The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-09-12

WAKES Up LATE
ON PHONE RATES
Mayor and City Attorney
Hurry to Capital to Protest
Against Same Rates Admin
iStratiOn Gave Cumberland.

Efforts to induce the mayor and the
city commissioners 10 bestir themselves
for the rights Of the people on the uties-
tlon oI telephone rates were futile for
months, They carried out the plan
agreed upon with the Cumberland coTn-
pany to give, that corporation a corn-
plete monopoly in Memphis and permit
II to charge the high war rates until
January, 1922.
But the mayor woke up suddenly re-
Gently when he found that the people
really intended to demand their rights
under the referendum petition provided
for IN the city charter
The officials OF the Cumberland COM
p6ny and their legal oounselors also
aWose 70 the fact that something really
might happen TO prevent the carrying
ont OF their agreement with the present
city administration for keeping the hIRh
rates IN effect Therefore said attor-
neys asked for hearing at Nashville
before the state public utilities COM
mission on their petition filed months
ago to make the high war rates perrna.
nent, The hearings began Thursday.
Now the people OF Memphis have the
unique spectacle OF the mayor and city
attorney attempting to argue before that
state body against the very rates which
they themselves voted for and sane
Camouflage Too Thin.
The mayor and the city attorney left
Thursday on a night train TO appear be-
Tore the Tennessee public utilities COM
mission In protest against the reoueat
OF the Cumberland Telephone and Tele-
graph company, made to that body, TO
make the same war rates permanent
What effect protest against those
rates viii have, coming from city ad-
ministration which has just granted
the telephone company the right TO
| charge those Identical rates until Jan
uary, 1899, seems scarcely matter for
conjecture. As political camouflagNs
even, II would not appear to have sub
| stance enough to deceive a child.
Some sort Of verbal understanding IL
said TO have existed between the may
or and commissioners and attorneys for
the telephone company that no appeal
would he made to the state utilities
| commission II the contract resolution
were rushed through the city commits
| sion aa agreed upon, 3#E
But that was before the signing by
1000 or mouh man and women OF the
referendum petitions demanding a vote
| on that contract, That nut a different
phase on the matter, from the viewpoint
lof the telephone officials and their legal
j advisers, II the demand for the refer
endurn vote Ii sitalned the terms of
| that contract are likely to be changed
| Therefore the appeal 10 the state utlli-
| ties commission, created by the legis-
lature at the behest of the public SER
vice corporations, for just such efner-
| gonoies.
State Supreme for Time.
The courts have held that the action
of the state utilities commission super
| sedes any public service corporation
franchise agreements as to rates, or
| other rate agreements, That point
seems 10 be well settled,
But III the people who signed the
| referendum petitions succeed in having
| u referendum election called, and the
| vote NJ such election Is against the oon-
| tract made by the city administration,
II Is, possible that In the event Of the
| repeal OF the public utilities commission
| law, the rate question would revert
back to the city, and the action Of the
voters at such an election would be then
| upheld.
For that reason, II for no other, no
| matter what the decision OF the state
| utilities commission may be, the de-
| mand for the referendum election will
not be allowed to lapse, but will be Wig
| orously insisted upon.
The utilities commission early last
June, entered an order, that the Cum
| berland Telephone company's high war
rates would not be allowed In force ex-
| ernment and would not be admitted
| as either just. reasonable or legal, ex-
| cept after hearing and proof.
| Not the slightest effort was made by
| the city administration to take advan-
| tage of that order. Instead. the rate
contract resolution was passed and the
| people are still paying the high war
| rates.
| But at the eleventh hour, for some
| reason that does not appear. the mayor
has permitted the city attorney, who
has stood ready to act at any time, to
hasten to Nashville.
| Possibly 1t is feared that the stata
| utilities commission might order the
rates already made, lowered.