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HARRISON LIKES CITY OWNERSHIP CHICAGO'S EX-MAYOR REVIEWS POSSIBILITIES EXPRESSES HIS VIEWS FREELY Bellovet Democrat^ Will Btoutly Ad. voeate Municipal Control All Ov«r Country In the Next Campaign Eight years as the chief executive of ' the city of Chicago has given to Carter H. HarrUton an Insight 'into the posst . bllltlea of success or failure of munici pal ownership such ng has been given to but few men. jv ', That caldron of political boilings wherein corporations and labor unions are always struggling for the mas tery, and where the plain citizen pays the cost of the fighting for the two, does not make Its chief executive an Idealist or a dreamer. Carter Harrison was neither one nor the other when he took the oath of of fice for the first time In 1837. He is not now. His features are heavy, straight cut and firm — those of a man who if he ' does have day dreams keeps ■ them carefully to himself. Municipal government Is not a dream with Mr. Harrison, nor is gov ernment operation of public utilities. The principles of the former he hag seen grow luxuriantly under his four administrations; he has had to com . bat the machinations and Intrigues of ' private corporations, and he knows whereof he speaks. He has talked and fought for pub lic ownership since the day he under took hia duties as mayor eight yea.rs ago, but the subject has lost not a whit of Its interest to him, and yesterday while his two children waited impa tiently for him to accompany them on a promised walk along the beach at Redondo he sat down to discuss own ership by the people. "Coming, papa?" he was asked many times, and with "In a- minute" he would launch off Into another phase of the subject. "No: I am not smokiag now," he said. "I swore off from, the use of to- bacco twelve weeks ago. I do that every now and then to convince myself that I can stop when I wish." "What do you think of the proposi tion for Los Angeles to own Its own lighting system?" he was asked. Approves Municipal Ownership "Any municipality decently managed can handle Its lighting service with success," he replied. "What about Its railways, Mr. Har rison?" _ "That is a question which brings In new phases of public ownership, but If taken hold of in the right manner the solution will be as satisfactory as that of public lighting. In owning the railways within a city a much larger number of men come under the direc tion of its administration than do in its public lighting. By the control of these men at elections, the administra tion in power might be prone to pre petuate itself. "That is the . sword of Damocles which hangs over the heads of the people, should the government attempt the ownership^ of the railroads, Un less the vast*tiumber of railroad men and also those at the head of that de partment were under rigid civil ser vice, the politic* 1 dominion of the rul ing party would be Immense. Those men who had In hand the railroads of the country, saying the government took possession and was operating them, for the movement to be a success would have to be not politicians put in high places because they controlled votes, . but because they thoroughly understood their work. With this and i the army of railroad men under rigid civil service rules I believe such a movement would be successful. Incompetent Officials Appointed "In some government enterprises however, we have not had these con ditions.,. While the rank and file have been placed "under civil service rules, their superiors, those upon whom the real responsibility rests, have been appointive. The result has been that men have held office who have . had no understanding of their duties, but who have gained their places simply by the number of votes they were able to command.. In railroad ownership the ■ men at the head should not be placed -there by Influence, but for knowledge and integrity; let them have absolute control; require them neither to give nor to ask favors; the legisla tive bodies not excepted. I have-as sumed "that the government is owning and operating the enterprise. There Is another kind of ownership; that where the government owns, but gives the operating power over to an in dividual or individuals under contract for a fixed time." :*. .*' ■• "Do you think government ownership is liable to become a tenet of the Democratic party In the next campaign and would you favor It as a plank In the party! platform?" he was asked. At this question Mr, Harrison lost . the preoccupation he had shown at the beginning of the conversation and started In to handle the. question like a . nian wearing a pair of white kid gloves which he was afraid of soiling. . "Yes, I think It will probably become an- Important Issue," he said slowly, t "but I trust th«T Democrats will . not make it the foremost one. There are too many- other big things. There is that of tariff reformi which I consider Ito < be' most Important. But the Demo cratic party Is not a one issue party; CARTER H. HARRISON JOINS FAMILY HERE It is one of general reform— and good ness knows there is plenty of room for action." The subject was a delicate one for a man to handle who is not sure whether or not he has had enough politics, and Mr. Harrison side-stepped back to the public lighting question at