Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1912-11-29
WILL REDUCE LIGHT
AND WATER RATES

reductions IN the rates which IL is
lesal for public service corporations
70 charse for water and light in this
city was the subject Of a message
from Mayor Smith to the council at
its regular session last night
The mayor has been confined to his
nome by illness for the past two
weeks, and was not present when his
message was read Thursday night I'm
the document The mayor called atten-
Jion to the fact that the enactment of
the ordinance had not been followed
by reduction in rates as charged by
the water and light company, and he
advised law that would put the new
schedule into force The message
said
The question before the city Is
which is the greater, the city govern
ment backed by the ordinances, or the
tanlornia-Oregon Power Co. and the
TWO members of the common council
who voted against this ordinance?
"A law will not execute itself.
There must be back of it authority
and some one to execute that author
ity. In this case we need an ordi-
nance with teeth I'm t. To that end
1 recommend the council to enact
forthwith an ordinance making it a
crime for any officer, agent or EN-
ploye of any company, corporation or
person furnishing electric current or
light over any wires strung upon
poles erected upon the streets or al
leys of the city or carried in mains
under the streets OF the city whethe-
such poles wires and mains are erect
ed or constructed with or without the
consent of the city. to charge, exact,
collect or receive any higher rates for
electric light and current than are
fixed by the ordinances of the city,
and also to provide a penalty for any
company officer, agent or empIoye
who will cut off the supply of cur
rent to any consumer who shall ten
der the charge fixed by the ordinances
of this city"
Summing up the argument of his
lengthy message, the mayor advised
the enactment of such an ordinance
as he had proposed, and, second the
submission to the people of the pro-
position to issue bonds to provide
funds to take over the electric trans
mission lines in the city and for the
installation of municipal plant for
generation of electric current, or the
purchase of electric current from the
company or person that would supply
it at the lowest price.
During the course of the message
the mayor took occasion to ridicule
the recent proposition made the city
asking for a forty-year franchise, and
also to pay his respects to the Char
acter assassins," "slanderers, fran
chise-gamblers," crooks" liars.
etc, who "are attacking those mem
bers of the council who are trying to
do something for the people He said
that the attacks did not emanate from
the corporations that were affected,
but from those who thrust themselves
in the forefront
Following the reading of the mes
sage Councilman Herzinger said 81
resent what is contained in that doc
ument. The man who wrote it is
nothing but an erratic, cheap-skate
politician
Acting Mayor Stricken raped for
order. and Councilman Clark moved
10 lay the message on the table He
explained his motion by saying ~ do
not believe in fostering the candidacy
of any man for mayor, and object to
the message on two grounds, first,
that a special election as asked for
would cost money and the people will
vote the proposition down. and sec
ondly because this message is pre-.
sented to this council simply to get
it into the press and further the cause
Of a cheap politician"
The outcome Of the discussion was
the carrying through Of motion that
provided that no part Of the message
be considered except such parts as re-
lated to the electric light and water
propositions. and the city attorney
was instructed to prepare an ordi-
nance along the lines Of the mayors
recommendations
The votes Of Clark and Daniels
were the only ones recorded against
the enforcement Of the ordinances in
question
AN EXPENSIVE SPARK.