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 robably rain today— fair to- 
 morrow. 
 
 (Weather Report on Page 8.) 
 
 LIGHTING PUNT 
 
 Council Unanimous In the 
 Action Taken. 
 
 COMPANY REFUSES 
 FIVE YEAR CONTRACT 
 
 The Council Also Votes In 
 Favor of Municipal Ice 
 Plant* 
 
 (Special to The Courant.) 
 
 New Britain, Sept. 17. 
 
 The common council tonight put 
 itself on record, unanimously, in a pre- 
 liminary vote favoring municipal 
 lighting. Bight is furnished New 
 Britain by the United Electric Light & 
 Water Company, which waged a suc- 
 cessful fight in the last Legislature for 
 an amendment to its charter permit- 
 ting a bond issue for the purpose of 
 erecting a lighting plant at tide water. 
 Attempts to secure cheaper rates hAve 
 failed and the result is the vote taken 
 tonight favoring municipal lighting. 
 Meanwhile a ten year contract has 
 been signed with the company, which 
 may be terminated at the end of five 
 years. 
 
 Ten-Year Light Contract Signed. 
 
 Alderman George A. Quigley report- 
 ed as chairman of the special com- 
 mittee on lighting contract made an 
 important report. The committee ap- 
 pointed has held three meetings, the 
 second of which General Manager 
 Campbell attended. After conferences 
 with him outside of the committee 
 meetings several important conces- 
 sions in the contract which amount to 
 a reduction in the price of light were 
 obtained. Under the contract submitted 
 the city was entitled to a 2 per cent, 
 reduction in price for every 10 per 
 cent, increase in number of lights in- 
 stalled above the number called for in 
 the contract. This discount applied 
 only to the present lighting district 
 I and not to the outside district! The 
 committee has secured from Mr. 
 Campbell a new clause which will 
 include this outside district. 
 
 Two Per Cent. Cut on New Lights. 
 
 This is a very important concession 
 as a majority of the new lights will 
 Undoubtedly be in the outside section. 
 Another important concession is that 
 the 2 per cent, discount applies im- 
 mediately upon the installation of a 
 V-K bent, increase in the number 
 t\. Another important matter 
 tatf&iUup was adjusting the difference 
 which may ariise regarding the price 
 to be charged for new improved lights 
 f that would be substituted for old 
 style lamps from time to time. It is 
 now proposed in case a satisfactory 
 ! agreement cannot be reached between 
 , the city and the company as tg the 
 proper charge for new lights the ihat- 
 j ter be arbitrated. 
 
 The committee was unable to se- 
 J eureka favorable contract for five-year 
 ' termu Mr. Campbell would not agree 
 i to the prices. The prices would be 
 increased as follows: Arc lights $89.25, 
 200 cp. $41.21, 60 cp. $19.53. 
 
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Get Ciieaper Private Lights. 
 
 Probably the most important con- 
 cession of the committee was a reduc- 
 tion in the price of electricity to pri- 
 vate consumers. A cut of 1 cent per 
 kilowatt hour will be made within four 
 months, making the price 10 cents in- 
 stead of 11 cents. The committee in- 
 cluded with its report a letter from 
 the general manager putting in writ- 
 ing this reduction in private lighting 
 rates. The committee recommended 
 in viqw of the concessions the signing 
 of the 10-year contract. Alderman 
 Quigley said it hurt him to vote for a 
 ten-year contract, but he did not 
 know what else he could do. The 
 j reduction of 1 cent a kilowatt would 
 mean a saving of $7,000 or $8,000. 
 'Councilman Parker thought the com- 
 mittee ^deserves the thanks of every 
 user of* electricity in New Britain. The 
 reduction of 1 cent per kilowatt meant 
 |a whole month’s receipts for the com- 
 pany. The committee had done a good 
 I work if they only secured this one 
 .thing. The committee’s report was 
 adopted. 
 
 To Go Into Municipal Lighting. 
 
 The council finally voted unani- 
 mously for the ten-year lighting con- 
 tract, after a prolonged argument, apd 
 Councilman Church withdrew an 
 amendment for a five-year contract. 
 
 The council then tc\ok from the 
 table the matter of municipal light- 
 ing business. Alderman Christ moved 
 the adoption of the resolution to take 
 the preliminary vote to go into the 
 municipal lighting business. He made 
 a long speech,'Strongly advocating the 
 action, saying that this did not tie up 
 the city in any way and he gave as- 
 surance that before further action is 
 taken a thorough investigation would 
 fee made. 
 
 Councilman Church wanted to know 
 If the company would hold up all 
 improvements if the vote was taken. 
 Addermap Christ said it was a fair 
 question, and he could not tell what 
 fiffect it would have. He believed the 
 pompany would go ahead tomorrow 
 morning and make improvements to 
 make the people believe that the city 
 should not go into the municipal 
 fight business. 
 
 Alderman Quigley said he favored 
 municipal lighting if they could keep 
 politics out. As the company would 
 not give the city a five-year contract, 
 he would vote for municipal lights. 
 
 Councilman Barton gave interesting 
 data to show Connecticut was far be- 
 yond the average in the municipal 
 lighting business, and it was time fof 
 New Britain to get busy. 
 
 Alderman Christ called for a roll- 
 call vote on the resolution. 
 
 A roll-call vote was then taken and 
 it was unanimous for municipal light- 
 ing. 
 
 The council also voted for a muni- 
 cipal ice plants the report of the pro- 
 ceedings being given on page 13. 
 
