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Show THE APPLICATION FOR FRANCHISES. FRAN-CHISES. Unless something happens to prevent, pre-vent, on Monthly evening next tho amended franchlso for tho Consolidated Consoli-dated Light & Hallway Company will T'Jss or It will not. At tho session of t'to city council last Monday evening It was agreed that at tho next mooting moot-ing tho mnltor would bo fought out. There Is no need reporting tho debato on tho proposition; sufficient to say that tho franchlso, as it suits tho corporation cor-poration nsking for consolidation nntl extension, camo up and was referred to tho city attornoy, after somo ran-corous ran-corous remarks by Hobday on tho one hand and Fcrnstrom on tho other, with Instructions to report if tho city's rights woro preserved as In tho present, pres-ent, franchises and also whether the company's obligations woro lessoned' i.,rnf.t,rt,,.,n onI,0SC(1 tho reference, as did Wells and others nnd tho llnal vote was close. Tho two Daviscs woro absent. Had thoy been present tho volo to rotor would havo been 8 to 7. Both franchises nro on Illo with tho city recorder and Truth has been at some pains to make an abstract of each; llrst tho ono asked for by tho Consolidated Light & Railway company com-pany and second, tho franchlso asked for by Mr. Nowhouso. Tho former corporation nsks that all its franchises, by which it operates plants nnd distributes light to tho city and its citizens and by which it operates Us street cars bo consolidated consolidat-ed In ono and extended to Jnnuary 1, 1955. It asks that' tho timo for going underground un-derground within tho limits of tho husincss district uo extended ono year. It agrees to furnish electric light nnd gas service, "and if necessary," manufacture gas, water gas, "or if obtainable ob-tainable on reasonable terms" natural gns of tho highest ofllcioncy. Its rates aro quoted as follows: For nrp lights -165 watt enclosed carbon lamps; all night service not to exceed $11.25 per lamp per month. For service ser-vice until midnight, $7.50 per month. For service until 10 o'clock at night, ?fi per month. An additional charge of $1.50 per month per lamp for care and maintenance of onch lamp is also provided for. For Incandescent lamps of tho kind and quality now in uso, 12 cents per kilowatt hour. All bills for this ser-vlo ser-vlo to bo discounted to ten cents per kilowatt hour if paid before tho tenth of tho month. No bill to bo less than $1 per month. Gas, manufactured, for. illuminating purposes, $1.95 per 1,000 cubic feet. Water gas, or manufactured gas, . for fuel, ?1.40 per 1,000 cubic feet. Discount Dis-count ten per cent if paid before the 10th of the month, If natural gas can bo obtained tho rate is to bo 50 cents per 1,000 cubic feet. In addition to tho lights now given tho city, 18 arc lights aro to bo added to the free list during tho year 1918 and seven after May 17, 1922. In tho matter of street railway fares It is agreed that tho rate on all lines within tho municipality shall not exceed ex-ceed flvo cent's per faro. That commutation com-mutation tickets shall bo sold at tho rato of 50 for ?2, and to students in the several schools at tho rato of 50 for $1.50. Policemen and firemen In uniform to bo carried free of charge. It also agrees to givo tho city 30 horsepower electric current for power uso only, freo and to furnish 30 32-cantllo 32-cantllo power lights for tho city hall grounds; to light freo of charge tho city end of tho joint building, tho city jail and tho various flro department building3 and all city hospitals, libraries li-braries and jails, "provided that light Fltall not bo used with unnecessary extravagance." ex-travagance." For tho 2,000 candle-power candle-power arc lights used for street illumination, illum-ination, it. agrees to chargo tho city not moro 'than ?C per light. "Provided "Pro-vided that tho city must givo at least six months' notico before discontinuing discontinu-ing tho service." It also offers to furnish tho city 100 horse power for power purposes exclusively, ex-clusively, at not to exceed ono cent per kilowatt hour for 21 hours por day and 14 cents per kilowatt hour for 21 hours por day. Also to deed to tho city tho alleged water right at tho mouth of Dig Cottonwood. "Provided that tho city will not use tho waters of Rig Cottonwood creek, or any part thereof for generating power for lighting light-ing or Illuminating purposes; uso or ask to