The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-07-16
THE PRICE OF GAS
Letter From the Company in Which It
Explains Its Position

Editor of the Banner Since May
1st last, when the Bennington Gas
Light company raised The rate f1r gas
in this village to $175 per lri0 cpl'ic
feet, the c'.n pany has re,.a Subjected
to considerable adverse, aod unjust
criticism ty a certain small rrrcen-
tage of its patrons r''5 Cr''i Ism hfN-
ing been geile hted g. II - nitro
w. through q li.i;der+ III ling ON the
part of these IA. obs 81 -'h- rea'
sons that led ~. To this change IN
rates, a chan : hat should have been
instituted long before / was. II is
for the purpose of giving these con-
sumers of gas, and the public gener-
ally the reasons that led the Gals COM
pany to increase its rates, that this
letter is written, as no corporation
knows better than the Bennington Ga;
Light company, tne necessity for
harmonious understanding between
the public upon which it depends Tor
patronage, and any corpol alton manu-
featuring and selling public utility.
The promoters of the enterprise re-
sulting in the building OF che gas
plant here, when they arranged that
the price for gas should be St.32 per
1000 cubic feet, expected TO manufac-
ture gas by means of new PROCESS,
that would cost the company not over
one half the amount expended oN
other gas companies in genera li'S
their product, which would have en-
abled the company here to denver gag
TO its patrons at a much lower rate
than other companies in towns the
size of Bennington. The result OF
this experiment is we'll known to tne
Remington public, an experiment that
proved an utter failure, the Gas com
many having been Obliged to tear OUT
this very expensive gas generator ana
install another at large cost, so that
now the expense attending the manu-
facture of gas in Bennington, is quite
as much as in other towns, Wnile the
price 1t was formerly sold for, by care
full computation, was from .lO12 TO 10
cents less per 1000 cubic feet than IL
actually cost the company to deliver 1T
at tne burner. -,
OF course no fair minded, or inteilr
gent person would expect the COM
pany to follow so suicidal course
one that having previously been ioi-
lowed proved one of the largest rae
tors In forcing the Gas company INTO
the hands of receiver, and would
certainly have doTe so again had the
company not raised the price, wnich
Is now no more than some other gas
companies in the state are charging,
whose output is more than double that
of the Bennington company while one
AT least with double the output, char
ges an average of $3.50.
Fortunately for the Gas company
nine tenths of it's patrons are convln-
ced of the necessity that brought
about the change in price, and tne
company expects soon when the other
one tenth takes the trouble to intel
ligently investigate the question, they
too will be satisfied that the company
had no other course, excepting TO
close its doors.
so well satisfied was the Gas COM
many with the Justice of its cause That
Il annlied TO the Public Service Com
mission itself, asking for an invest-
cation as to the necessity IQr lne
higher rates, but found the Commits
sion had no jurisdiction to act upon.
any call from the Gas company such
call we are told, must come from one
or more of the public, patrons, or
would-be patrons of the Gas company.
The company is anxious to have
harmonious understanding vita the
Bennington public upon which it de-
ponds for support and as soon as the
patronage accorded the corporation is
sufficient to warrant it, our patrons
may rest assured that the company
will be only too glad to lower the
rates without being requested to do so
by any one.
We have a right to fair profit up
on the gas we sell, and ask nothing
more than that. With apologies for
tae length of this letter, we beg to re-
main,
Very respectfully,
Remington Gas Company.
Bennington, VT, July 16, 1909
pApIn Flight IN AEROPLANE