Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1920-10-14

ing of charges against the board
last spring by the city commission.
ers of Jersey City. George l.. Rec
ord, of that municipality. prosecut-
ed the case. and l.. Edward Herr
mann, counsel for the utility board,
was chief of the defendant counsel,
assisted by several other lawyers
engaged by individual members OF
the board.
Mr.. Edwards announced today
formally the appointment of Com
gressman James A. Hamill, Jersey
City; Col. Walter A. Whittemore.
Sussex county, and former ASSEM-
blyman Arthur A. Quinn, Sewaren,
as three of the new members of tile
board. IL confirmed by the senate
they will serve six year terms al
$500 year each. Hamill and
Quinn are Democrats and Whitte-
more, whom the governor recently
named to the State Highway Com
mission. is a Republican.
Percy II. stewart, of Plainfield, II
Is understood, was offered a place
on the board, but declined because
of private business interests. MI.
Stewart conferred here yesterday on
the matter with the governor. Ham
i'll has been in congress from the
twelfth district for the last fourteen
years and prior to that was four
years an assemblyman and two the
Democratic leader of the House
here. Quinn is now president of the
State Federation of Labor.
1t is understood that an Immediate
appeal from the governors action
viii be taken by Mr. Hermann, act
ing as counsel for the utility board.
10 the supreme court.
Il al 4. -
mem oers Is on the following C- )uDds
briefly summarized from the decision
given out today by Mr.. Edwards:
Failure to OBEY TIC Public Utility
Act of 1911 which requires the board
to compel utility operations to set
aside moneys out of their earnings
| to be used as a fund to replace
property used in serving the public
| which has deprecated.
1 They have permitted and allowed
somei companies to divert from the
depreciation set aside large sums OF
money in order that dividends might
be paid" reads the decision on this
! subject.
Discrimination against small COR
porations end in favor of the Public
Service Electric Company in forcing
the former 10 valuation of Their
! l..
limitation VIXEN fixing rates and uDon
the other hand allowing the Public
Service to increase dts rates SO as 10
afford eight per cent. upon its capital
stock, without any valuation to deter
mine whether the stock was entitled
to this return.
| THAT in the case of some sinai.
companies the board has inserted az
condition of granting rates that the
I company should waive some OF its
! legal rights and has refused or
! neglected to insert reasonable con-
| dltions to protect the public rights
III the orders granting the increase
of fares in the cases of the Public
Service subsidiary corporations" to
quote the governors findings.
THAT they have delayed over
very long period the valuation of the
property of the Public Service Rail-
way Company and the Public Service
Electric Company. while holding
other and smaller companies to a
prompt conclusion of their respective
valuations.
I'm fixing electric light rates for
| the Public Service Electric Company
they have allowed said company to
make retroactive the rates so fixed.
They have put into force upon
the Public Service railway within
one year seven different rates Of
fare, without any sufficient reason
therefor. and without testing any Of
said iates 10y The rule of six pee cent
upon the valuation which was ap-
piled TO ether corporations and
have thaTclY caused very grsas ard
unnecessary Inconvenience to the
pubic USING said facilities.
ent zone fare experiments upon all
of the street railways of the Public
Service Railway Company in the
state of New Jersey, without proper
reason therefor. and one of said
zone fare tariffs was put into effect
without giving to the pubic and pri-
vate parties interested an opportun-
ity to be heard thereon, contrary 20
the express provisions of the stat
| ute.
They have dis eliminated between
different Municipalities, or the pat
rcns &C the sti. et cars thsra'a, tv
( ~ escri5ins varying rates Of fare for
school and o:her children.
They have failed to discharge ire
dtty. Impose upon them by the
Public Uslli.y statute. of recon-
nlending TO the legislature sucn
changes in she Public Uti,ity siatute
of 1911 as have been shown to be
necessary or 2dvIsable by their err
CONTINUED on page 81