Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-04-14

| with the same degree of strictness that
strangers are to make deposits. but l
because I do not know. Mr.. Whitwell,
what is the present amount?
Mr.. Whitwell-I should say today it was
about $21OOOO
| Mr.. Aiken-And the number of consum-
ers is about $4,000
| Mr.. Whitwell-Yes.
Mr.. Aiken-What is the amount? Is
| it IS?
with the size of the house, from So to
$15 or $50; according to the size of the
| house.
Mr.. Aiken-Does the gas company ever
allow the consumers anything like inter-
est on those deposits?
Mr.. Whitwell-The gas company always
allows per cent
Mr.. Aiken-How do you pay it?
| MIR. Whitwell-When the account is
closed 1t is paid to the consumer, and If
interest he can do SO.
| Mr.. Aiken-I was told by gentleman
that he had a deposit with the company
for twenty years. and that he has never
received a cent Of interest yet.
Mr.. Whitwell-It would take a big force
OF clerks to compute the interest on each
deposit before it was asked for.
| Mr.. Aiken|I had one last year for
| about six months. and do not know OF
| having received any interest.
| Mr.. Coudrey-If you got one of these
interest books, it would not take long to
compute it.
| widow in this city moved from cottage
| into a fat because she could not afford
to pay the rent charged. She had two
daughters who supported themselves, and
| they went into a fiat. and the gas COM
| pany, through the proprietor, demanded
$40 as deposit. Why was that?
| Mr.. Whitwell-Because In 80 per cent
of the apartment houses all the cooking
is done by gas.
Mr.. Cary-what has that to do with
Mr.. Whitwell-You use more gas for
| fuel than if you are using it for merely
illuminating purposes:
| Mr.. Coudrey-Mr. Chairman, have re-
| ceived letter which may interest the
committee. The secretary will read 1T.
| The secretary read a letter complaining
| Of high pressure and charging it to be
the cause of large bills.
| Mr.. Rothermel-What year was that
when $4,000 dividend was paid?
| Mr.. Godsborough-We were speaking of
! last year?
Mr.. Rothermel-Yes; the year in which
! this reduction was made.
! Mr.. Goldsborough-That money was
| taken from the surplus, $237, 600 of it.
| Mr.. Cary-One more question and then
I will permit the gentleman to go. / have
| asked this question three or four times,
but will ask it again. What interest has
l
| Light Company, or what interest has the
Rosslyn Gas Light Company in the Wash
| ington Gas Company?
| Mr.. Goldsborough-The Rosslyn Gas
| Company has no interest in the Washing
| ton Gas Company. / am one of the
directors Of the latter. and 1t could not
| have any such relationship without my
| being a party to it. So far as Mr.. Nc
believe he has any very considerable in
| terest in the Rosslyn Gas Company. He
| is largely interested In the railroad over
there, and SO am /. for that matter-the
! Old Dominion and Great Falls railroad.
| Consequently we want to build up Ross
Ign as fast as possible, and are ready to
| contribute to the encouragement of the
| building of houses there.
Mr.. Cary-If the Washington Gas Com
pany were making such. enormous divi-
dends that they did not care to admit
in other words, to publish to the public;
! what would prevent them from having a
| franchise in Rosslyn, Va, and to capital
| iZe the company in RoSslyn, Va, say at
MES in the District of Columbia with the
| Rosslyn Gas Company, especially if the
| agitation is successful that the Post is
| now working up to have that county
| ccme back into the District? All would
come back with it, would 1t not?
| Mr.. Goldsborough-I will answer that
| in this way: There are other gas COM
| panies around Washington. There is one
at Hyattsville, and one at Chevy Chase,
| and it would not be at all necessary, If
the gas company wanted to get under
| that kind of cover, to employ the Ross
| lyn company. 1t could go and buy
charter in West Virginia, as the electric
| light company originally did, and there
| is no law that could be invoked to de-
prive the stockholders of the company of
| the right to sell their stock to anybody
outside. For instance, in 1898 New York
syndicate came down here and bought
4 f. 11od iytcY li6
utilities They bought the Metropolitan
Railway, and they bought the George
| town and Tennallytown, and the Ana
| costa. and BrightWood. and so on-any
number of them. They also bought the
electric light company, and tried to buy
the gas company. They have the right
| to attempt to buy the gas company, now,
and the stockholders Of the gas company
| have the right to sell their stock to that
| syndicate if they desired They offered
| them $50 a share for 1t then. and that
was twelve years ago, and the business
of the gas company has more than dou-
/ bled since then. The stockholders re-
| fused: but they could have accepted that
offer This suggests one of my objections
| to this resolution The stockholders
owning the property have the right not
only to sell, but to lease 1t If they want
| ed to- to anybody. Whoever took II
would have to take it subject to the OBJ
legations imposed by the law in force
| in the District of Columbia, and subject
! to the limitations of it's charter, and all
| that sort of thing. There is no method
whatever in this country that l know of
by which you can take away mans
property, and condemn 1t without due
| process of law. Every man Is entitled
| to his day in court.
| Mr. Cary-But you can prevent its in
creasing it's stock in the District of
Columbia.
Mr.. Goldsborough-That is different
matter You cannot prevent any one.
however. from increasing his capital You
can prevent a company from issuing stock
| against it, but you cannot prevent 1t.
| when it is necessary to do so, from put
ting more money into it's business. Sup
| pose one of these plants were to burn
down tomorrow. Could the government
| or ANYBODY else come forward and say,
| You shall not rebuild that plant; you
shall not put more money In 1T, or say
| to the president, You shall not go to
| the banks and borrow money! Suppose
| a fire should break Out-that happened
only two or three years ago Could It be
said that the company would not have
the power to go and borrow money and
capitalize that plant again? Why, GER
tainly not.
Mr.. Cary-Borrow the money, but not
issue stock?
Mr.. Goldsborough-No. But 1t would
have a right to have returns upon that
money. Do not forget that, for that's
our case. It would be thus capitalized
in fact and in law just as absolutely as
though you issued stock against 1t. That
is the reason why we are here claiming
that the real thing to be considered now
- 1T II &c