Ep"j i past- season, whether the ice is used < 
 
 | ! or not. We find that the greater part 1 
 | j j of the shrinkage is in handling the c 
 I i ice and not while the ice is in stor- " 
 i age. 
 
 ; j The figures pertaining to the erec- 
 l| | tion of an icehouse at Shuttle Meadow 
 || fully equipped (icehouse 150 feet long > 3 
 p* I by 50 feet wide by 3 0 feet high) to the \ i 
 best of our knowledge are as follows: j< 
 j Capacity of house, 6,700 tons. 1 
 
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 jey 
 
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 ley 
 
 ew 
 
 Building and runways $3,500 j 
 
 Sawdust and hay 150' 
 
 Machinery 1,000, 
 
 10-horsepower motor, plow .... 225 
 
 Electric device for pulling .... 1,300 
 
 Filling in around house 500 
 
 Miscellaneous and tools 1,000 
 
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 lies. 
 
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 je?s 
 
 Total $7,675 
 
 In case the city is compelled to go 1 
 into the delivery business on account ! 1 
 of the continued high prices of ice. , 
 it will be an easy matter to double 
 the housing capacity of the house ' 
 without additional machinery. There- 
 fore, this committee wishes to submit 
 to your honorable body a resolution . 
 for your approval. 
 
 The Resolution. 
 
 The committee followed the report 
 
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 with the following resolution: 
 
 Resolved, That the report of the 
 committee on ice plant be accepted 
 and such a plant as suggested by the 
 committee be erected and the matter 
 referred to the board of finance and 
 taxation to make the proper estimate 
 of expense and recommend the 
 amount of appropriation to be made 
 to meet the same and a tax to cover 
 the appropriation ana report f&me at 
 .next meeting of the comrrton council. 
 
 Councilmen Wagner spoke strongly 
 in favor of the report of the commit- 
 tee as chairman. He said that Shut- 
 tle Meadow Lake is as large as all the 
 other ice ponds put together, and by' 
 establishing a plant they would ob- 
 viate any risk of shortage in the fu- 
 ture. 
 
 Councilman Spittler of the commit- 
 tee gaVe figures showing that the 
 plant would be a big money maker. 
 He thought it would pay to build the 
 icehouse there, if they succeeded in 
 getting the price of ice reduced 50 
 per cent., if they didn’t touch the ice. 
 Alderman Lawyer brought out that 
 the ice could be carried over for a 
 year and a half to two years, with only 
 a shrinkage of 5 per cent. 
 
 ' Councilman Paonessa wanted to add 
 $3,000 to the appropriation and double 
 the capacity of the ice plant. Council- 
 man Spittler thought better to wait 
 until after the first year, as it was an 
 experiment. 
 
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 Christ Wants io joc »nown. 
 
 Alderman Christ asked for the an- 
 nual consumption, of ice in New Brit- 
 ain. Councilman Wagner said 25>000 
 tons. Alderman Christ recalled a pre- 
 
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 vious ice report, which showed such 
 profits that the federal government 
 ought to apply it to reduce the nation- ( 
 al debt. He was skeptical about be- j 
 ing able to control the price of 25,000 j 
 tons of ice with a plant containing 
 6,700 tons. There would be some trou- 
 ble among the tax payers as to how it 
 should be distributed. 
 
 Councilman Wagner felt that the 
 committee should go slow. He said 
 dealers certainly wouldn’t go out of 
 town when they buy ice here. The 
 more ice they had the cheaper they 
 could sell to dealers. 
 
 Alderman Shine explained that the 
 city paid $166 for ice last month. East 
 year they paid $150' for the whole year. 
 
 ■ <■>:• .liman Veight opposed the pas- 
 j sage Of the resolution. They ought to 
 provide ice for everybody. They ought 
 I not to go into it in a half hearted way. 
 j He didn’t believe they should har- 
 | vest ice at Shuttle Meadow on account 
 of contamination. He favored con- 
 sidering an artificial ice plant. Coun- 
 cilman Paonessa said an artificial plant 
 would cost $100,000. The city wasn’t in 
 a position to take it up. 
 j Councilman Wagner said an artifi- 
 | cial ice plant foif machinery only 
 ! would cost $58,000. 
 
 The ice report was adopted. 
 
 To Establish Municipal Ice Plant. 
 The municipal ice committee mad' 
 the following report: 
 
 We, your committee appointed t< 
 investigate the conditions of erecting 
 a municipal ice plant, beg to report 
 This committee has taken into’ con 
 sideration the advisability of erectim 
 a municipal ice plant- so that ice wil 
 be delivered to the people at a fail 
 price. After communicating with anc 
 inspecting several ice plants we. fine 
 that the difference between manufac- 
 tured ice is so much greater in price 
 to produce than the natural ice thal 
 the committee is very much in favor 
 of natural ice to be cut at Shuttle 
 Meadow. This lake being situated as 
 it is, makes it an ideal place for har- 
 vesting ice. An ice house erected 
 below the clam would require very 
 little labor in filling compared w'tii 
 ({other plants inspected. Bv using an 
 electric device for cutting, and under 
 proper supervision by the board of 
 health, the contamination is absolutely 
 eliminated. The cost of the entire 
 p ant, m the opinion of the commit- 
 tee, will not exceed $1 ..000 and in re- 
 turn will stand this city a very rail- 
 percentage. 
 
 The housing^ of this ice will protect 
 the citizens of this city against anv 
 shortage such as we experienced thfs 
 
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