Show THE LIGHTING CONTRACT A CITIZEN WHO COINCIDES WITH THE MAYOR Reviews the Situation antI Gives Some Statistics The Question of Municipal Ownership Salt Lake City June 1 1896 To the Editor of The Herald Will you permit me to suggest that the city council should nOt act hastily in adopting the municipal lighting contract con-tract over the veto of the mayor From my acquaintance with the facts I believe be-lieve the mayor ha better information informa-tion and is nearer right than the i council I is a singular thing that the I I old company could afford to sell the I city its lights for less than the proposed I pro-posed contract provides having to purchase pur-chase coal while the lightsr under the new contract are to be furnished from electrical currents generated without cost excepting for the plant and transmitted through the city on a I franchise given to i Investigation will disclose the fact Invesigaton wi that electrical lighting is to be materially ma-terially reduced in the near future by discoveries now being made Originally it took one horse power for ten incandescent in-candescent lamps latterly one horsepower horse-power will furnish fifteen lamps new discoveries have recently been made to justify the belief that twenty incandescent in-candescent lamps can be illuminated from a single horse power The investigations in-vestigations of Mr Nicola Tesla indicate indi-cate that a better artificial light than has yet been discovered will soon be in common use The illumination will be better there will be no wires in use and the cost will be cheaper I would be extremely foolish in view of these facts for the city council to make a long time contract unless it is justified by an extremely low rate which has not yet been accorded Investigations In-vestigations made by the city of Evansville feicl show that of fifty eight cities which owned the lighting plants of their cities the cost per lamp per annum was but 5783 The city of Keokuk Iowa making the same kind of an investigation found that the cost per annum per lamp taking the average aver-age of the various schedules w but 5725 The city of Snrinsrfield Il making an investigation a to the cost of city lighting ascertained that the cost per lamp per annum was but 58 While it ha been shown that the cost of a 2000candte power lamp burning six hours a night which is half an hour longer than the Philadelphia schedule the one 0 which Salt Lake has been running costs only 60 per year The city council of Boston adopted a resolution October 17 1895 I reciting that in the opinion of the city council the city of Boston should I not pay more than 75 per arc lamp per annum pending the establishment of a municipal electric light plant The report o the city of Marietta Ohio made February 28 of this year I shows that the cost of 110 arc lamps I 2000candle power including taxes interest depreciation and every possible I pos-sible expense is but 4724 per lamp per annum burning all night every night All the investigations mad by cities I so far a I know show that 70 per annum per light where coal is used is a very liberal allowance and the I idea of our city council rushing through a contract giving for two years a local company 102 per annum an-num for lights generated by waterpower water-power is not in the interest of the city and will do no credit to the members of the council The city can better afford af-ford ito be left In darkness until such time as a plant of its own can be established than suffer itself to betaken be-taken advantage of by corporations I whioh have been accorded the franchise fran-chise without cost I tha city would I seriously consider the proposition of putting in a plant of its own up City creak which it could do you would find that the lighting corporations will be very willing to supply lights at 8 per month per light or 72 per annum which is more than i costs in most cities and which should be enough to I satisfy the most avaricious The fact that certain individuals prominent in financial and ecclesiastical circles have interests In these plants should not count with the city council as against the best Interest of the tax payer There is no justification for the contract con-tract made by the city council and the veto of the mayor will be sustained by citizens general r no matter what the council may do I will be a rare treat to have body of ope 9 men again elected in Salt Lake county who will endeavor to subserve the interests of the people It begins to look a though it is impossible im-possible to secure a city council or countycourt which will dolts duty by J the public L t t E 0 o < < J |