Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1915-10-08

h6ul eS DIS u the finances OF the COM
pany, closing with Total surplus De-
cember 81, 1914, $215,21O," and con-
tinuing:
This does not look like poverty,
does it? 1t shows a surplus fund of
nearly as much as the plant is worth
/ today. 1t shows that the Olympia
Light & Power company carries upon
Its books as cost item of the plant
every nail that ever went into the
plant from the beginning, including
the cost of the old Olympia Gas COM
pany and all the colossal mistakes
made in the last 25 years.
I'm conclusion l want to say a few
words about the city's finances, pres
ent and future. Our present bonded
debt is 100000. Our present float
ing debt between $4,000 and $4O,-
00O-this is reduction of over $780,
600 in the last three years. Under
the present laws, If no change are
attempted and carried out, Olympia
will be entirely out of debt in less
than Is years. You can readily figure
it out for yourself, as follows:
Eight and one-half mills, together
with miscellaneous licenses, will bring
annually, on a basis of $3,200,OOO
valuation, nearly 100000 to apply on
old Indebtedness. Deduct from this
the interest on bonds, $500, and
interest on floating debt, about
$4,000, and you get on the average
100000 year to apply on the prin-
cipal debt. Twelve times $4,000 is
$4,000, which is all we owe. Now,
by the time our general debt is wiped
out, we will also be out of debt on the
waterworks (out of the earnings
thereby and after that the $4,000
a year income from this plant can be
safely diverted from the water in
come to the general fund, and if the
city would have municipal light
plant that would show a net income
of 100000 a year, you can readily see
that within comparatively few
years Olympia can be converted into
a city where property will have to
pay no municipal taxes at all, pro-
vided business methods prevail"
Faulkner's Reply.
In reply, Manager L. B. Faulkner
issued the following statement:
ITO the Citizens and Taxpayers of
Olympia:
"In announcing his candidacy for
the position of mayor for the fourth
consecutive time, Mr.. hoffman, in
his usual demagogic manner. attacks
the Olympia Light & Power company
with untrue statements, in an attempt
to brighten the voters of the city into
giving him their support for posi-
ton which for some mysterious rea-
son he seems to crave. He wants it
to appear that there is a great con-
test being or about to be waged be-
tween this corporation on the one
side and martyr Mottman, tribune of
the down-trodden and oppressed
people on the other, so throwing We
racity to the winds he builds up a
man of straw to be bravely destroyed
that a mayor may be made.
"He untruthfully says that the
company has planned to name the
candidates on both tickets and has
gone into active politics for this pur-
pose. We have asked none to file
for any position on either ticket and
will not do so. We do not care who
are elected as mayor and councilmen
except that we would like to see those
positions filed by competent, honest
and independent men so that the
large sum we pay in taxes will not be
frittered away.
HE makes the malicious misstate-
ment that the company is charging
high rates based upon obsolete and
discarded equipment, such as the gas
works, when as a matter of fact the
gas plant has been charged off alto
gether.
''He calls attention to the accumu-
lation of surplus but refrains from
the truthful explanation that every
dollar Of that surplus was furnished
by the stockholders and not by the
public. During the last Is years the
dividends to the stockholders have
averaged less than 21s per cent and
the difference between that and a
reasonable return has been placed in
the surplus fund and used in paving
tracks and building up the plant.
Whenever the mayor deals in
figures either regarding our affairs or
those of the city, his purpose would
appear to be to deceive the public and
not inform it.