The Washington herald., 1921-07-02
Opposed to Any Bill that
Will Not Cut the
Rates.
KELLER MEASURE
GAINING FRIENDS
Hints of Compromise
Resolution to Include
Many Features.

~ hcrScr OI inc btrcct Cdr COIn-
panies with the Potomac Electric
Power Company grows less likely
of naturalization each day. accord
ing to several members Of the House
District Committee. With the pres
ent opposition to the consolidation
Of an ytwo utilities in the District
1t hardly seems possible that either
the Ball or the Woods bill will sur
vive the House District Committee
meeting next week.
Representative Woods has within
the past few days expressed a will
ingness to amend his bill Ito a GER
tain extent, but its opponents in
sist that so long as II provides for
the amalgamation of the street car
companies with the Potomac Elec-
trio Power Company they will fight
it to the bitter end.
Keller Bill Gains Friends.
Contrary to all expectations. the
Keller bill is still alive and gaining
some friends in Congress other than
members Of the District Committee.
The position taken by Representa-
tive Hammer. of North Carolina. on
the Keller bill is similar 20 that Of
many other members OF the House
District Committee. Hummer made
the statement yesterday that in or
dinary circumstances he les strongly
opposed to any. form Of municipal
ownershipfi but he insisted that the
street car situation in Washington
is not a condition that might be
expected to grow out of the ordi-
nary course Of events
81 believe that remedies other
than those offered by municipal
ownership do exist" Hammer de-
| clared yesterday. r'but TO merge the
fwashinston Railway sand Electric
company with the Potomac Electric
Power Company does not in m3
mind. constitute remedy.
Demands Fare Decrease.
| "Unless fares are reduced as re-
suit of any legislation passed, the
people will not derive the benefit:
| they demand and are justly entitled
to. The reduction of fares has been
the foundation OF all complaint and
it, should be the foundation of any
legislation proposed as a remedy
1t has been pinted out repeatedly
that the Ball bill. IL it becomes a
law, will not reduce the fares. This
was acknowledged at the hearings
Of the committee hy the president
of the Washington Railway and
Electric Company and Potomac
Electric Power Company. who
should be in a position to know.
will certainly vote against any bill
that condones the amalgamation of
these two corporations.
Representative Florian Lampert
a member of the House District
Committee, contends that the pres
eLt street car problem in Washing
ton is an exceptional one. and, al
though he has vigorously opposed
municipal ownership of car lines in
the past. he has come to the con-
clusion that 1t should be put into
operation in the District IL the peo-
pie are to derive the maximum bene-
fits of a consolidation. Lampert is
also unalterably opposed to a mer-
ger of any two different utilities
under private ownership. "The rea-
son for this" he explained yester-
day, 'is that IL the situation has
become acute that a merger of diff
ferent kinds of utilities is necessary
or even desirable, then the control
of these utilities should pass to the
people"
Rumors Of Compromise.
Many members, who are opposed
to the Keller bill for public owner
ship, are as strongly opposed to the
consolidation of the Potomac Elec-
trio Power Company with the Wash
ington Railway and Electric Com
pany, all Of which seems to Indicate
that a large majority of the mem
bers of the committee are in favor
of a measure which would seem to
be a modification of the second
Hammer bill. This measure will
come up before the full committee
next week, and many expect 1t to
be amended and perhaps reported
upon favorably by the committee to
be passed on to Congress at an
early date.
1t was rumored yesterday that a
new bill embodying the desirable
features of the most popular bills
now before the committee will be
offered as a compromise. Details
were lacking, butu 1t was claimed
that this new bill provides for the
absolute divorce of the Washington
Railway and Electric Company from
the Potomac Electric Power Com
pany.