The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1917-09-20
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1917,
A decision which Does Not Decide.


the cross complaint Of property own
ers interested in the continuance Of the
services Of the public heating plant,
emphasizes the fact that if one is look
ing fos continued litigation an excel
lent thing to do is to file a petition
with the commission. The commission
in this decision has decided nothing.
True, it has directed the company to
continue TO give service. People who
had the old fashioned idea that con-
tract between a company and city
and a contract between a company and
individuals had some standing in court,
never believed for a minute that the
railroad con omission would. decide any
thing else. What the people of Keno
sha wanted the railroad commission to
decide was whether or not the service
this company was rendering to Keno
sha was an adequate service?" What
the company wanted the commission to
decide after it had found the impos-
sibility Of blufing the company into
permitting it to eliminate the "skim-
med milk was just how many golden
simoleons the company is to receive
for service rendered to patrons. The
railroad commission has not been in
any way definite in regard to what
adequate service the company is going
to furnish and it has been equally
evasive in fixing rates. The people
who patronize this company desire
service. Most of them are willing to
pay for that service at fair price
Tt is possible that if the "fair price :"
was determined by the railroad com
mission and determined now that
the company would be much more ready
to furnish the service than it is.
Tin it's decision the commission says,
'fThe commission will keep the situa
tion under observation, /" so that it will
be better able to judge what other
orders should be made.
1T is difficult to understand just what
good the observing Of an inadequate
plant is going to do toward bringing
satisfaction to the people patronizing it,
With the equipment that it had during
the past year the company could not
furnish service to many of its patrons
This is neither conjecture or biased
statement. 1T is the admission of the
company. With the fact admitted it is
hard to see just why the commission
should want the people to put in an
other year of unsatisfactory service
under the guise of Conservation. -
Much evidence of unsatisfactory serv-
ice was laid before members of the
commission at the recent hearing in
Kenosha. It is not to be expected that
the company is going to make any ex-
tensive repairs or extensions of the
heating system under this order Of the
commission. The order in the last
analysis spells nothing but uncertain
ty. 1t leaves just one question settled
and that is that the people who have
patronized the plan will not be forced
to get new plants this year-provided
they are willing to take their chances
with the same kind of heat they had
last year, Of course, there is the pos
sibility that the wind will be tempered
to the shorn lamb, that the weather
man will not send the mercury down
below the zero mark many times this
winter and that the patrons on
outlying lines will not be fore
ed to suffer any more from lack of heat
than they were last winter.
1t would appear that the better part
would have been for the commission to
have said to the company, "You must
repair your plant and make the system
adequate to the demands of the people
of Kenosha" and to the patrons of
this company, "You must pay this
company reasonable return for this
service and here is the schedule of
rates" The order as it stands is un-
fair to both parties. Both parties
would have undoubtedly desired some
thing really definite which would form
basis for the upbuilding of real
system, Such decision would have
opened the door to permanent build
ing. The present decision leaves the
people in doubt as to the future of the
plant and the company in just as much
doubt as to the future of its income.
Observation of the business of the
company this year viii bring little on
which to base a future decision. With
out the assurance of adequate service
it is not expected that there will be
many people who will ask for the
privilege of Getty heat'' Without
some definite idea as to rates it is Just
4.
pany will not make campaign for
new business. A year from now will
find the same number of protesting
patrons and probably the same number
who are willing to accept the heat.
1t is distictively a ''half Loaf"
decision. The people in these times
are satisfied with half loaf, but from
state corporation they might have
expected more.