The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1918-04-25
THURSDAY, APRIL rs, 1918.
conservation and the Coal Pile.

people in Kenosha were not left with
out fuel last season but it is admitted
that the conditions just in the offing
Indicate that a lot of care must be
taken to prevent suffering during the
coming winter Awed by federal re-
guIations and mixed up by all sorts of
schedules the regular distributors Of
coal seem to be just little hesitant
to 90 into the market and put in big
supply Of coal. They seem to fear that
prices will be regulated in such man
ner that they will not be able to get
their profit or to break even. On this
account a lot of contracts for lot of
coal which are usually signed long be-
fore this time in the spring remain I'M
signed and the dealers are slow to
make any promises as to what they are
going to be able to do in the line of
furnishing coal supply during the
winter months.
Under such circumstances it would
appear highly necessary that the city
take such steps as are possible to safe
guard against fuel famines. We are
slow to say that the city is ready to
70 into the coal business as permanent
competitor for the men who have been
handling the fuel supply of the city
for years We are not fully convinced
that the city can proftably so into
the coal business We are still of the
opinion that the majority of the peo-
pie would prefer to pay the coal men
for coal and pay the city taxes for
other things.
A report made to the common coun-
Gil recently would put the city in the
coal business. If this report was ac-
cepted and carried out by the orders of
the council it would mean the expendi-
ture Of something like fifty or sixty
thousand dollars to meet an emergency
situation rather than to provide a pr
manent institution for the city.
Without some expert advice we do
not believe that such an expenditure
is warranted under the present condi-
tions. 1t may be that future years
will point the ACCESSIBILITY Of the city
entering the coal business as competitor
for private capital but we do not be-
lieve that there is call for such al
action at this time Several cities
have tried the municipal coal yard
plan. A few of them (mostly located
near great coal distributing centers)
have proved its value. Many Of them
have failed utterly to do anything but
to stop fuel famine.
Kenosha wants to be ready to stop
a fuel famine but it wants to do this
in a manner that will be economical
and which will not load on the city a
costly plant which will be valueless in
future years.
The idea that has been urged in
Kenosha is not the opening of a
Municipal Coal Yard " with all that
this entails in the way of expense of
equipment and management but the
piling up of Municipal Coal Pile. -
Some people may think thai it is a
distinction without a difference but it
! is not The coal pile idea involves no
future difficulties All it involves is
the purchase of a supply of coal. If
you please, the over purchase of the
supply of coal which would be de-
manded for the city for the coming
winter. 1t would mean the shipping
in either by boat or by rail may be
fifty thousand tons of coal which could
De piled on vacant property of the city
OF vacant property to be leased for the
purpose with the understanding that
this coal could be called into use if it
is needed. It is possible that one of
the great manufacturing concerns of
the city has room in it's coal yards for
the storage Of this surplus supply Of
coal and that it would be willing to
permit the city to use these yards and
equipment for handling the coal for a
modest rental during the season. The
important thing is to get coal and not
equipment for handling coal. If peo-
pie are cold and suffering for the lack
OF fuel they are going to be winning
to endure some hardships in order to
get fuel to their homes. They are go
ing to be willing to pay a little more
for it and charge that "little more -
up to their contribution to great ma
tion Is sacrifice for war. They do not
want to be loaded down with costly
equipment for which they have no use
when the war is over. Hundreds of
ears of coal could be purchased at
this time and stored away for winter
consumption. This coal could be
handled by man power and dumped at
many places along tracks in or near
the city limits with minimum Of ex-
pense.
The city's investment would be in
ccal aud not machinery and coal is
a lot more staple product than this
machinery.
Kenosha does not want to drive its
coal dealers out of business until Ken