OCR Text |
Show There is a strong and very general feeling among the peoplo of Salt Lake against giving tho Utah Light & Railway Rail-way company 50 years extension of Its franchise. Tho objection is not confined to any class, but seems gen-oral. gen-oral. Most of tho expressions of three of tho daily papers and of a good many peoplo aro too extreme, too violent, and convoy tho Impression Impres-sion that tho Light company Is a public pub-lic enemy. Truth Is forcefully ana unequivocally against granting the oxtension, and has already given at somo length its reason for its position. posi-tion. It has not, however, thought it necessary to abuse the company or Its managers. It has had a good deal to contend with, both In tho lighting and street car branches of Its business, and It Is a fact that In all tho years of Its existence, either as separate companies or since tho amalgamation, it has only twice paid dividends, and In each case these wore very small, only 1 por cent each time. Tho bond ed Indebtedness of the company is also largo. Salt Lake's population will havo to bo about doubled before the company can expect to make much, if any, money. This city covers sucl. a very largo extent of territory that tho operation of street cars and electric elec-tric lighting is probably more expensive expen-sive than in any other city In the United States, with tho same number of inhabitants as Salt Lake. Tho planl of tho concern, owing to constant and rapid Improvements in electrical engineering, en-gineering, is not of tho most modern typo and requires a good deal of money to be spent on It. In regard to tho street car system, tho company has had to spend largo sums In laying now and heavier rails. The Brlgham streot improvement alone, which is now In progress, will cost the company com-pany about $70,000, and large sums will havo i bo spent on other portions of tho system, which, in all, has 88 miles of trackage. Somo of the old rails aro too light and In bad shape, and not only give the passenp '-a rough riding, but just about shake tho cars to pieces, tho extra wear and tear on tho rolling stock on account of tho rough track being enormous. To make theso and other neecssary betterments requires much money, more than tho present net earnings amount to. We aro informed that it will bo absoltuely neecssary for tho company to borrow more money, but It should not be necessary for it to havo a franchise lastins nearly a hundred hun-dred years to enable it to do that. The committee appointed to handle tho matter on behalf of the citizens are reasonable business men, and will probably arrive at a satisfactory conclusion. con-clusion. Wo don't think there Is much danger of tho city council granting grant-ing tho request of tho company, as it now stands. If they attempt it they will bo enjoined by the taxpayers who object to It. Some members of thoclli zons' committee havo suggested thai tho dozen or more franchises under which the company is now operating should be consolidated into ono charter char-ter containing provisions safeguarding safeguard-ing the interests of tho public, and lhat tho new franchise should bo for a term of 50 years from this date, which would be an oxtension of about eight years of tho present franchise. It Is a great pity the city is not in a financial position which would enable it to buy out the company's Interests and operate tho system itself. Wo have In Salt Lake one example of the benefits of a municipality owning Its public utllites in tho waterworks system. sys-tem. Tho operation of it has been so successful that the citizens of Salt Lake aro supplied with water cheaper than those of any other city in the United States, and at tho same time the department makes a profit to the city of nearly $100,000 a year, most of (Vhlch, however, has been used In extending ex-tending and improving tho system. |