NEW YORK. 



497 



panies, 26 combined electric-light and gas, 2 com- 

 bined electric-light and water, 61 gas, and 96 water 

 companies ; also from 4 electric-light, 5 combined 

 electric-light and water, and 71 water-supply plants 

 owned by municipalities. The report shows that 

 only the electric-light and power plants have ap- 

 preciated in value, to the extent of 12 per cent., 

 while all other plants have depreciated from 5 to 

 27 per cent. The highest average salaries paid are 

 those of the gas plants, which average $1,260.70 

 each. The highest wages paid are those by electric- 

 light and power plants, averaging $672.47 each. 

 The lowest salaries average $459.25 a year each for 

 eight officers and employees in the employ of two 

 combined electric-light and water plants, and the 

 lowest wages earned are by the employees of public 

 water plants, who receive an average of $364.80 each 

 a year. The cost of product and selling prices of 

 electric light and power, gas, and water are vari- 

 ously reported. For the first-named the lowest 

 cost reported is 2| mills an ampere, and the maxi- 

 mum figure is 10|J mills an ampere. The mini- 

 mum monthly charge for an arc lamp to customers 

 supplied in cities on the contract system is $6, 

 while the rate for similar services is $3 where the 

 plant is owned by companies. The highest figure 

 ($10.41) is returned by a New York corporation. 

 The monthly charge for incandescent light ranges 

 from 40 cents to $1.50. Schedule prices for munici- 

 pal arc lights are from $6 a month to 50 cents a 

 night. The cost of producing gas ranges from 

 yifoV cents to $1.49 for 1,000 cubic feet, the average 

 for 26 establishments being 52^ cents for 1,000 

 feet. The highest selling price of manufactured gas 

 used for lighting is reported as $2.50 cents for 1,000 

 feet. The cost of producing 1,000 gallons of water 

 in reservoirs ranges from 2J cents to 10 cents. With 

 reference to agricultural conditions, the report 

 points to the serious feature presented by the rapid 

 and unprecedented depreciation in the market 

 value of farms represented by the owners them- 

 selves to range from 50 to 75 per cent, during the 

 past six years. The State within the past ten 

 years has expended $3,309,508.07 to promote the 

 interests of agriculture, and it is a disappointing 

 fact that, as the expenditures for fiiat object in- 

 creased from year to year, the farming industry and 

 the value of farms seemed to decline in a greater 

 ratio. 



National Guard. With the beginning of the 



year came the resignation of Gen. Louis Fitzgerald, 



after forty years of service. On Feb. 9 Charles F. 



i Roe was made major general of State National 



; Guard and given command of the State troops. 



The following order was issued by the Adjutant 

 General: ''The brigade organization known as the 

 First Brigade is hereby discontinued, and the offi- 

 cers of the brigade staff are rendered supernumer- 

 ary. The organization comprising at present the 

 First Brigade, now discontinued, is hereby formed 

 into two brigades, the First and Fifth. The new 

 First Brigade will consist of Squadron A, First 

 Battery, Ninth, Twelfth, and Twenty-second Regi- 

 ments. The new Fifth Brigade will consist of the 

 First Signal Corps, Second Battery, Seventh, 

 Eighth, Sixty-ninth, and Seventy-first Regiments." 



Pending the enactment of the revised military 

 code the war with Spain occurred, and in conse- 

 quence it was not until in December that the ap- 

 pointments of the following officers on Gen. Roe's 

 staff were made, when Lieut.-Col. N. B. Thurston 

 was appointed inspector of small-arms practice, 

 with the rank of colonel ; Lieut.-Col. Kirby was 

 made his assistant, with the rank of lieutenant 

 colonel ; Inspector-Gen, floffman was appointed 

 I plain inspector with the rank of colonel ; and Wil- 

 liam Carey Manger was made assistant inspector. 

 VOL. xxxvin. 32 A 



Gov. Black, on March 31, addressed the following 

 message to the Legislature : 



"Events are now transpiring of so grave and 

 general import that the attention of every en- 

 lightened people is fixed upon our own. The crisis 

 which our National Government now meets involves 

 those deep considerations which affect the future of 

 the race. To aid that Government by approval 

 and support, to sustain its hand when raised for 

 justice and fair play, is the duty of every State. 

 No hour has ever been so full of peril that New York 

 has faltered while it passed. Because of her past 

 history and her present greatness, she should be the 

 first to understand the meaning of " to-day." After 

 long reflection, and with an earnest desire to do that 

 which ought to be done, and to refrain from that 

 which ought not to be done, I recommend that, be- 

 fore you adjourn, you take such action as your 

 wisdom shall decide upon to provide against such 

 urgent needs as the future may disclose." 



Promptly on receipt of this message the following 

 bill was passed by the Legislature and signed by the 

 Governor : 



"The sum of $1.000,000, or so much thereof as 

 may be necessary, is hereby appropriated for the 

 purpose of defraying the expenses of the National 

 Guard and Naval Militia of - this State and volun- 

 teers furnished by the State, or either of them, when 

 called into service for the public defense on the re- 

 quest or requisition of the President of the United 

 States ; but no part of the money hereby appropri- 

 ated shall be expended unless the Governor shall 

 certify that in his opinion there is a necessity for 

 using the same or a portion thereof, and in such 

 case the same shall be paid by the Treasurer on the 

 audit and warrant of the Comptroller." 



A call was issued to the Governors of the States 

 for volunteers on April 23 by President McKinley, 

 and the quota that came from New York was 20,022. 



Railroads. This department is cared for by 

 three commissioners, each of whom serves for five 

 years, and receives a salary of $8,000. Those hold- 

 ing office during the year were Ashley W. Cole, 

 George W. Dunn, and Frank M. Baker. The com- 

 mission reports that the number of passengers car- 

 ried by the steam surface railroads for the year end- 

 ing June 30, 1898, was 149.253,259, a decrease of 

 21,021,144. The gross earnings of steam surface 

 railroads were $9,797,599.10 in excess of the gross 

 earnings for the year previous. The operating ex- 

 penses were $7,409,313.43 in excess of those for the 

 preceding year, making the net earnings from op- 

 eration $2,388,285.67 in excess of the net earnings 

 from operation in 1897. Accidents on steam rail- 

 roads involving loss of life or injury to persons ag- 

 gregated 2,207, in which 700 persons were killed 

 and 1,507 injured. The total number of passen- 

 gers carried by the elevated roads in New York 

 city was 227.776,552, a decrease of 1,019,129. The 

 number carried by the elevated roads in Manhattan 

 and Bronx was 183,360,846, an increase of 395.995. 

 The number carried by the elevated roads in 

 Brooklyn was 44.365,706, a decrease of 1,465,124. 

 The street surface railroads of Manhattan and 

 Bronx carried as passengers 456,963,753. including 

 " transfers," an increase of 57.538,010. The num- 

 ber carried in Brooklyn, including some carried in 

 Queens, was 217,410,612, including " transfers," an 

 increase of 17,224,793. 



Forest-Preserve Board. In compliance with 

 Gov. Black's recommendations, the Legislature ap- 

 propriated $1,000,000 for the preservation of the 

 Adirondack Park. In his message attention was 

 called to the fact that in the proposed park, which 

 should belong exclusively to the State, the State 

 owned but 661,000 acres out of a total area of 2,800.- 

 000 acres. He said that 1,250,000 acres were owned 