uso tho poles and cross arms of said company for stringing wires for lighting purposes, nor by ordinance mnkc any chango In rules or regulation regula-tion in regard to prices herelu named." It is provided, howover, that in case any new inventions shall cheapen light tho mayor and tho council coun-cil on tho one hand and the company on tho other shall adjust tho question nnd in caso of disputo ono side shall select a man, tho other sido another and theso two an umpire, who shall adjust tho questions Involved. If tho representations mado aro true; If tho company has a wator right to tho waters of Dig Cottonwood, outside tho simplo uso of tho samo for power purposes only, tho oxchango of that right Is a valuablo concession. Tho ordinnnco might bo changed in several respects with profit to the city in tho matter of safeguards by making mak-ing moro specific that portion of tho agreement wherein tho company agrees to furnish manufactured gas if necessary by inserting a clauso providing pro-viding for tho determinate n of tho necessity. As tho matter now stands thero is no ono to determine tho necessity neces-sity except tho company itself. It would seem too that whereas tho chnrgo for an nil night arc light to the city is only ?C and to tho customer ij.il.25 that tho chargo of ?1.50 por month for "care and maintenance" might bo reasonably omitted. Nor does tho provision prohibiting the city from using or asking to uso tor i next ilfty years, tho polos and croc, arms stringing wires for illutnhiatlnJ purposes look exactly right. boo.mso conditions mny arise whore tho riiv will bo put to a groat hardship by t he-terms he-terms of this agreement. Nor ,ions it seem meet and proper that tho wires should go underground in tho - business district only, it looks as if a provision ought to bo incorporated providing for tho gradual interment of wires In every part of the munlri-pallty. munlri-pallty. Overhead wires aro a rclio 0f barbarism and not only to this franchise, fran-chise, but to all others docs this argument ar-gument apply. Salt Lake Is polo and wire ridden; Its beauty is destroyed by the unsightly forest' of poles ami tho net work of wires and we aro ilf-ty ilf-ty years behind tho times if wo permit per-mit this condition to continue. The Nowhouso franchlso as tiled Is moro brief, having to do with tho question ques-tion of street lighting and house Hghr-ing Hghr-ing alone. Mr. Nowhouso Is not ask-Ing ask-Ing for a street car franchlso. And It ' i Is but fair to Mr. Nowhouso to say that this franchise will bo amended and amplified beforo final action Is taken, tho first draft being imperfect. Its duration is fifty years. Wires aro to bo placed underground at once in the district bounded on tho north by South Temple and on tho south by Fourth South, on the cast by Stato street, on tho north whero the wires aro to bo underground to North Temple. Tem-ple. All wiring to bo dono according -to tho latest methods and tho plant and lamps furnished to bo of tho latest lat-est and most approved design. Tho granteo assumes all liability for loss and damage claimed by reason rea-son of tho erection of poles, stringing of wires, etc., and offers a continuing bond of ?25,000 for tho indemnity of tho city. Work to begin on or boforo April 1, 1900, and continue with duo dillgenco to completion. All work to bo dono under tho inspection of the city engineer. Tho. rates for incandescent lights lo bo not more than 10 cents per kilowatt kilo-watt hour and tho minimum chargo not to bo less than 75 cents por month. Tho Nowhouso franchlso bears tho earmarks of hasto and it is fair to pro-sumo pro-sumo that when amended it will contain con-tain moro stipulations; that it will of- , fer lo tho city certain free lights as In i tho other franchise. , Tho question is up to tho council and tho matter will no doubt bo thoroughly thor-oughly threshed out on tho floor at tho next meeting. No matter who is granted grant-ed a franchlso or a concession Truth hopes tho interests of tho city will bo well guarded and that no action will bo taken until everything lias been probed to tho bottom. It may bo said In this connection that inasmuch as competition is tho life of trade, many people believe that tho granting of franchises for light to other parties might result In somo rate cutting that would bo of benefit to tho public. It has worked well in tho telephone matter and is working well in other towns in respect to t lights. |