The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram., 1913-07-16
BY WILLIAM w. CARTER

4
gan Natural Gas & Fuel company was
granted a franchise by the Mansfield
city council on October 1, 1911. The
franchise is for a period of 25 years
and fixed the rate to be charged by
/ the company at 27k cents per thous-
and cubic feet with a reduction of 21a
cents per thousand provided the gas
bill is paid on or before the tenth day
of the month.
} There is nothing in the franchise of
the Logan company providing for
standards of pressure or heat units or
quality. There are provisions in the
franchise, however, to the effect that
the company, when making excava-
ltions for laying pipe, shall keep the
city free from damage in case of an
accident through falling into a ditch
or depression. 1t is also provided that
the company shall replace all streets
and street paving.
Service is Satisfactory.
The company has been furnishing
gas continuously in Mansfield for the
last eleven years or more and, in the
main, things have been satisfactory
This company's franchise contained
a provision empowering the concern
to charge meter rental and for a
time a meter rental of 10 cents per
month was charged but when the SUI
preme court declared this unconstitu-
tional 1t was discontinued.
Six Different Rates.
There are six different rates charg-
ed to consumers of natural gas in
af WI fU0 20
domestic purposes and already enum-
Grated. The other four rates are
special rates for large consumers
such as factories and bakeries. The
four rates are on a sliding scale from
"a cents per thousand down to 10
cents per thousand, according to the
amount consumed. Glass No. has a
10 cent rate but in order to be in that
class and secure the 10 cent rate
100000 cubic feet of gas must be con-
sumed per month. This sliding scale
is prescribed by the state utility
statute.
4,e72 Domestic Users.
There are more than 800 consum-
ers of the Logan company's natural
gas in Mansfield and of these 4.972
are domestic users and about $50
special consumers, as factories, baker
les or manufacturing enterprises.
The average bill for domestic use per
annum is $40 in this city This means
for cooking, lighting and heating pur-
poses.
The Logan Natural Gas company
has had one or two breaks in its gas
mains since il has been furnishing
natural gas to the city of Mansfield
but they were not of any consequence
for the reason that the Logan people
not only get gas from the West Vir-
ginia field and from the Sugar Grove
field but draw from the big field in
Ashland. county, Ohio which adjoins
this county and there are also sew
eral wells in this vicinity which they
own. Probably two or three times
In the last ten years the city has been
without gas for a couple of hours but
no serious distress occurred on ac-
count of the trouble. especially since
several wells of good capacity in this
vicinity have been available.
Artificial Company Out.
For many years the Mansfield Gas
Company furnished the city with arti-
ficial gas but on February "a. 1911,
the artificial gas company went out
of business and received at the hands
Of the city council the second fran
chise to furnish natural gas to con-
sumers. While the Mansfield Gas
Company. which is corporation COM
posed partially of home people, was
furnishing artificial gas it charged a
rate of S1.25 per thousand cubic feet
with a discount of % cents per thous-
and for payment of bills on or before
the tenth of each month This made
the net cost of artificial gas 81 per
thousand
Provisions Different.
Within six months after the Mans
held Gas company began furnishing
gas this company had also established
} good business. The franchise, of
the last mentioned company. contain
I'd one or two features which the
franchise of the Logan company did
not have. 1t provides that the COM
pany furnish gas of not less than 500
British Thermal units. This company
Is empowered to charge the same rate
is the Logan Natural Gas & Fuel COM
pany e, 272 cents per thousand
With discount of 21a cents per thous-
ind If paid on or before the tenth of
bach month.
The heating power of the natural
tas furnished by the Logan company
leems to be slightly reduced in very
bold weather but 1t is claimed that
lhis is the case with all natural gas
the natural gas were to be taken
put of Mansfield there would undoubt-
ldly be mighty protest against it