like in this general territory. In Char
lotte the company violated its first
principle and went into the retail bus
mess, where 1t has commanded a large
and handsome patronage. OF the men
employed by the company, approx
mately nine out Of ten were engaged
in the engineering and construction
They had no business
originally in Charlotte any more so
than in Rock Hill or Chester, or Lam
caster, S. c., which were indeed equal
ly as WE'LL If not better situated for the
work in hand by reason Of their prox-
unity to the centres Of development.
These offices and these men, however,
had to be somewhere and Charlotte
was chosen. When a large local retail
business was built up, there was no
sufficient reason for a change, every
thing being satisfactory, and so the
offices remained while the work at
Great Falls, Rocky Creek and Ninety
Nine Islands was beiLg prosecuted.
The board Of aldermen, however, ac-
cording to the statements Of officials
of the company, has taken a step,
which jeopardizes this retail business
to the extent that 1t will be sold II
possible, and hence there Is no reason
why the general offices Of the engi-
neering and construction departments
remain here when they could be more
economically administered elsewhere.
The second reason for the change and
with it the reason why Columbia Is to
be chosen for the general offices of the
company is the fact that the monster
Wateree power on the Catawba, (the
river at this point is known as the
Wateree), is the next to be developed.
This power Is situated near Camden
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