Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 6.djvu/556

 542 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

dependence has been engendered, and the voters feel that if they should make a mistake in the choice of local officials, they can be saved from the results of their folly by an appeal to the legislature.

There has been no abatement of public interest in the subject of the municipal ownership of municipal monopolies. Indeed, there seems to be a general acquiescence in the contention that each city should own all its franchises ; although there is still a great diversity of opinion as to whether the city should control or operate them. There are few, indeed, who are willing to maintain that a city should give away or sell for all time the right to run street railways, to furnish heat, light, water, or other municipal necessities. To advocate such a policy would be to sanction the utilization of city property for the benefit of the few at the expense of the many. There are not many who are willing to do this, so that the discussion has practically narrowed itself down to the determination whether the city shall merely control the franchise in a general way, reserving a fair rental, or whether it shall actually operate the plants directly. In considering this phase we find that the consensus of opinion seems to be in favor of the operation of water plants and the control of street-rail- way operations, with opinion about equally divided on the sub- ject of lighting. One thing is perfectly sure, and that is, as a result of all this discussion concerning municipal ownership, control, and operation, there has been a material improvement in the condition which the city has been able to impose ; and, secondly, the people have been more than ever interested in questions of local government. Matters pertaining to water, heat, light, and transportation come home directly to the average citizen, and any policy affecting them appeals to him as no others do.

A strike like that which recently convulsed St. Louis also serves to awaken the people to the dangers incident to the private control and operation of important municipal functions. For suffer as we may from municipal corruption and inefficiency, they seldom, if ever, reach a point where violence and bloodshed follow. Furthermore, voters are coming to realize that the