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JANUARY 19,-1906
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MUNICIPAL OWNERSHIP
The Commons.
The following are extracts taken
from the address delivered by Mayor
Dunne of Chicago at Lafayette, Ind.,
and later at Denver:
"In the year 1900, while on a visit
to Europe, I sent a telegram from
Interlaken to Lucerne in Switzerland.
Tt. nnsf". rtlF HmnnWQl-O nlinnf in-1t
cents in American money. I was as-
iuuuucu u-t Liie buiciiinuHs oi xne cuarge
and, upon making inquiry, discovered
that the telegraph system of Switzer
land was in the hands of the govern
ment and operated by it. This started
me upon a train of thought and in
vestigation. If a publicly owned tele
graph system in Switzerland could be
operated at such prices, why should
not the United States be able to do
likewise?
"Upon pursuing my investigation I
discovered that every civilized coun
try upon earth except thrck, Hondu
ras, Costa Rico if my memory serves
me right and the United States,
owned and operated its own telegraph
systems. I further discovered that
not only were the telegraph systems
of the world being operated as public
utilities in public hands but that in
many countries the railroads, street
car systems, electric light systems,
gas systems, water systems, and the
telephone systems were being op
erated by the public, and I found that
there was a reason why such utilities
should be in public instead of private
hands.
"When one seeks to do business
with his butcheiyhis grocer, his dry
good's merchant, his doctor, his law
yer, or his plumber, he stands at
arm's length and has the right to
make a free and voluntary contract.
If the character of the goods that ho
seeks to purchase is not satisfactory
or the price is unreasonable, he may
go elsewhere.' He is not bound to
deal withany one person or corpora
tion in the purchase pf such 'necessi
ties of life. But when he comes to
utilize the telegraph, the telephone,
the street car, the steam railway car,
to purchase gas or electric light, he
finds himself deprived of the right of
free contract. He must take such
service as is offered him and pay the
price demanded.
"If his gas is of deficient quality
or the price is too high, he must
either pay tiis bill or have his meter
jerked out. If his telephone service
is unsatisfactory or the price unrea
sonable, he must stand and deliver
or have his telephone wires cut. If
he objects to the service given him
upon- a street car or to the price
charged, he must either pay or be
thrown off. In other words, in deal
ing with public utility companies and
in purchasing from them these latter
day necessaries of life, he is deprived
of the right of free contract and must
take such service as is offered and
)ay the. price demanded. He is face
to face with a monopoly and indi
vidual protest or objection as against
Mien a monopoly is absolutely unavail
ing. "Strange to say, this country, which
has been in the vanguard of progress
m all other matters, has been among
Jhe last among the civilized coun
tries of the world to take up and seri
ously discuss this question.
"In 1894 the dissatisfaction aris
ing out of the mismanagement and
rapacity of private utility corporations
brought about a revolt in the British
empire, and commencing in the city
of Glasgow that protest has worked
a wonderous change in the operation
public utilities. Up to 1894 the
ownership and operation by private
companies of public utilities, bucIi as
street cars, electric light plants, gas
Plants, and telephone systems, was
u"nost universal throughout the
world. But within the last ten years,
city after city,, and. nation after nation,
aas turned from-fllie .operation of-pub-.
11
lie utilities bv nrivn .-- ,
t,rsrf
On Peruarv is. mm o i
sul 42 olTVt nthe Aneplcan con
sul 142 cities of Great Britain owned
and operated their own street car
systems That number has bSn
iaiiiy increased since then and to
day there are twenty-four more cities
now constructing municipal street rail-
S-ih n Great Brltaln and Innd
m cities now own and operate their
hlna ?? YS18" In the same conn
tiles 334 cities and towns are operat
ing their own electric light systems,
leaving only 174 in that kingdom
which are privately owned.
"A great number nf rtHHe.ii nuinn
are owning ami nnorntinn. m,..
telephone systems and within the last
few months the government of Great
Britain made a large appropriation
tor the taking over by. the general
government of the telephone systems
vl Liitj Kingdom. f
I his same movement tnwnmi i,
public ownership of these utilities has
also proceeded with giant strides
throughout Europe and Australia.
"This wonderful change that has
taken place practically within the last
ten years in Europe has resulted from
the fact that wherever any city has
taken over a street car line a mq
works, an electric light plant, a water
works, a telephone system, or other
public utility of that character, it has
been found that almost invariably the
change has been accompanied by tre
mendous advantages to the public.
"It has produced in almost every
case the following extraordinary re
sults: "First, it has reduced the cost of
tho utility to the public.
"Second, it has increased .the effi
ciency of the service. Lines and
plants have been re-equipped accord
ing to modern methods, the service
has been more regular, the schedules
more frequent and in the case of
street cars, there has been less over
crowding and better accommoda
tion given to the public.
"Third, in almost every case the
wages of the men who operate these
utilities have been increased.
"Fourth, in neirly all of these cases
the hours of the men. employed in
operating these utilities have been re
duced. "Fifth, it has been found that,
such n ,0 I)UPHc lms tlkc ov
SiriiL lity and operated tho same,
iltl T0 ? th,ng of t,le PMt.
ssiMii, the last and probably moat
nvT' f al,'J8 " by theytaklng
. vi viieiuuun ot tiioso utilities
izena of tho same community. In tho
village of Rogers Park, now within
the city limits, a private company has
been and now Is furnishing water to
the citizens of Hint. .inHHnn f -i,
city. The private nomnnnv Mtn (,
by the i,ui tip ,n , " l,uL," '-v- 'no prlviito company cbursen
taw 'boo o mini e" U"d C0'I"'; onty cents per U.ouaamJ $5
"R,,ni, i,, '"?... . ... I m" charges citizens in aildltioif thern.
munleli mliznuon of hese ,,mmL T n. . "" c0,'"" "ulo between
Europe! ThcToVe', Jfc Zl '"Vc".. of Ch'io iS ffiS
y suss ss-5 s& .raSS
r-ssr t Houfm-ia
.-- . .... lu vyuuiu UO WU11 lO 1IUO tlUH lMIKlneoa wllliln l. tJi.
refer to it. Timhimiim wna to.,.
land, is the only city that has tried
public ownership and abandoned it.
