The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1911-05-18

oo a. IodSOQdDl0 price 10 private con-
sumers through it's own plant. If such
was the case there would be no OBJ
lection to the granting of the fran
ehise, providing it could be done le-
gally, for certainly this village cannot
generate electricity at the price men,
toned, neither can any other small
village where steam power is used.
But the ordinance speaks for itself.
II the contention of the councilman is
right why grant the privilege to the
Power company "to erect and main
tain poles, masts, wires, and other
fixtures in the streets, alleys and pub
lie grounds of the village?" The fact
OF the matter is the council has
attempted to grant the Power company
the right to charge private consumers
70 cents per kilowatt- Large consum-
ers a little less. Mark the words,
'.Shall net to the power company"
Those words mean that the charges
permitted shall be net charges. What
the gross charges would be to the pri-
vate consumers no one knows.
1t is hardly worth while to discuss
the ordinance. It is not worth the
paper it is printed on. But assuming
that the ordinance is valid the village
council has given to an outside COR
poration what it would not give to
one of our own citizens, and which
ought not be given to any private
citizen or corporation, a valuable
franchise for a period of 25 years
without money and without price.
Moreover, it is a jug-hand]ed agree
ment: The power company can file an
acceptance within 10 days and bind
the village, but the company is given
Is months in which to fulfill it's part
Of tho contract.
Even if the village council has the
authority to grant such a franchise it
does seem as if it would have been the
proper thing to have first submitted
such an important proposition to the
voters Of the village. The people of
this village have about $4,000 in
vested in their water and light plant,
repre- sented by a bonded and floating
indebtedness, every dollar of which
must eventually be paid by the tax
payers of the village.
sIn this connection we wish to call
abortion to another absurd ruling by
the attorney general. In reply to Mr..
c. A. Dickey, village attorney, he
says:
"You further ask, are the village
bonds and interest thereon issued for
such plants as come under the control
of the commission and issued prior to
the creation of such commission, pay
able by the commission through it's
warrants or by the warrants of the
village councillor
The attorney general answers: "It
is my opinion that the same should be
paid by the commission as it is the in
tention, as before stated, that the said
commission should have the complete
control over all the business affairs
of the municipality, involving the
proper management of it's water,
light, power and building plants.''
If the attorney general will step into
the state auditors Office he will learn
that the permanent school fund of the
state holds bonds issued for the erec-
ton of the plant to the amount of
$40, 900, and he will also discover that
the state auditor directs the county
auditor of Mile Laos to extend a tax
annually against every dollar of tax
able property in the village of
Princeton for the payment of the prin-
cipal and interest due on those bonds.
A more ridiculously absurd ruling was
never promulgated from the attorney
generals Office.
In justice to Attorney General
Simpson we will state that the opinion
was written by one of his subordi-
mates.
There is no occasion for all the fuss
that has been raised over the appoint
ment OF a water, light, power and
building commission in this village.
Ever since the law (Chap. 4l2, Gen.
Laws of 1907 was enacted there has
been talk of appointing such a CON-
mission in this village. We think it
was mistake TO appoint such COM
mission Immediately after new coun-
Gil had been elected. It would have
ben far better, in our Judgment. to let
the new council have complete control
and hold its members responsible for
the management of village affairs.
Then if the members made good
the voters would have retained them
in power as long as they cared to
serve, but if they failed to live up to
their promises the voters cOnld have