The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1912-02-08
Electric Current Charges Lower
Here Than in Most
Cities.
ARGUMENT ON FRANCHISE
Hcnrico Railway Seeking to
Enter Lighting and Power
Field.

n
Field.
4 Argument on the application of the
Richmond and Henrico Railway Com
pany for lighting and power fran
chiss was concluded before sub
committee of the Council Committee
on streets last night The committee
Will meet again shortly to determine
whether CT not it will recommend the
granting of any franchise; whether. II
Il franchise Is recommended, 1t should
be rcqul<cd that the new company
serve the entire city, or merely enter
the business district, and what form
OF bond shall be required to guarun-
tee that the franchise. II granted will
not be hcld as mer, paper asset
for use in determining the basis OF a
possible merger or consolidation of the
street railway companies. The Rcn-
mond and licnrico Company was rep
resented last night by Charles ".
Meredith and $ l.. Kelley. Henry W.
Anderson appeared for the Virginia
! Railway and Power Company.
vi a former meeting the question
had been raised by the committee
whether the company already in tho
! lighting and power neld-the Virginia
Railway and Power Company-was
/ supplying currSnt at reasonable rates
and potn parties were invited TO pre-
/ sent evidence on this point, while the
! applicants were especially asked what
! guarantee they would give 10 the city
| of lower rates in the event OF fran
chisc being granted.
Offers an Cent Rate.
Mr.. Kelley stated last night that so
FAR as he had been able TO ascertain,
| after correspondence with n number
OF cities, the rates charged here aver
! wit nf ,,tI,a
lar conditions The varying systems
| on which discounts were inquired, he
stated, made 1t impossible to make ey-
act comparisons. AS to the othor
| point his colleague, MIR. Meredith,
attn, stated that waile the applicant
| company desired to make the same
! bnse rate-l0 cents per kilowatt hour
now charged by the local company
| yet If the committee thought some
concession should DC made he was au-
! thorized by his company TO offer a
base rate OF cants per kilowatt hour
with the same general schedule of dis
counts based on the amount used. as is
now given by tho Virginia Railway
| and Power Company Mr. Meredith
| deprecated the idce of a rate war AMI
said his company only desired an equal
| competitive basis
| MT. Anderson, for the Virginia Rail-
way and Power Company, introduced
superintendent Of Light Department
rainier, VINO presented the committee
! with a schedule OF the rates charged in
| sixty cities, giving careful study OF
| tho local conditions in each: the watcr
| power, coal price, population and 9TH
| er conditions affecting the rates
| Rates Elsewhere.
| Many cities showed minimum rate
Of from 10 cents, against the mini
| mum rate in Richmond to large con-
sumers OF l.95 per killOwatt, while spc-
| cial conditions requiring operation for
the entire twenty-four hours are re-
| CURED in some cities to secure the
! minimum rates. Every City in ..assa-
| chusetts shower higher rates than
| those charged in Richmond The re-
| port showed less than one half of per
| cent difference in the general sche-
! dule OF Richmond and Syracuse. New
| York, the latter city securing power bv
| a transmission line from Niagara Fails
F., Mr.. Palmer stated that less than one
! third of the current now used here was
| generated by water power that the
water power is limited TO $500 killo-
! watt, while the peak load OF the nrcs-
] ext power house Is 1900 killowatt
with an average load OF from 5000 to
! 1000 killowatt, making II plain that
| all extensions must be on steam
4 basis. The lowest rate in Philadelphia
/ was shown TO be three times the mini.
| mum of Richmond: the powcr rate in
! scranton, Pa, more than twice the
| minimum of Richmond: the general
| average in Knoxville, 10 per cent. high
or than Richmond; the Lynchburg and
! Roanoke schedules avera cling about II
Z per cent. higher than Richmond. Mr.
! Palmer stated that from Information in
I hand he was assured that inc base rate
! OF 10 cents was in effect In about
+! 20 per cent OF American cities, the larg-
:, est cities having a higher rate, the
scale Of discounts varying In each in
stance. He emphasized the necessity
for reserve power at all times at the
power houses
Adequate and Reasonable
With duplication OF poles, wires
conduits and power houses. and sep
aratc service connections TO each prop
erty, and division OF the business, he
did not believe current could be pro-
duced Al the present rate.
Hir. anderson made an elaborate ar
sument against competitive fran
chise. holding the attention OF the
committee for more than an hour. The
abatement Of counsel for tho other side.
and the showing from sixty cities,
some larger and some smailer than
Richmond ne said. showed that rates
In Richmond were rs favorable as In
any other city similarly situated In
this country. No evidence had 5ccn
prescnted or could be presented that
tn. serY!ce here was not i.deuuatc or