The Washington times., 1918-04-16

| ldTlO hsuTO-clcCillC SohiSS
has been doing during the last ten
years with astonishing success. In
Ontario, as generally in the United
States, all natural public monopo-
lies" as Of water power, had FALLEN
under control Of private monopolists'
when the hydro-electric commission
was organized. There are few OF
them left in Ontario now. There
will be fewer still shortly. Finally
they will disappear wholly under the
] simple logic Of the method the COM
mission brings to bear on them. IL
helps the organization Of all mu-
nicipally owned plants OF all Einds
which any Ontario town or village
wishes to undertake. Without proht
10 the general government, II pro-
notes the organization OF municipal
district systems. OF these for elee-
tricity Ontario has twelve, each inde-
pendent, but all operating together'
As against any private monopoly
1.-THE weight of this growing system
bears educationally, until the pri-
vate monopolists are glad hnally 10
accent terms Of getting out they may
have at first refused with scorn. AS
result, the Ontario munlclpal
ownership system is cutting cost to
the consumer, busting the private
Imonopolies and after. paying them
off in bonds, is carrying earnings
enough to surplus to pay out IN
TWENTY-FIVE years. AS Sir AuAn
finds parasites, with their suckers
lNxed deep into the body polite his
system scrapes them on.
Illustrating results, he said that
the Toronto rate for electricity was
about half the Buffalo rate. The
average prices charged domestic
and commercial consumers IN On
tario as a whole were about a tnlro
of the Washington rate. Sir Adam
himself. using electricity in his own
family for every purpose he can
contriye, paws from seven to eight
dollars a month for a thousand kllo-
watts, while a friend in Rochester
| n. Y, had figured out that his bills
at the Rochester rate would be S4Z.
II is not safe to quote all Sir Adams
| figures. They might seem incredi-
bic. But the fact which explains
them all is that in Ontario grafters
and profiteers, such as those who
have been grabbing franchises and
corrupting our politics to establish
private monopoly for a generation.
are glad to let go.
Secretary Lane is Of the opinion
that our capitalists require the en-
couragement of fifty-year leases to
invest in what we have left of wa
ter-power opportunities. Other ex-
perts think these fifty-year leases
must be renewed to overcome the eX-
IRENE timidity of capital. That
seems to be what the neY Water
Committee is now supposed to be
doing. It is expected to overcome
the extreme timidity Of capital.
!, Without knowing this, Sir Adam
was induced by Mr.. Ferris to tell
how this desirable end was reached
in Ontario. There they may grant
lease for twenty years, with re-
newal options for two periods Of ten
years each. This is forty years as
whole, after which the plant ere
verts TO the crown" and payment Of
anything whatever is optional with
the Hydroelectric Commission. This
may interest Secretary Lane very
much.
In the House yesterday the issue
with the Senate on Sabotage" and
the conscriptlon Of labor ended by
the adoption OF the revised confer
ence report. The Hon. and Rev.
George Richard Lunn. A. NJ, d. D.,
receded from the stand he had taken
against Hon. Joseph Quincy Cannon,
tof Danville. III. (which IL a banking
lcenter of considerable local impor-
tance with a reputation for financing
agricultural loans TO the great ad-
vantage Of its local financial mag
nates). AS the Cannon amendment
was striken out, DR.. Lunn saw no
necessity for his own amendment,
and the subject was dropped after
the adoption OF the conference re-