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Show TELEPHONE f RANCIIISE. Shall tho Utali Homo Telephone Company bo granted a franchise to Install and opcrato a telephone system in Logan City? Personally, wo do not bollcvo tho granting or not granting grant-ing of such a franchise to said company com-pany ls of sufficient consequence to tho city for us to dovoto much spaco to a light for or against It. However, wo do bollcvo that tho Council should and will eventually seo its way clear to granting a franchise, and further that it will bo such a franchise as was read at tho council meeting last Wednesday Wed-nesday evening, with the exception that Artlclo 15 as read will be erased and tho substitute of Mr. Burrls Inserted. AVe can namo at least a dozen reasons rea-sons why wo bellevo as we do. First, thcro is no active opposition to tho granting of said franchise, except from tho Bell Telepono peoplo; secondly, there lias been presented to tho council a petition signed by moro than forty of tho prominent business men of the city asking that the franchise bo granted; thirdly, by their voto on the electric light question last spring, tho people slgnflcd that they dcslro competition In public utilities; fourthly, municipal ownership owner-ship of public utilities seems to bo tho policy of tho present council, and in the franchise acceptable to tho Utah Telephone Company Is a clause granting grant-ing the city the privilege of buying at any time; fifthly, the Utah Homo Telephone is willing to grant certain concessions in tho free use of ten phones and moro if necessary, the free use of pole service, and a payment of 1 per cent on tho receipts re-ceipts of the company at this place, and whether or not this will amount to a great deal, it is moro than the Bell people havo over given; sixthly, the Utah Home Telephone company promises a cut in rates of one-half, and sets a maximum price that can bo charged and whether this cut amounts to a great deal it Is worth considering; soventhiy, "competition , the life of trade" may bring rates very low, and increase the service for the money expended; eighthly, tho Utah Homo Telephone Company proposes pro-poses to spend from $10,000 to $15,000 In establishing its system, most of said money being spent in Logan for labor, etc., and will also give employ ment to at least a certain number of local people when the plant is once established. These aro a few of tho reasons why we bellevo the franchise should be granted, and why wo believe tho council coun-cil will grant the franchise. Wo believe that tho council Is capable of graspln g these facts, and that whatever delay there has been in the matter, ls a desire de-sire to get at the facts In tho case and to go over them carefully. About tho only argument advanced by the Bell people as to why the franchise fran-chise should not be granted is "that the Independent company ls always a failure," that "when the Utah Home Telephone Company gets ready to enter en-ter your city is tlmo enough to grant the franchise," and that "tho nome Telephone Company will havo no toll service to oiler you for a long time to to come." If tho Independent company com-pany is always a failure why should the Bell people be anxious to keep it out they surely havn't the wcllfare of tho Utah Homo Company at heart And again, if the Utah Company never getshere, who has lost anything, and beside could It bo expected that said company would build up to tho city limits without knowing whether it could como in? So far as the other argument is concerned, the Utah Homo Company will at least have a service from Provo to Logan a service ser-vice that will answer for at least nine-tenths nine-tenths of the business dono by Logan telephone users. Tho Republican is satisfied with the present rate given us by tho Bell peoplo peo-plo and very well satisfied with the service, but wo see no reason why this company should not have competition if any ono desires to compete Tho Republican does not need more than tho servlco of ono company, In fact can get along without any, and wo venturo the assertion that there aro not moro than a dozen, (if that many) of our business men who could not do without their 'phono without skuious results to business. However we recognize rec-ognize the telcphono as a utility of modern civilization and a' great convenience, con-venience, but in caso of any such chicanery chi-canery on the part of tho Bell people as was adopted by tho electrico light people, wo bellevo the cltl.en will have tho upper hand and not the Bell people. Wo bellevo In a fair and square deal on this proposition and feel that tho councllmcn should and will vote as representatives re-presentatives of tho peoplo and not as individuals. |