Show r r l CHARTERS S AND TAXES f y i i HL i but wonder the i Reading newspapers one cannot r t the pe perpetual t al i iE wrangles between cities cities' a and d certain fl 1 E public utilities such as street cars gas and light frani franj fran- fran j i 1 v A thousand City Councils have been made rich by byi 4 i f M selling such fra franchises The San Francisco scand scandals ls 4 we were e after all but copies of what many another city r 1 has suffered It is is almost laughable to read the scorn f of Chicago New York and Philadelphia a papers hurl 0 at San Franc Francisco because of grafting municipal officers officers cers as though they had not been setting t the e unI unsophisticated un- un f I f sophisticated West those sinister examples for half halfa I a century r But But it seems to us that all those troubles might be beT T f V mitigated if not entirely avoided by State laws For Forfi fi t J instance if there was there was a law th that t no franchise of imPortance im- im rh 1 I porta nee like the lighting of a city could be given w without the affirmative vote of a majority of the taxi tax- tax t T i I pay payers rs that would take a large portion of tho the graft N away from front City Councils Councils' The next section should I give the franchise when so voted for without I any any mo moneyed eyed consideration The next should give I the city constant supervision and the right to exam exam- the company's books at at all times J i Then when the tho business of the company began i n w to pay all ll fixed charges and a percentage say 5 per cent net on the cost of the property then taxation should hould begin and should be a small percentage of the c earnings If at first in operating the franchise the 1 should lose that should be made company money up out of the earnings before taxation should begin The C- C Creason reason reason is because the property is one that all the peo- peo pie have to support and it should not be permitted to clear than fair The that v more a percentage profit r t comes through increased people and traffic traffie is in the v nature of an unearned increment and should be taxed accordingly Then the city should at the same time protect the company It should be forbidden to give v another I franchise covering the same field It should iT J not ft not on its own account for while one corporation 1 s might make a handsome profit when divided between j t r s I tv two there would be beno no return to the city r The above is but a crude o outline but from it a shrewd business i man could fr frame me a stat statute te which 7 would be just to the corporation and to the city to H It makes a city say to a corporation Go Go ahead but your your business from the first must be open to our officers because you get all you make from i i 2 the people We give you free right of way but the work you do must be economically done the plant when completed must be handled according to business business busi busi- ness rules so long as it is we will not interfere until you get to making a fair interest on n your investment After that a small percentage will U have to be paid the city for the privileges it gives to assess the people and for the protection it supplies for your property Of course even then it would be possible to bribe assessors and collectors but not to any great extent and as as the city grew grev the revenues revenue's s from such a source would become a large sum It should be he managed managed managed man man- aged in some such a way and another provis provision on should give the city the right to purchase after a given number of years The charter for the Illinois C Central railroad ad was re ready dy to pass the Legislature but but was first submitted to to Stephen A. A Douglas Dougla He wrote upon it the clause making its taxes a very small p percentage of its gross revenues That is why Illinois has now such a a princely revenue The road has repeatedly lY tried to abrogate that clause but every time has failed |