Show THE DAILY NEW YORK V Financial Fi n a n cia I W Whirligig h i r I i 9 ig Written for T The c Telegram by JAMES McMULLIN V NEW YORK YORK New New York City Cily officials of of- will find that putting through their plan for lora bra a municipal power plant will be somewhat harder than rolling off oH a log There are several sizable rocks on the road New Yorkers who have had experience experience ex ex- with PW A red tape say ay it i will be a miracle if that thit can be unravelled unravelled un un- un ravelled Inside of ot several months months- which gives ives lots of ot time for lor things to happen An applicant must comply with numerous technicalities ties and a slip on any anyone one of them virtually sends you back to start over That's why New Yorks York's Tri Tri- borough bridge appropriation still hasn't come conic through A signature is h missing and nursing and nobody can find out whose Then theres there's the question of oC underground underground un transmission of power All conduits are arc owned either by a subsidiary of ot Consolidated Gas or ora a subsidiary of American Tele Tele- phone If It the city thinks it can use them for lor the asking it can guess again agair If H it has to build its own it will wm add acid or more snore to the cost of the project Also Also if if theres there's any question of sellin selling power to private consumers there there has to be a public refer refer- The city could Win it but it-but but it H would take a lot of ot trouble and ex expense Mayor LaGuardia is in earnest about his plan plan chiefly chiefly on condition condi cond tion that Con Gas remains stiff stiff- necked Theres There's reason to believe it would be welcomed as a repentant repent repent- ant prodigal if it will only make up its mind it can get along with lower ower rates It shows no signs of surrender yet But several upstate companies are slipping sUpping on this issue under pressure and the example may spread S. S There are odd angles to Con Can Gas' Gas position It cant can't shut off its service service service ice to the city for payment non of bills as it docs does to private con con- sumers For instance it carried the city to a little credit of four o r million dollars from December 1933 to August 1934 1034 before accounts accounts ac ac- ac e counts were squared This sort of thing happens fairl fairly often Now theres there's an added complication complies complies- tion in the city's rejection of its latest bid If It the rejection stands and a municipal plant is built it probably couldn't begin to function function tion for a couple of years ears Con Gas would have to give service during that period without knowing how much much- much or or r even whether whether whether-it it would be paid Probably it could collect in the long run but the interim spot would be uncomfortable This might be a factor in m arranging a compromise S New York bankers didn't care much for Jacob Viner's farewell report to the treasury As fa far as they can figure he wants them to tomake tomake tomake make long term long term capital loans to industry industry in in- disguised as six month credits which can be renewed in in definitely He also recommends that Federal Reserve standards should be relaxed to permit rediscounting rediscounting redis redis- counting of this type of loan Another of his suggestions which doesn't sit so well weIl with financial men Is that the or any other federal agency lending to industry should be less fussy about collateral and more inclined to take a chance The bankers claim that Viner is trying to lead them back to the mistakes of 1929 b by a back door One reason the they got into a jam was because too large a proportion of their assets was frozen in security investments They cant can't see much difference between buying stocks and bonds and making w what h hat a t amount to perpetual loans to industry in in- If It the government wants want to set setup setup setup up a special agency to handle this type of credit its it's O. O K with them But they have no intention of heeding Viner's advice and they hope Washington wont won't start throw throw- ng them dirty looks again on that account S 9 II S Conservatives are arc uneasy about Soci overtures for tor a rapprochement rapprochement che- che ment with organized labor The party has adopted the hour 30 week and the closed shop shop primary primary objectives ob ob- ob- ob of ot the Federation of Labor as as its il own pet issues It Il also seeks to foster loster independent political political pout pout- ical action by labor and farm or or- Rejection of or the proposed proposed pro pro- posed united front ont with the Communists Communists Com is seen as a concession to labor susceptibilities The informed understand that many younger members of the Federation Fed Fed- disappointed disappointed with their own leadership are leadership are responsive to these friendly gestures and inclined to seek a closer tie up which might have reaching far political conse conse- S S S The sugar squeeze ze may be settled on terms more favorable to the trapped shorts than people in ih their position usually get Authorities are pressing the buyers not to demand demand de dc de- de mand their pound of ot flesh It Isn't love for the shorts that prompts the pressure The idea is rather to do anything that will vill expedite an om adjustment and get the mess out of or Washington's sight before it attracts at at- tracts too much attention o o 0 c elect Comptroller lect Frank Taylor has shocked hocked his Tammany sponsors within an inch of ol their lives by naming three deputies who have served under Fusion Fusion- one Fusion one of oC whom is renowned as an authentic expert on city finance This is an absolute negation of Tammany tradition The trouble is that Taylor has been getting etting advice from Al Smith instead of the boys in the back room Some Tammany leaders who have candidates for deputy jobs think they understand how King Lear must have felt Copyright McClure Newspaper Syndicate |