Perth Amboy evening news., 1920-10-15

Members Of The Associated Press.
~ESS
UTILITY BOARD DISMISSAL.

UTILITY BOARD DISMISSAL.
Different reasons will be given fol
Governor Edwards's dismissal of the
'ublic Utility Commissioners. Judg.
ng from the governors past record
md in view Of his political associa.
ions In Hudson county. 1t is hard to
soc anything more than politics in
his move. After his action in regard
ID the State Highway Commission
one can place but little confidence in
Anything he may do.
1T must be admitted, however, that
the governor has made out a pretty
good case against the Public Utility
Commissioners. The board certainly
has lost the good will of the people.
Id was plain that the members were
MT big enough for their job.
pn the other hand 1t must be recog-
nized that these men served through
the most trying period In the his
tdfy OF public utilities. The country
was engaged in a great war. The
whole country. was modified for the
winning of the war. War materials
had the right of way over all other
freight; equipment was almost i'm
possible to get and when a little was
SECURED there was no labor to handle
it, The price of everything scared to
unexpected figures.
Ordinary private business either
closed down entirely or else was able
% adjust itself through increasing
is prices, to meet the new situation.
With the public utility corporations,
however. 1t was different. They had
o keep going, yet their affairs were
regulated largely by public commits
lions, and these commissions were
iard pressed to do justice to both the
ceople and the corporation, as 1t was
heir duty to do. 1t was a big mans
OBJ and there were no big men on the
Z 'ublic Utility Commission. Governor
,dge had packed it with mediocre
,o%liticians.
1t is no wonder. then, that the
tility board failed. 1t would have
aquired almost super-men to have
icceeded during such abnormal
ines.
But the only excuse for ousting the
nembers of this board would be to
ut better men in their place+men
( wider experience and of greater
sbility. Governor Edwards, we fear,
S too much of a Hudson county poll
ician to do that. There Is every in
iication that the change that has
lust taken place is merely the shift
ing of the political complexion of
he board. Instead of ordinary Re-
publican politicians of the Edge APP
pointment being in control, the com
mission will now be dominated by
Democrats of the Edwards following
But even though the calibre may
be the same, 1t ought to be a great
deal easier for the new board to
make a record for itself not only
because 1t has the mistakes of the
old board to profit by. but mainly be-
cause general conditions now are so
different and much more settled than
they were during the old boards
regime.
But whether the new board is any
not as far as personnel is concerned,
It is a fact that the people had lost
all confidence in the old board and.
for the good of the state. a change,
no matter under what circumstances
1t might be brought about. was abso-
iutely necessary.
This change has now been ac-
complished-or will be as soon as the
new appointments are confirmed. and
he senate has been called into
special session for next Tuesday for
hat purpose. In the list of new
named submitted by Governor Ed
wards we find a prominent Middle
tex county man and one who we feel
justified in calling a Perth Amboyan
although his present residence is In
iewaren. Arthur A. Quinn, to whom
We have reference, is an ardent or
.anized labor mar and many will at
n say that labor interests will al
ways come first with him in making
lis decisions. But, after all, what
more harm is there in having a mar
n the board who may be prejudiced
N favor of labor than having men on
he board who are prejudiced in
,avor of the corporate interests?
What the state needs on the Public
Utility Commission Is men who are
zig enough and broad enough to be
,bove mere class interest and con-
ider all matters from the viewpoint
If the whole people, whether capt.
talists or laborers. This we admit,
is a standard pretty hard to attain.
Governor Edwards has come no
nearer TO giving the state such a
commission than Governor Edge did.