the earliest moment. . i "Coming, papa?" came, in anxious tones from some one in another room, but the roar, of the Burf and the sun- Bhine outsido . were not temptations enough to draw Mr. Harrison from the story of his party's right for a muni cipal electric lighting plant for Chi cago. "Eight years ago," he continued, "Chicago had 1100 electric lights . for which the city furnished the power. Today It has 6700 and is making ar rangements. to install 1000 more. This gives Chicago by far the largest public lighting system In the world. Edison Makes Big Profit "It costs the city $55 a year for each one of these lights.' When it-buys. the same service from. the Edison Electric Light company it pays $103 for it, show ing the immense profit to them. When I say each light costs us 555 a year that includes, interest on money .in vested, wear and tear of machinery, etc., and the fact. that our machinery is in use only one-half the time. "If the city's charter permitted' it to sell power to private Individuals so that the machinery now idle during the day mlght.be put into action continu ously the city could light its streets at a much lower figure than it does. We are now seeking. to gain 1 this provision In our charter 'but I : hardly think 'it will come this year. "There . has been corruption on the part of .lighting companies, to, keep their hands on a, monopoly, but the lighting question is' only one of 'the many in whlchcorruptlonis;rampant. "The contract law and the enfranch 'islng of private corporations to serve the public i are. the cause, of ninety nine per cent of the bribing of offi cials and' the rottenness of municipal government. 1 ' :...:.... •■'•»' ■ ■•*•' "Then you believe In a city doing its own work, Mr. .Harrison?" "Indeed I do," he 'replied with emphasis.' "Here; are 1 two examples. A piece .' of \ work | was , contracted \ for by Chicago- which was .to cost the city $350,000. . It was. poorly "done and when the full settlement was asked for by the contractors to the 1350,000 was added a | bill j for , $850,000 . evtras i. «.', things not epeclfled In the contract. but sanctioned' by- the •> department- head under which -the' work: fell. 80. dex terously , wa a. the. work performed that they gained judgment in twoflower LOS ANGELES HERALD.' MONDAY, .. MORNING, APRIL t7, 1905. courts , for their ( claims. '. The city gained a reversal of the case after five years of fighting, by.taklng.it to- the highest court in the state. Decreased Previous j Cost .''Some years ago' Chicago started in to do : It's own work. -This 'was : what vas done. in. one. Instance .'A sixteen foot ' sewer 12,629 : feet ; long was con structed'at. an average cost of $41 per foot. 'AThls' was done when contractors refused |to work for , $43 a foot. When the ' city - had completed ' the ' work for Itself, there. were no extras to be add ed, to' the .original .nstlmatpd cost and the city had all the' machinery. 'used and wasiincluded.as a part'of the cost of- work, .'..' These, are' two examples showing ( why I" am so much. In favor of a city', doing its own, work. L '. ;"Akin to the contract system In its effects ■ and consequences, , is , t he . gen erally adopted method. of farming out. public franchises to; groups of favored individuals regardless of ■ the rights and- demands of the citizens at large. Pn you think ■an -Indilvdual owning a valuable' poSKPHPIon would give it away for nothing' to another? .'Hardly. ■Yet, .that- is :what'tho ; municipality does in most cases. • "In .publlo i utility corporations - the principal' value is found In the fran chise Itself. In a majority of Instances the' franchise Is predicated upon the monppoly in the use of publlo prop erty for a specified purpose. The.pub lln'itself, gives Value' to the franchise. Take the total amount of bonds a com pany of this character issues,' subtract the value of its' tangible property, and you have the value of. the franchise. In the larger, number of distances, ; th« franchise, will .have a. greater -value by the operation, than "does the tan gible property. "In fact, many of these corporations serving the public tinder franchises have the value of their stock depend ent on the length of time tvhich the franchises have to run.- The longer time the better of course. A railway corporation Is going to get a fran chise for Just as long a period as Is possible. There would be little hu man nature exhibited by its promoters if It did not." "Suppose, Mr. Harrison, that the city in not in a condition to take over Its railways and must give franchises? Suppose the railways nre offered fran chises, for twenty-ono years and they say they will stop putting down their rails; what then?" ■'<■':s', City Should Be Protected "Twenty-one years is long enough," he replied, "and then it, should .have the provision for the city, if, lt sees fit, to buy the property after r 'certain number of years and buy It. for its tangible. worth; not that and the value of the franchise which was -Riven the railway company by the municipality. "It Is bosh for a company, to > say It will not build on a twenty-one-yctir franchise. We had a^slmllar, case In Chicago. Thn Allen, bill .won passed, making It possible for , a., city; council to give a franchise for fifty years.