For three years it operated a tele
phone system of its own in opposition
to the National Telephone company's
exchange. The company's rato was
$40 a year and two cents a call. The
municipality cut this to ?29.37 a year
eight years. Wo nm nnt nm,.i
to sell electric light to citizens but
nre simply authorized to light our
own streets. Chicago has now prob
ably tho largest municipal electric
light plant In the world. It has ox
tended its electric light systom very
rapidly throughout tho streets of tho
uiby anu is touay manufacturing elec-
for an unlimited sorvi. ; sm M Tiit ,Z"?' '".. " "a" '.? - 90"
,aeCa"l'; J! .SS?,S.ft? S"?W Prtyato companies
operation left a net surplus of $650.
ino jNauonai Telephone company or
ganized a body called the Rate Pay
ers' league ,and carried on a skilful
campaign by which it won a majority
in the town council. Whereupon an
ordinance was passed leasing the
public lines to the company. This
was simply a case where" a private
corporation obtained control of the
members of the city council, a thing
which is quite common in the United
States. The single, obscure exception
merely proves the rule that the pub
lic operates public utilities more" to
the satisfaction of the people than
does any private interest.
"The city of Chicago has been op
erating its own water works for over
half a century. It is today selling
water to its citizens as cheaply as
any city of its size in the country.
We have within the limits of our ity
a splendid- opportunity to test the
efficiency of a publicly and privately
owned water plant. By annexation
to the city within recent years we
have acquired certain territory in
which private companies are operating
water plants.
"To the west of the city, and now
within the city limits, the former
village of Austin was supplied by a
private company. That company
nlmrs?ffl throe times the rate ehnrirert
by the city water works to other cit-j
when the system was hintiitn,i a.,t
the citizens of Chicago are finding out
that they are just as capable of op
erating a street car system as 'they
are of operating an electric light plant
or a water works.
"Under private management wo
have in Chicago today probably the
worst managed and most scandalous
ly conducted street car systom in tho
world. There Ib no pretense of giv
ing decent accomodation to the pub
lic. Our. cars are dirty and Insuffi
cient in number. Our citizens are
crowded like herring in a box, Our
schedules are Irregular and our ser
vico at night Is either scandalously
insufficient or non-existent. Tho
owners of these companies, In de
fiance of public sentiment and every
rule of decency and justice; havo
been managing these systems so as
to mulct the public of their nickels
without any attempt to give a decent
return therefor,
"Tho citizens of Chicago have cried
out against this sort of treatment.
They havo protested and protested in
vain. At last they have declared by
a most emphatic vote that they will
have no more of it and that the mu
nicipality inustt take over and operate
its street car systems.
"Thrice has the voice of the people
been -heard at the ballot box. In
April, 1902, they declared for owner-
Throigh Coffee Drinking
Some people question the state
ments that coffeo hurts the delicate
nerves of the body. Personal ex
perience with thousands prove the
general statement true and physicians
have records of great numbers of
cases that add to the testimony.
The following is from the .Rockford,
111., Register-Gazette:
Dr. William Langhorst of Aurora
has been treating one of the queerest
cases of lost eyesight ever in history.
The patient is O. A. Leach of Beach
county, and in the last four months
he has doctored with all of the spe
cialists about the country and has at
last returned home with the fact im
pressed on his mind that his case is
incurable.
A portion of the optic nerve has
been ruined, rendering his sight so
limited that he is. unable to see any
i,,wv imPnvo Mm hut he nnn see nlain-
ly anything at the side of him. There
have been but few cases of its kind
before and they have been caused oy
whiskey or tobacco. Leach has never
used either, but has been a great cof
fee drinker and the specialists have
decided that the case has been caused
by this. Leach stated himself that
for several years he had drank three
cups of coffee for breakfast, two at
noon and one at night. According to
the records of the specialists of this
country this is the first case ever
on..n-rl llir Min IICO Ml IMllll't'
The nerve is ruined beyond aid and
... !.,..ntln rvhn forf Hint
ins case is iuuuiuu--. ""
makes the case a queer one is that
the sight forward has been lost and
the side sight has been retained. Ac
cording to the doctor's statement the
young man will have to give up cof
fee or the rest of his sight will fol
low and the entire nerve be ruined.
Register-Gazette.
Let it be remembered that the eyes
may be attacked in one case jvid the
stomach in another, while in oKrs it.,
may be kidneys, heart, bowels IMgem"
eral nervous prostration. The remedy
is obvious and should be adopted be
fore too late.
Quit coffee, if you show incipient
disease. It is easy if one can have well-boiled
Postum Food Coffee to serve for the
hot morning" beverage. The with
drawal of the old kind of coffee that
is doing the harm and the supply of
the elements jn the Postum which Na
ture uses to rebuild tho broken down
nerve cells, insures a quick return
to the old joy of strength and health,
and it's well worth while to be able
again tp "do things" and feel well.
There's a reason for
POSTUM
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