Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1912-10-17
Capital News Special service)

tNdpltdI NcWD SpeCldi 6eTVlCoy
Blackfoot. Oct. 1.-THE opera house
here was filled last night with an en-
thusiastic audience which listened te
the speech of g. ii. Martin, Progress
sive nominee for governor. Mr.. Mar
tin continued his exposition OF the in
CAPABILITIES of taxation by the state
board Of equalization and called the at
tention of Bingham county voters t.
particular features wherein they were
directly affected. He showed that rail
way valuations In Bingham county had
been increased over 1911 by less than
% per cent, while the farms of the
county had been increased, as equalized
by the state board. nearly 40 per cent
William A. Lee, a prominent attor-
ney, presided at the meeting and in
intro ucing the speaker took occasion
to explain to the voters how to write
in the names of the Roosevelt presi-
Dental electors. He declared that the
decision of the supreme court was a
narrow and strained construction of
the election law
Speaking upon the question of public
utilities, Mr.. Martin said in part:
Public Utilities.
Governor Hawley said in an inter-
I find no sentiment in favor of public
service commission
This is just what we might expect
from Governor Hawley, because he owes
his election in 1910 largely to help given
to him by the great corporations of
this state, and he is backed in this
campaign by the timber trust, the lead
trust and to a certain extent by the
rui do Of fbic tut nthar
utility companies.
las a matter Of fact. il there is any
one thing in which the people of this
state are interested, 1t Is a public SER
vice commission for the supervision and
control of our public service companies.
Students of public affairs see many ex
cellent reasons for the creation of such
q commission and no one opposes such
q commission except those owners of
utilities who desire to charge all the
traffic will bear. regardless of the SER
vice rendered or the investment in or
value of the property used to render
the service.
There are only three states left In
which public service companies are per-
mtted to conduct their affairs without
some protection to their patrons. Idaho
grace of Idaho
NO measure Is more bitterly fought
il our legislature than those proposed
for the creation of such a commission.
The line up on the passage of such a
measure always affords an excellent
opportunity to determine who runs the
public affairs of Idaho. The bill APP
pears in every Legislature and is
tl, killed ~ of cnrnpra q
influence. All kinds OF county division
bills and appropriation questions and
other questions get mixed with it, it
becomes the trading stock of the leg
islature and is always killed in the
closing hours of the session. The
passage Of such a bill and proper ad-
ministration under it would do more
to rout the third house than any other
one measure.
Public utilities are VIGOROUSLY UNI
der assessed. If commission was Gre
ated it's first work would be to ascer-
tain the true cash valuation of all
utilities and this information would be
at the disposal Of the taxing power to
enable it to put cash value on the
properties of such utilities. Such in
formation would result ir the taxation
valuation used for fixing rates.
THE furnishing of cars and the con-
struction OF commercial spurs and sid
ings is now entirely in the hands of the
railway companies The sole power in
relation thereto exercised by the COM
panies is often made the basis of
despotic monopoly. Suppose, my friends,
that you had a body of timber which
could only be moved by the construc-
ton of spur track to it. How would
you go about 1t to get the spur? Sup
pose you wish cars to ship your pota-
toes or other crops? How will you go
about to get the cars in time to move
your crops promptly and to enable you
20 market them to the best advantage?
Suppose you have to pay, as paid the
other day, $3.50 for IL minutes use of
p telephone from Pocatello to Boise.
How would you go about it to remedy
the matter?
I'VE propose to have that public SER
vice commission which the governor
says you are not interested in. We
propose that 1t shall be made possible
for you to get the spur track to your
timber on reasonable terms; that you
shall get cars with promptness to move
your crops and produce: that you shall
be charged only such rates as is neces-
sary to pay a fair return on the invest
ment in or value OF the utility that
serves you and that you shall have
good service for such rates. No hone It
public utility company can object to
this program and every voter Of Idaho
who patronizes a public utility (and
who does not?) should vote with us to
get q public service commission
Back Of and underneath the fight
for and against the creation of such
commission lies the paramount issue in
American politics. Who runs our gov.