Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-04-08

first will be at the headqua rters OF the
House District committee at the House
Office building at s O'Clock this evening.
Today's testimony had TO do with q
variety Of subjects more or less intimate
y related to the price OF gas in the Die
trict.
Mr.. Humphreys on Stand.
Alexander c. Humphreys. president Of
the Stevens Institute of Technology.
president of the Buffalo Gas Company
End recognized expert and authority
on all phases OF the gas question, was
the first witness today. The Washington
Gas Light Company showed a disposition.
ne said, to treat the individual consumer
with the utmost fairness. He had in
Vestgated number of complaints
against the gas company with reference
to payments. he added. and found this
invariably to be the case
Referring to the testimony OF witnesses
at the last hearing with reference 10 the
cost TO the consumer OF the laying OF
pipes by the company, Mr.. Humphreys
said that the cutting of public pave
ments was expensive, and that the COM
pany did not get back from the CON-
sumner the original cost of pipe laying
and installation.
Finances Discussed.
Mr.. Humphreys then discussed the
finances of the Washington Gas Light
Company. He said that the return to the
company in 1909, based on securities.
showed net profit of s66e9l492. or
11.0S per cent. The return based on as
sets of 30 300. 600 amounted to S113 on
the total appraised value Of the company
-$l3 ,OOO, O0O-the return on June 30, 1907,
was 81 per cent.
These figures were based on dollar gas.
On ninety-cent gas-the present rate
the return, he said, would drop to ALI
per cent.
The cost of manufacturing and deliver
ing gas In the District of Columbia in
1919. Mr.. Humphreys told the committee.
correcting slight error In his previous
cubic feet, as compared with GA cents q
thousand in 19U1-an increase OF IL per
cent.
When Mr.. Humphreys finished his tes-
timony Representative Cary OF Wisconsin,
asked some questions.
DO you charge by the day for Your
services?' he asked Mr.. Humphreys.
II do not" the witness replied.
II don't suppose you care to say what
you CHARGE" Mr.. Cary suggested.
Refuses to Answer.
Il do not" said Mr.. Humphreys; that
is my own private business"
Mr.. Cary wanted to know how IL Was
that gas bills were just as large now with
ninety cent gas as when the price of gas
was $1.O0 thousand cubic feet. He
asked il it wasn't possible to make The
meters run faster by putting more pres
sure on the gas.
Mr.. Humphreys said that he never
heard OF a company that even thought OF
such a thing, and that besides. the re-
suits would be very disastrous with
spect to purposes of illumination.
Mr.. Cary read a letter from r. b. Brown
of 1875 Irving street complaining that his
bills had not decreased in amount as q
result of the drop in the price of gas
from 81 TO 81 cents. Mr.. Brown ex
planned that with dollar gas he had used
on an average OF about 300 feet of gas a
month. With ninety-cent gas his bills
showed a use of about 1900 cubic feet a
month. Consequently his bills had not de-
creased.
Complaint About Bill.
Mr.. Cary also said that Mr.. Casey.
who runs a saloon at 4th and II streets,
had complained to him Cary that his
gas bills were. higher with ninety-cent
gas than they had been With dollar gas.
Casey doesn't burn any more gas than
he used to burn, said Mr.. Cary. because