The daily sentinel., 1913-03-12

very greatly excessive under those
conditions, can they? | didn't come
here today to argue specific rates, be
cause you probably wouldn't believe
a lot of the figures | would quote,
but did come to invite you to go
into our figures with us and then
make public the fact as to whether
our rates are fair or not. You
haven't the right-Denver hasn't the
right-to announce calmly without
evidence that our rates are too high
until you have seen the figures You
haven't the right (you may do it, but
it isn't right to pass ordinances reg
ulating our rates and our practices
until YOU know what you are talking
abcut-and now you are only guess
ing. No matter what people tell you
about rates in other cities, you are
still only guessing, because you don't
know how many people pay at the
Sl.50 rate, or the 81 rate, or the S4
rate, or the Sc rate. You don't know
that about these other cities, and
you don't il about your own. You
don't know proportionately how
many subscribers there are to popu-
lation in those cities nor in your
own. You don't know whether
commensurate service is being given,
nor how much money is invested,
nor how much profit or loss is in
volved-you are only guessing-and
you can't pass ordinances and laws
ON guesswork. If you do it you stand
the chance to come to a cropper
when the real facts are brought out
Now, | don't want you to make the
mistake that Denver made Denver
is going to come cropper' The
trouble in Denver today isn't law
suits or arguments lit rs prejudice
and lack of knowledge. So if you
people of Pueblo want to avoid Il
'cropper' I'm going to suggest that
you slow up prejudice and the fol-
lowing of reform cries until you have
the facts-and in this we'll help You
heartily. | had expected to suggest
to you that this state will shortly
have "A utilities commission which
would be able to afford you the re-
lief you seek, with more power than
the state has given you, as a muni
cipality, to regulate the rates to be
charged. Such commission is al
most sure to be established very
soon, and | had expected to argue
with you that the settlement of the
lawsuits now pending in Denver
would show you just how far you
could go by following the kicking in
the face plan. But | see you are inn
patient of delay. and | believe you
want to be fair, and so | say appoint
a committee that you can rely upon
for truth and fairness and justice;
instruct that committee to investi-
gate everything about our business
that pertains to, or affects, our
Pueblo rate schedule, and ask them
to report to you in a week, or two
weeks, Just what they find. We, on
our part. will lay our books open to
such a committee. We will answer
fully all their inquiries. You don't
need to wait for anything; that COM
mittee can begin its duties tomor-
row; there need be no delays. No
matter whom it aits, the truth is
going to benefit us all, because it
isn't the truth that hurts in an argu
ment like this-it is blind prejudice
and ignorance-and If we wait, If
we delay, blind prejudice will grow.
You can trust committee of big
fair-minded men to accomplish much
more by investigation than ordinanc-
es or demands made in the darkness
of ignorance can possibly accom-
plish | only want to say one thing
further: Give us a fair investigation
and you will get fair results. We
have nothing to conceal, and we bid
your committee welcome"
Just what the citizens of Pueblo
did as the result of this mass meet
ing and of this kind of talk appears
in the newspaper reports of the situ-
alton on the following day. The
Pueblo Chieftain,, under the heading
given at the top of this advertise
ment, reports the situation as fol-
lows.