New-York tribune., 1922-10-06

| fected while Governor, declaring that
he had saved the people of the state
$10O,o00,oo0 in taxes, while the Demo-
cratic administration, if it had contin-
ued in power, would, reckoning from
the estimates of state departments,
have placed an additional burden of
S1oo'ooo,ooo on the taxpayers.
Much of the Governors talk was
devoted to review of the accomplish
ments Of the Transit Commission, and
IN this he neatly turned the tables
on his adversaries over the scent fare
| question. In addition to declaring that
the commission is working for uni
lied traction system for New York
City, on universal fare basis, the
Governor announced that the commits
sion soon would reach a decision that
the 5-cent fare can be maintained. and
that adequate service can be given
for it.
They have challenged us to compare
the records of the two admins trations
with respect to the regulation of pub
ilc utilities" he went on. Here and
now l accept that challenge.
/
reading from their platform: "They
have delivered the Public Service Com
mission to the control of the railroad.
the gas and electric corporations and
the telephone trusts and have created
corporation controlled Transit Commits
sion. that aims to seize the municipal
railways constructed by the city of
New York at a cost of $500 100000, in
order to compel the people to pay in
creased carfares,'
What happened under the adminis-
tration of the party which says we
have delivered the commission to the
corporations? Under Governor Smiths
administration--l am speaking of pub
| lie utilities generally now--two things
happened with respect to the public
utilities of the state. During those
two years there were greater advances
In rates and fares authorized by his
commission, particularly upstate, than
| have ever occurred in any other two
/ years of the state government.
There was something else that went
with those increased fares. If the
| fares were justified, there at least
| should have been an Improvement in
service; but there was period of two
years of increase in fares and de-
creased service.
when the present administration
took once the puDllc utlllC1eS OF the
state were in the most demoralized
condition that they had ever been in.
Because of these increases in fares and
constantly deteriorating service public
opinion in every center of the state
was infamed against the utility corpo-
rations, and it was fertile field for
the politician and the demagogue, who,
instead of seeking to improve those
conditions, seek to make political cap
ital out Of them.
What has happened since? We are
now in period of lowering fares and
improving service. In brief, those
are the two records"
"To- day anybody having business to
do with that Commission gets his bust
ness promptly attended to-" he went
on; That is one thing at least that
Gas Production Studied
The Governor then went on to the
subject of gas companies He said:
"The Public Service Commission has
undertaken scientific study to deter
mine the cost of producing gas and the
proper standards to go by. We are
going by an utterly uneconomic and
wasteful standard-candle-p power. AL
most every community here and in
| Europe had found the thermal unit