The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1921-03-01
ONTARIO THROTTLED BY
CRASHING POLITICIANS
Facts of Vital Interest to
Everybody in Georgia
Attempt to Build Similar
DespotiC Political Ma
chine With Georgia
Money

ne DutlEIlUS Vi Tic hullItlpdI
League of Georgia devote much space
to telling the people of Georgia about
how cheaply water powers have been
developed in Ontario and about the
low rates charged for electric service
in Ontario, and how the farmers use
electric current to pillow, wash clothes,
milk the cow and churn.
Of course the writer of these bulle-
tins had to 90 a long distance from
home to find the conditions suitable
for a back ground for his proposed
Gaid on the treasury of Georgia, On
tario IS a great distance from Geor-
gia and few GeOrgians visit Ontario.
Therefore. misstatements and half
truths could be uttered with more
safety
Evidently there is nothing in the
results of ventures by cities in the
United States in Municipal Owner
ship Of Public Utilities that appeals
to him He did for a while refer to
Seattle's plunge into the street rail
way business, but when Seattle was
forced to raise fares on its municipality
owned street car lines and beg the
street car company to return the
bonds paid the Street Car Company
and take back the system, he was COM
PEELED to return to Ontario and its
municipalities, now burdened with ap-
palling debt because of their endorse
ment of a venture in the Socialistic
doctrine Of public ownership of pri-
Vate business.
The Truth About Ontario
Ontario is a long, long way from
Georgia, and the people in Georgia
could not know of the complaints OF
commercial bodies about the poor SER
vice rendered, nor of the political ma
chine. throttling the energies of the
province, nor of the $70000,0 100000 of
expenditures for which the public of
the province must eventually be taxed
in addition to paying ever increasing
deficiencies in operating the plants
and selling their products at less than
cost, nor of the manipulations of rec
ords necessary to keep these deficien-
cies hidden from the people.
Therefore, let US talk about On
tario One Of the greatest water
powers in the civilized world, Nigga
IA Falls, is at Ontario's door. At
Niagara Falls more power can be de-
veloped at less outlay than ct any
other spot in North America. The
flow Of water over Niagara rails
COMPARED with the flow Of the streams
Of Georgia, makes the stream flow III
GEORGIA appear ridiculous. no
money necessary to build dam which
in Georgia impounds the flow OF one
small stream. would at Niagara Falls
produce four times as much horse
mower. and storage dams, absolutely
necessary in Georgia to hold water
for dry seasons, are unnecessary at
Niagara Falls. In Georgia all the
real commercial water powers are IN
the hill country, near the head waters
of the rivers, where the volume Of
water is comparatively small. The
streams of Georgia during dry peri
DDS become small and the develop
meat of a large and reliable quantity
of power requires great engineering
skill and large expenditures of money.
MANY dams must be built, some for
generating stations and some to store
large bodies of water, for use during
the dry season. If Georgia had a
Niagara Falls aOithin one hundred
miles of Atlanta, the cost of develop
ing electric po1Ver 100uld be greatly
decreased.
Destructive Policy
The Hydro Electric Commission of
Ontario is the pattern after which
the Municipal League of Georgia is
drawn. The Ontario Commission has
been in existance about fourteen
years, and up to 1920 had developed
less than 10000 horse power, but in
the meantime, it had sandbagged the
private companies which had develop
ed water powers in that territory and
forced them to accept whatever price
the Commission felt disposed to offer
for their properties, and had taken
over many of the privately owned
properties. It's policy has been de-
structive, not constructive.
OF course, the Province of Ontario
and its municipalities put up the
money for these so-called purchases
and a proposed system of radlal rail-
ways, and have issued bonds to raise
money to the extent of something
over $4,000, 100000, and because Of
this enormous debt the credit of the
Province of Ontario is impaired. The
Hydro Electric Commission of On
fario is entangled in politics and its
service has become so inadequate, in
efficient and unsatisfactory that COM
plants by commercial bodies are fire.
quent. The political influence of the
HydrO-Electric Commission is so for
nidabIe that any effort to regulate it
as QbortiUe.
This is exactly what Messrs. Key,
Eagan and jackson want to bring
about in Georgia. They qUish to
6uiLd q political machine qOhich qViu
control Georgia and pGUe the aOdy
for Socialism, and they a0ant the pub
kc 10 furnish them the money with
which to do it.