Norwich bulletin., 1917-02-06

referred to the finance committee. l A claim for damages as the result of a fall which Mrs. Frank A. Car penter of Laurel Hill sustained rel Hill park was referred to the fi- nance committee.
 l Clerk CrowelI then read a commu- I nication from Sedgwick Post No. I, ! council to attend the 50th anniver- l sary of the post to be observed on | the evening of February 16. The in
 vitation which was signed by Com George Kampf. was accepted unani- l mously with thanks and the clerk | was instructed to motif ythe post of l the councils acceptance.
 l The following communication from l the gas and electric department,
 signed by Charles E. Whitaker, Dan 1 iel T. Shea, David S. Gilmour and
 John T. Sullivan, the gas and cleo | the council:
 1 It having become necessary to have | an appropriation sufficiently large to carry the gas and electric department | to the end of it's fiscal year we beg | to submit the following statements 1 covering the time from January 1st,
 1914, to January 1st. 1917. showing | gas and electricity. That the same l may be compared with previous rec ords, and for your use in determin- | ing the conditions which force us to ask for this appropriation.
 1 You will notice that the plant as l now operated, and under present con- ditions is not profitable investment. to the observant 'stockholder" or | taxpayer.
 Causes: The inefficiency of the ma
 chinery, the heavy overhead expense, | ha mt TrFrrn fA1 q | by insufficient equipment, and the great advance in price for different materials used in the manufacture of | both gas and electricity. Every piece | is of pattern long since discarded | by privately owned plants; good when purchased, no doubt but obso- 1 lete now. and no management, it mat | ters not how good, can compete with l those using more modern appliances. You well know that the city paid an exhorbitant price for the prop erty, which had been let run down,
 until it was in many instances bare ly serviceable. Consequently, there have been heavy charges for interest
 and repairs, with an occasional re- newal when conditions forced it. An tiquated methods in operation, such
 as unloading coal with hand shovels from modern high sided cars, reQuir- ing two landings to get it over the sides; old hand pumps where good steam operative ones should be used;
 small and badly strung wires for electric current: and a lot of small
 worn out gas mains and service pipes for gas.
 The price for any and all material used advancing from 25 to 300 per
 cent, as follows: Coal 100 per cent,
 copper wire 250 per cent, cartoons 80 per cent, globes and arc lights 200
 per cent. wages 25 percent, office
 supplies 100 per cent, and so on ad, libitum.
 W.
 ble for the present board was when
 the finance committee cut the esti-
 mated expense for operation, and changed the method of handling in-
 terest on bonds. This interest of $2O,- 900 per year, had been cared for by
 the finance committee, now it is
 treated perhaps properly, as an ex-
 pense of the department. making it necessary for the department to have a larger appropriation.
 During the past year we have had some very heavy extra expenses, on
 account of the extensive improve
 ments by the street department, fore ing us to install new pole lines, where old ones would have lasted several years longer, thus causing re- newal of wire, in many instances at been required large amount of cop
 per wire with transformers. in order
 to care for new manufacturing inter-
 ests, and extension by old firms. On
 
 the high cost of living, the pay roll
 has increased from about $500 to $95O
 per week. We use an average of IT
 tons steam coal, Is 1-2 tons gas coal, price of coal previous to time covered
 by this report was practically S4.5O per ton f. O.. b. bins. Today it is cost ing an average of $S.50 per ton.
 Additional Appropriation Necessary.
 After carefully considering all these conditions, the needs and require ments of the plant. your commission CTS realize that it is absolutely nec- essary to have an additional appro- priation of fifty thousand ($50, ,000) dollars to carry us through the fiscal year. You will hote by the accom- panying exhibits that the cost of cur rent to manufacture. averages, for the past three years, $1.52 per k. W. and it is evident from records that this average price has been the base expense account, added to actual
 manufacturing costs, makes electric current cost s3.44 per k. W. Conse- quently. at rates now in effect, it is impossible to earn the amount re- quired, as provided by law.
 The gas end makes a better show ing, still that is subject to some ad- vance in prices for material and gen. eral expense.
 There have been numerous com plaints about quality of the gas. We have succeeded in securing the nec- essary material to overcome difficult ties which we have labored under, and we hope and believe these com plaints will cease.
 We, like all industries in New Eng l land, have been and still are badly | by poor transportation | service. It takes weeks to get a car | of material from points barely 200 | miles away.
 Coal Situation Serious.
 The coal situation is a very seri- l ous one, and we doubt if our largest | coal dealers can give any cheering | regarding it. Like all 1 other industries. we find it almost im- | possible to get supply. and when we | do, have to take such quality as they | choose to ship.
 It has been the desire of the board | to have the property handled in a proper and satisfactory business | Of course the honor derived | from the position may be considered but it requires a lot of time