- We started In to have that law repealed. We hnd a very hard time of lt,,but ac complished our. purpose, arid now. fran chise grants are limited' to twenty years. The railways during thotlmo we were fighting for the repeal put tip the same cry that they would make no more Improvements, hut the bluff did not hold good. After the Allen law was repealed they were very glad to come to. time." YOUNG GIRL IS BRUTALLY SLAIN TWO NEGROES SUSPECTED OF V-; the crime; POSSE IN SEARCH^ OF THEM Lynching Is Feared at Little . Falls, 'Minnesota,' If Perpetrators -of Brutal Murder -Are . \ Captured ' '" ' By Associated Press. , LITTLE FALLS, Minn.. * April 16.— The dead' body of; Jcanle 'Kintop was found in tha woods this morning about four miles from 'this city. ""A*handker chief , was" tightly . twisted .■• about' her neck and the ■ head • was, a. mass of bruises. Two negroes were seen in the vicinity of. where the. body.; was found and a search is being .made for. them. If .caught it 'is feared -a lynching will follow. ■ - The • girl, who was - about to ■ leave for ; the. northern part of .the state to take up a. homestead claim, had been In -the city* purchasing supplies. < She left here Monday evening for; Darling, from which station she was to .walk to her home, distant about. 'two , miles. After leaving Darling she was not seen again until her body, was -found today. The place. where the. girl's bodyvwas found bore j evidences ■, of.-- a-, terrlflo struggle, j Her empty., pocketbookrand the a parcels ., she was, carrying, were found In. a ditch n^ar^by.' .Her. watch was found on tha body. ■•■•- ■-.'.. Charles Nelson, living- near. the scene of ■ the murder, heard 1 screams on.Mon day night and saw- two "unknown ne groes near the spot. * It is suspected that they ' committed '-the < crime. A posse is searching the country. | ' EDUCATORS PLAN .MEETING President Roosevelt, to .Address Edu. catlonal Association By Anoclatod PreM. - NEW YORK, -April' 16.—With.Presl dent Roosevelt as. the ..chief guest and leading educators from > all sections of the United States'among the speakers, the 'next general session ! of the Na tional Educational j association,' which will b« held in Aibury.Parkand Ocean Grove, N. J.. next July, promises. to be the most notable in the ' association's history. . . . The » meetings | will begin Monday, July ,8, and. continue, five davit. An elaborate program has been completed. SPEED ORDINANCE COMES UP TODAY COUNCILMEN DETERMINED TO PASS MEASURE SOME AUTOISTS OPPOSE IT Report That Citizens Will Attempt to Have Limit Reduced Prom Ten to Seven Miles an Hour Probably no measure to be considered by the council at its session today will be more closely watched by the general publlo than will the automobile ordi nance which In to be recommended for passage by the legislation committee. The provisions of the ordinance specify a business district in which It if. made a misdemeanor to run an automobile at a rate of Bpeerl greater than ten miles an hour, and four miles an hour, across street Intersections. Outside of this district fifteen miles Is made the limit, and all over the city the motorists are required to slow down to four miles an hour while pass- Ing within ten feet of street cars which have stopped to either discharge or take on passengers. The ordinance meets with the ap proval of the more conservative class of automobllists, according to President Fleming of the Automobile club, yet there are some motor enthusiasts who do not ngrep with Its provisions, and they have been exerting their influence with the various councllmen. They have had little sucess, however, as the city fathers are determled to pass a law which shall protect the Los An geles public. Clubmen to Obey Law The automobile clubmen have as sured the council that If the proposed ordinance becomes a law they will do all In their power to aid in its en forcement. Certain councilmen are expecting a fight on the floor of the council cham ber In regard to the limits Imposed by the ordinance. One citizen appeared last Monday and spoke for some time on the subject, arguing that seven miles' an hour and three miles an hour across street intersections Is fast enough. He Intimated that others would follow his example when the question came up for final settlement. Citizens of South Main street desire that the business limit be extended cut that street as far as Jefferson. They claim that motorists tear down that busy thoroughfare at a speed which endangers the lives of pedes trians, and that many school childre-n attending the Twenty-eighth street school are in constant danger when crossing the street going to and from school. The statement Is made that mothers are forced to take their little ones to school and call for them again in the evening. A like complaint comes from East Adams street, and the council will today attempt to remedy this state of affairs. AMBASSADOR WHITE IS RECEIVED BY ITALY'S KING By Associated Press. ROME, April 16.— Henry White, the new American ambassador to Rome, was received In audience by King Vic tor Emmanuel today and presented his letters of credence. Hood's Sarsaparilla enjoys the dis- tinction of being the great*- est* curative and preventive medicine the world has ever known. 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