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47
Company with the Gas Light and Coke Company, it was the
desire of the Board to receive the careful criticism of the various
local authorities. Apart from the question of creating a powerful
monopoly, which, in the absence of any corresponding public
advantage, the Vestry consider would be objectionable, there
seemed to be special reasons why the scheme under consideration
should not be sanctioned. For instance, the Act of Parliament
under which it was proposed to effect the amalgamation, requires
any such scheme to provide for the re-arrangement of district and
places for the manufacture and storage of gas, the inference being
that the intention of Parliament was, that amalgamation should be
effected only in cases where some public advantage might be
expected to be derived therefrom. The Vestry, however, did not
gather from the scheme that any re-arrangement of the places for
the manufacture or storage of gas was contemplated, or that any
other substantial advantage was to be anticipated in this particular
case.
But in addition to this negative objection to the scheme, there
was foreshadowed a possible injustice to many of the gas consumers
in the Metropolis. By the South Metropolitan Gas
Company's Act of 1876 the "standard" price of gas is fixed in
their district at 3s. 6d. per 1,000 cubic feet, while by the Gas Light
and Coke Company's Act of the same year, the "standard" for
their district is fixed at 3s. 9d. per 1,000 feet. If at any time the
price of gas rises above the standard, the shareholders lose in
dividend one-quarter per cent. for each penny of such increase, and
on the other hand if the price is reduced below the standard, the
shareholders are entitled to one-quarter per cent. additional dividend
for every reduction of a penny in price. At the time the amalgamation
was projected, the price of gas in South London was
2s. 10d per 1,000 feet as against 3s. 2d. in the district of the Gas
Light and Coke Company, and as it would seem necessary to make
one uniform charge throughout the whole area of the United Company
if the amalgamation took place, the question naturally arose
in what manner it was intended to deal with the existing discrepancy,
not only in actual price, but, what was of far more