New-York tribune., 1922-10-14
Complaints
On Gas Follow
Smith Speech,
Poorer Qualify, Said Demo-
cratic Candidate; The,,
RepOrfs-WitI Basis
B e siege Newspapers
Heat Unit Not Changed
Months Required for Adj
Justmenis in the Plants
That Serve Manhattan

/ Oil Is one of the substances used IN
1.-The making Of gas. So is coal. And
likewise, so is politics; at least ir
New York City, it was discovered yes.
terday.
Recently, it will be recalled bv gas
and politics consumers, the Public
Service Commission, acting with Gov
ernor Miller, brought about cheaper
gas rates throughout greater New
York. At the same time the commits
sion directed that the quality standard
for gas be changed from the candle
power basis to the British thermal unit
basis.
The lower rates have been described
by Governor Miller in several of his
campaign speeches as an achievement
Of his administration. In opening his
state campaign in Yonkers the other
night, however, Alfred f. Smith, the
Democratic candidate for the Cover
norship, charged that. while rates have
been cut, "the people are getting q
poorer quality of gas"
And Complaints" Follow
Whatever hint this may have given
to Democratic campaigners has not
been divulged, but for some reason the
newspaper offices were besieged yester-
day by Complaints" that the gas which
consumers are getting now is all wrong.
1t wouldn't even boil water. said the
Complaints" and they wanted to know
what the Governor and the commission
we're going to do about it. Many Of the
Complaints" came from supposed resi-
dents of Manhattan.
"Politics bunk" was the answer
Of William Merrfeld, gas engineer Of
the Public Service Commission. to an
investigator for The Tribune
"1n the first place, the Consolidated
Gas Company has not yet changed the
standard anywhere in Manhattan, as
this involves plant changes and adjust
ments that will require several months
Sp there could be no basis for such
complaints anywhere in Manhattan.
GAS to how the British thermal unit
already has been tried and tested in
New York, let me point to the fact
that the Brooklyn Borough Gas Com
pany changed to that standard in 1920
Yet in January, 1922. the Public Serv.
ice Commission received only two com
plants as to inferior gas out of total
Of 1,149 gas complaints of all kinds
for the month, and that month is typi-
CAL"
Quality Precisely the Same
The following statement was pre-
pared for The Tribune by Robert E
Livingston, publicity director of tn,
Consolidated Gas Company, ON behal!
of that concern:
"The quality of the gas distributed
in this city to-day is precisely tn,
same as the quality of the gas tha
was being delivered on and previou
! to October I, when the old, antiquatet
candle-power standard was superseded
lfby the British thermal unit standard
Although the Public Service Commits
| sion changed the standard of measure.
ment from the candle-power to the
thermal unit, the same heat units re-
main in the gas distributed throughou!
Manhattan and the Bronx, Long Island
City and the Borough of Queens.
"There will be no fault finding by
consumers. under the British thermal
unit standard, as the quality of the
gas will be maintained, and, further
more, there will be a steadiness in the
standard that was impossible under the