The Washington times., 1934-12-20
FIGHT To FINISH.
INDICATED BY
PRESIDENT
Industry Must Reduce Cost or
Meet Competition of Public
Ownership
BY EARL GOODWIN

BY EARL GOODWIN
Behind the sudden news that
President Roosevelt has given ap.
proval to Government and mu-
nicipally owned power plants in
New York city, with PWA money
ranging from $15,000,O00 to $780,
100000 to build them, is a story
that may develop into the last
ditch fight against the Power
Trust.
To Washington, D. c., the White
House offer of almost unlimited
funds to beat down electric light
rates in New York city and the
Brooklyn Navy Yard presents a
contrast of Federal generosity in
contrast to the fact that Congress
is even now being importuned for
a meager additional $50,000 for
adequate support of the Districts
Public Utilities Commission which
consistently has reduced electric
light rates to a point where they
are considered even lower than the
famous "yardstick rates" Of Presi-
dent Roosevelt'S Tennessee Valley
Authority Government owned elec-
trict power plants.
New York Facts
The New York facts are these:
Mayor Fiorella La Guardia,
through his commissioner of
power and electricity, rejected
bids to furnish the city with power
for street lighting and other
needed electricity. These rates
were, roughly, 5.S4 cents per kilo-
watt hour for street lighting and
6.1 cents for other city electricity.
Washington's average electric bills
run about a third of these figures.
President Roosevelt read this in
a New York newspaper and sent
for and talked to Mayor La
Guardia, Electric Commissioner
Davidson, Rear Admiral Baken'
haus, naval officer specializing IN
power rates to the Brooklyn navy
yard, and Basil Manly, Federal
power commission chairman. Out
of a White House dearth of real
news the sudden attack upon the
Power Trust created flaring head
lines.
Millions Promised
Following the White House
conference, Secretary 1ckes, PWA
Administrator, promised Mayor
LaGuardia funds up to $5O,OOO,:.
900 for a New York city owned
electric light plant and talked OF
more millions for a Federal power
plant for the Brooklyn Navy
Yard and other Federal establish
ments, if it appeared such plants
could generate and distribute
power economically.
Only a day or two previously,
the President had heard the
refusal of President McCarter,
of the Edison Electrical Institute,
organization which includes the
bulk of the electric power in
dustry, to withdraw from the
suit testing the constitutionality
of the IVA, President Roosevelt's
gigantic experiment in govern
ment owned power generation.
The sudden New York develop
ment is looked upon as the
Administrations answer to the
attitude of President McCarter,
which the President said yester-
day is not in harmony with other
power officials who have been at
the White House recently.
Pet Project Up
The New York proposal also
brings forward again the Presi-
dents pet New York project of
using more and more of the water
in the st. Lawrence waterway for
public power purposes, a PROPOSE
ton which the Power Trust op-
poses with grim determination.
It enters into New York and ma
tional politics.
It should be remembered that
the developments at the White
House and in Secretary Ickes' Of
flee so far are merely promises,
which can be construed as a
threat to the New York Edison
and other electric light companies
to bring down their rates or suf-
fer aforementioned competi-
ton. Mayor LaGuardia naivelv
confessed as much at the White
House when a Times reporter
queried him on the contrast be-
tween Washington's rates and
New York's rates. Mayor La.
Guardia said:
"You have an extremely low
rate here, averaging 2.2 cents
three times as much, but you
per kiIowatt hour while we pay