The Cordele dispatch. (Cordele, Ga.) 19??-1971, 1916-06-18
LISTEN, POOR MAN.


to you that a giant corporation that
knows it's business better than we
know it, would come into a commune
" the size of Cordele for an electric
plant, valued at $4,000, and
in order to get hold of it plank down
$105,0OO in perfectly good looking
coin? We are told some several
thousand dollars in addition to all
this went out on the side to some To-
cal business men who were paid to
put the deal over.
Poor man, this was your property
right they bought at such figures. DO
you know why they did it? They OPP
crate electric lighting plants all over
this country and they know better
than we know the worth of a prospect
like Cordele. This giant corporation
never paid $68,000 more for the cleo
trio plant in Cordele than it was worth
because they loved you and the com
munty Do you think SO?
..--------.~---~4-.---
The Southern Utilities Company
calculated well and reached the con
clusion that the people could stand
the difference,-would pay it back in
pro1ts,-and the people of Cordele,
and you, Mr. Poor Man, are paying the
difference. You have already paid
back half of it and if you will let them
alone with your splendid public utility
another three or four years, they will
even up. Your city at this moment is
paying the Southern Utilities Company
a handsome dividend on everything in
the Cordele plant at twice its real val
lie.
Do you suppose this giant corpora
ton would object to your having back
your own property if you offered fair
price for it? They are fighting you at
every suggestion,-on every plan you
make to get hold of it and using all
sorts of chachinery to prevent your
owning it. Don't you let anybody fool
you about their philanthropic interest
in you and your cOmmunity,-about
their loving you so we'll that they
would not charge you as much for your
lights as your own neighbor if you
sent him to represent you in council.
When you find a man trying to make
you believe that, put him down as
fool inexcusably ignorant on the one
hand, or as a paid representative of
the corporation on the other hand.
He's not your friend in either case and
is unworthy to advise you as to what
you should do about the matter.
Not one in ten of the poor people
of Fitzgerald suffer because of the
minimum of $1.25, for they use more
than the minimum,-most of the
homes do,-and because they own
their own plant they do not have to
go down i'll their pockets on the side
and raise $4,000 or $4,000 in taxes to
pay private corporation for their
street lights and lights and power in
their schools and public buildings as
the people of Cordeie have to do
Wouldn't you prefer 900 to $500 in
excess on minimum rates to a tax of
$4,000 that Fitzgerald doesn't have to
pay? You would not object to get
ting all you use above the minimum
at half what you now have to pay
would you? Fitzgerald does that.
And now you poor man, get this in.
to your bean. An arc light on the
streets of Cordele is almost an I'M
known Quanity,-a thing we can only
wish we had 1t would cost us far
more than the poor nan can stand in
taxes. We have now only "a arc
lights,-isn't that right? About enough
for two city squares. The others be
long to the lightning bog" class. Isn't
that right?
Fitzgerald has 80 arc lights and SO
white way posts, six lights to the post,
lights her public buildings, furnishes
free power to schools and in hard
year like last year. cleared $500 on
the system. If you happened to be a
store keeper, or owned a restaurant. a
barbershop a drug store or a bank in
Fitzgerald, your charge would be &c
per killowatt hour as against lie per
killowatt hour i'll Cordele. That's
what Fitzgerald charged last year,
furnished 80 arc lights, SO white way
posts and lighted all the public build
ings and cleared $S,500O in that hard
season of depression. You poor man
can you get this in your bean?
There is a minimum Of $1.25 in Fitz
gerald, but there is also a rate OF 7c
to the average consumer as against d
charge of lie in Cordele. The tax pay
ers of Cordele paid nearly $4,000 last
year for "a arc lights and
string of lightning bugs" The people
of Fitzgerald enjoyed the use of 81
arc lights, SO white way posts, SIN
lights to the post. and lighting and
power for their public buildings