The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-05-21
Commissioner Ward Says It Will "Fry an Egg" Just as Quickly as the Present Gas
EXPLAINS SLIGHT DIFFERENCE FOUND
 IN THE HEAT UNITS
City Should Not Hold Back Just Because It Cannot Get Everything It Asks For

{
 1 Mayor Commissioner George B. | Ward made public his stand yesterday l on the question of byproduct gas and why the proposition should be accept | ed by the city commission. He stated ! that the present gas will not fry an | egg nor boil water" any quicker than | by-product gas and that it is not al ways profitable for governing bodies to reject a proposition because it does not win all the points it contends for. 1 The statement of Commissioner Ward 1 follows:
 l These reduced rates will do some 1 thing big for Birmingham in more
 ways than one. It will be evident that | constructive work can make headway here every now and then.
 l Ut is no new contract. It is simply a revision of rates of the old contract. l It makes a 25-cent reduction to start
 with. This price will go down on a
 sliding scale steadily. The old contract 1 cannot be annulled. so why stick to it? l Not days extension is given to l the old contract and not single ad- l ditional right is conveyed to the com pany.
 | "The chief danger is that we are | driving such a hard bargain the com | pany may not be able to carry it l through
 l Not a single advantage accrues to l the company in making this change, i except the general prosperity comin $ from op nd prrnUt h | of the community.
 Ut will be set out in writing that the modification is made without prej- udice to the city or company so far | as existing rights are concerned. Ut is also agreed that the city can select any auditor it desires to see that any and all provisions are carried out thirds of the expense of said auditor.
 BENEFIT BY EXPERIENCE "The city will get the benefit of five years experience with these new rates and one-half of the profit when the rate gets to 50 cents. This experience will be valuable when the five-year pe- riod is up, as a guide to making a new contract.
 "The modification has no bearing whatever on any new contract that may be made five years hence. ''The introduction of cheaper gas means a saving to the public, botf, in l the cost of the roduct and the clean 1 Illness and convenience in handling for 1 heating and cooking purposes. "The majority of the commission feels that even if they did not know l this trade was a magnificent one for l the people of Birmingham, that a half way trade would be bettar than no trade at all, inasmuch as the 70-cent rate can never be exceeded and the saving of hundreds of thousands of dollars will accrue in the next five years
 "Birmin gham now suffers from the l high cost of living.
 There are many elements that con 1 tribute to the high cost of living here. l The introduction of this cheap fuel, I however, will remove one of these ele- ments. Other features can be and will 1 be attended to in time. such as the re- | duction of freight rates, water rates, etc.
 Small industries have left Birming-
 ham and gone to surrounding towns | like Gadsden. Attalla, Anniston, etc. | ''The capital is furnished by Bir-
 mingham people and the labor by Bir- l mingham populace This can be ac- counted for by the spirit prevailing in | these towns which welcome and en- courage capital whenever it applies. Birmingham will stand still unless new | people come here. They will not come here unless they find a way to make a 1 living and live cheaply.
 Their coming makes all property more l valuable It is the only thing that can | make property valuable.
 DIFFERENCE IN UNITS "As matter of fact, by-product gas is identical in all respects to the only kind of gas that the company has made here with the exception of the number of heat ] units per 1000 cubic feet The rapidity with which coal is burned governs the i heat units in the gas.
 "It has always been mace az ;He gas
 plant just like the Tennessee Coal Iron and Railroad company makes it at it's furnaces
 'The only difference is that the Tennes- see Coal, Iron and Railroad company Is after the coke and treats the gas as a by-product. The gas company is after the gas, and treats the coke as a by-product. The Tennessee company burns coal rapid ly in order to supply the colle~ market, and gets 525 B. T. U. gas. The gas com pany burns coal slowly in order to come up to ancient specifications and gets 575 B. T. U. gas and 575 gas will not boil water nor fry an egg, nor fry chicken,
 nor heat stove any quicker than 525 gas. Ine pest gas engineers Ol tHc country recommend the use of 800 B. T. U. gas
 as more economical than 575 B. T. U. gas.
 England, France and Germany have
 abandoned 800 B. T. U. gas and com monly use, with entire satisfaction, gas ranging from 400 to 800 B. T. U. If the trade had been accepted as proposed two years ago, Birmingham | would now be enjoying 55-cent gas instead of 95-cent gas, with resultant savings of S5fp 0fN O the na0nlp
 'It is not always profitable for the governing body to reject entirely busi- l ness proposition because it cannot obtain l every point contended for. The city and the people of Birmingham l have everything to gain and nothing to | lose in accepting this proposition. and it occurs to me that the commission would | be derelict in its duty if this opportunity should again be allowed to go by with {, out getting any and all its advantages.
 Where would the people gain or what ] would the commission crow about if it is | turned down?''
 1 Vanderbilt Alumni Dinner ! A dinner of former students of Wander ! bilt university will be held in Birmins 1 la of Sat May 2I