Maass, Cherington Reach Accord On Basic Power Controls Issue

Charles R. Cherington, associate professor of Government, and Arthur A. Maass, assistant professor of Government, were almost embarrassed to discover how much they agreed on issues of public power at a Dunster House Forum last night. Nevertheless, their quips and occasional sharp exchanges on specific points of disagreement brought cheers from the almost 300 listeners who jammed the Dunster dining hall.

Cherington was not as opposed to Maass' specific "pet projects" in the power field as to his "tone of voice," which Cherington felt allowed too much government interference, Cherington agreed federal power projects were good for "scaring" private utilities into more efficient operation. He called for approximately a 25 percent public, 75 percent private mixture for the country.

Maass doubted the value of such an overall mixture, since power is developed on a regional, not a national scale. He welcomed Cherington into the ranks of the "radicals" for his acceptance of the yardstick method of determining proper rates for private utilities.

He produced statistics that showed that 63 percent of a nationwide poll were in favour of more projects like the Government owned and operated Tennessee valley Authority. But 80 percent were against them when they were termed "socialistic." Maass asserted that private electric companies were using the "Socialism" scare to indoctrinate the public against beneficial public power and development projects.