The daily sentinel., 1914-07-16
BUCKL|N REPLIES
TO VIM. BUTHORN

~ uUII OO
Editor Sentinel: "My friend. Mr..
Vim, Buthorn, proprietor Of the Rex
Arms Hotel, Los Angeles, Calf, in
last evenings Sentinel, gave me a
very friendly and courteous write-up
from the city of san Diego. Calf. |
He speaks Of me land our city rep
resentatiyes, as mot the taxpayers,
but town killers" He calls us "agi- /
tators." and speaks of their hobby /
enterprises" He says half Of them
haven't anything taxable" yet he
complains because we don't pay
these extra assessments" and is par
ticularly bitter on me because | have
not erected a building costing three
quarters OF million dollars for the
poor and needy of our city" He also
insinuates that If we should reduce
electric light charges to laboring
men, they would be thrown out Of
job and would have mo employ
ment.' As n rule do not reply to
such articles, because they merely
represent the privileged interests,
and are generally written or sug-
gested by them, but, to hide their
real authors, signed by such men as
Mr. Buthorn. He writes about
southern California and as | am at
least as familiar with conditions
there as he, | write this.
Mr., Buthorn's principal hotel or
apartment house, is located, not in
Grand Junction, but in Los Angeles,
having borrowed the money here on
his property to invest there. Los
Angeles, his city, is the greatest mu-
nicipal ownership city in the west
if we except other California cities.
Ii recently brought the owens river
into the city from hundreds of miles
distant as a municipal enterprise,
al a cost of millions of dollars. \
month or two ago, 1t voted a large
sum of money to build municipal
electric light and power plant, al
though the city was suffering less
than half the eXtortionatc Grand
Junction rates, only six cents per
! kilowat. 1t is spending millions OF
dollars for other municinal enter
prises. There are more agitators for
municipal ownership in that city.
| than in all Colorado, yet 1t has had
/ the most marvellous growth of ans
I city in America. Nearly all Califor-
MIA cities are awake and aSitating
| for municipal ownership. Pasadena
has municipal plant furnishing
electric light at maximum rate OF
! s cents, and with steam power. San
Francisco is taking over" and build
| ing street railroads. San Diego re-
Gently bought the waterworks system
from Spreckels, and thus took over
his private property" California is
state Of agitators, and this fact has
built up the country, but thousands
of miles of paved streets and high
ways, with municipal and cheap
electric light and power, made its
cities poems of beauty bristling with
progress, instead of state of graft
and reaction. The only trouble with
Colorado is. that we have turned it
over for exploitation to special priv
ilege or big business to run its labor,
business and political affairs.
1t is the beautiful cities of Cali
fornia made so by municipal owner
ship and municipal enterprise, that
has drawn Mr.. Buthorn and hundreds
of other Grand Junction citizens
from this city. and hundreds of thou
sands from Colorado and elsewhere
to California. If Mr. Buthorn will
come back to Colorado and help
those of us who are permanently To-
Gated here to secure municipal own
ership OF electric light, power and
gas. he will then be able if he wishes
to sell the LaCourt to some live Colo
RADIO man who will not boost all the
time for our grating corporations.
The trouble with Mr.. Buthorn is
that he thinks ii smart to howl
"Bucklin" and "Bucklinism" against
every movement for the common peo-
pie, and the general public welfare.
Unlike Mr.. Buthorn, ] have been
permanently located in this city
ever since it started and am inter
csted in its permanent upbuilding,
The great natural resources of this
city, its unlimited water and electricI
power, it's natural location as a COM
mercial center. its vast coal lands,
etc, are practically undeveloped.
and will be until our city wakes up
and takes hold. The agitation
against our railroads for fair freight
ates. is putting us on the map com
mercially. municipal ownership OF
waterworks, parks, sewers, street
paving, a democratic city charter
and last and most important our
movement for municipal electric light
power and gas, with better telephone
rates, has given us a national repu-
tation as a live progressive city.
Congressman Taylor in his splendid
sDeech last week for our new S175,-
900 postoffice mentioned the fact
that Grand Junction was a live pro-
gressive city because it had munich
pal ownership of its public service
utilities. He was in that statement
little previous. but our municipal
ownership agitation helped him to
land an additional s75, 900. Wake
up Mr.. Buthorn and you won't need
to knock Grand Junction any more.
JAMES w. BUCKLIN.