The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1913-03-07
The Small Consumer Would
Be Treated in An Outrage
Gus Manner, City Attorney
Bond Believes.
STATE COMMISSION
SHOULD DISCUSS 1T
Says That An Enormous Pro-
fit Is Made on Little Man
Or That Company Loses on
the Big Consumer.

That the bid recently submitted to
the board of public works by the Rich
mony City Water Works is not bet
ter contract than the water company
now holds is what City Attorney Bond
maintains.
Attorney Bond fails to see how the
contract which is proposed by the
water works company will relieve mat
ters in Richmond as far as the average
individual is concerned and the small
consumer of water is outraged by the
plan he believes.
One of the chief objections Attorney
Bond has to the bid of the water COM
pany is the rates proposed. The min
imum rate for houses of less than six
rooms is forty-five cents per month
and the minimum rate for houses of
over six rooms is sixty cents per
thousand gallons. The minimum rate
must be paid by the householder
whether the water is used or not.
In the contract which expired sew
eral months ago which the company
is now operating under, water was
furnished the public schools free of
charge. The company proposes that
the schools shall pay for the water
used under the provisions of the pro-
posed contract. There will be no
meter rent which the city attorney
believes to be the best feature of the
new bid.
Minimum Rate.
"The minimumsrate to the consum-
ers of water who use 1000 gallons or
less is six cents per Thousand gallons"
the city attorney said. For the con-
sumner who uses 100000 gallons the
rate is six cents per thousand If the
company can furnish large corpora
tions water at six cents per thousand
gallons and make profit they should
do the same for the small consumer
as the company is to no addition ex-
pense as the pipes are all paid for by
the consumer. The company either
proposes to furnish the water to the
large corporations at a loss when they
sell it for six cents per thousand and
make it up on the small consumers
who are charged twenty-five cents per
thousand or they are making an un-
fair profit on the small consumers"
Another clause which is unfair is
the clause which regulates the mini
mum rate according to the size of the
pipe. Mr.. Bond believes. "Tn places
where a one-inch pipe or less than a
two-inch pipe is used minimum rate
of from forty-five to sixty cents per
thousand is charged. In pipes of over
two inches a rate of 50 is charged"
Five Members.
According to the public utility bill
there will be five members on the COM
mission who shall regulate the price
of water. Three members of the
present railroad commission will be re-
tanned and two additional members of
the commission shall be appointed by
the governor.
Mr.. Bond said, "The city officials
should make an effort to obtain the
services of the commission as soon as
possible. Without the aid of the COM
mission and the facts the commission
is able to give us on the water works
question We are practically in the
dark. l don't believe the people should
pay for something they don't get and
that is what they are now doing.
would not be in favor of accepting the
contract proposed by the water works
company in its present form