104 CONSTRUCTION AND MANAGEMENT OF SMALL GASWORKS. 



it includes premises in various parts of the town, the 

 partners' private houses, etc. I once met with a case of a 

 factory supplied at a special rebate, and not only the 

 private account of each partner, but also those of the 

 accountant and of two or three employees were included in 

 the trade bill. 



If the manager does not understand slot meters, hire and 

 maintenance of stoves and appliances and gasfittings, he is 

 at a disadvantage, because the business cannot be properly 

 developed without assistance of this nature. 



Ordinary meters are supplied on hire terms, and this 

 should not be regarded as a separate department of the 

 business, to be run at a profit. The chief object is to sell 

 gas, and the hire of meters or anything else should be 

 regarded as subservient to that end, and not as an indepen- 

 dent investment. For obvious reasons, it is desirable that 

 the company should have full control over the meters, and 

 the only way to get that is to supply them on such moderate 

 terms that the consumer is not tempted to buy his own 

 meter, or that no third party should be led to consider the 

 desirability of taking up meter hiring as a remunerative line 

 of business. If the meter belongs to the consumer, diffi- 

 culties arise when it gets old and slow, as he is not inclined 

 to go to the expense of a new one. But I do not believe 

 in supplying meters gratis, or at a loss, at any rate in the 

 absence of a minimum consumption clause, because a con- 

 sumer of less than 1,000 cubic feet per quarter, or one who 

 keeps a large meter for intermittent use, would not pay the 

 cost of the meter. The charge should cover interest on 

 outlay, wear and tear and depreciation. Taking 5 per cent, 

 for interest, and a life of twenty years, a quarterly charge 

 equivalent to 10 per cent, per annum on the actual cost of 

 the meter, including fixing in position, will cover expenses. 



