The assumption is made in the laissez-faire doctrine that the interest of the public harmonizes with that of the individ ual. But this proves often not to be the case. For example, the forest has an immediate value to its owners and to the consumers of lumber, and it has also a diffused utility in its influence on industry, on climate, on navigation, on water power, and on floods. Yet, as the private owner, unless a great land monopolist, does not control enough of the forest appreciably to affect any of these things, anA could rarely sell them even if he could affect them, he will cut down the tree whenever he can gain by doing so. In this situation either governmental control or governmental ownership of forests is essential.
Each kind of political unit, or subdivision of government, develops characteristic kinds of public ownership and indus try. Federal states consist of three main groups of political units; national, provincial, and local. Provincial units are the largest subdivisions, as the American "states," or com monwealths, the German states, and the provinces in other countries. The term local political unit is more complex, and may mean county, township, village, city, or school or sani tary district; but most of what is to be said of local owner ship refers to cities or to incorporated villages.
§ 4. Forms of municipal ownership. Local political units acquire ownership only in local industries and in wealth used locally by the citizens. Nearly all parks and recreation grounds are owned by cities. As population has become more dense, private yards of any extent have become impossible, in cities, for all but the wealthy. Public ownership of parks insures a "breathing-place" and recreation-grounds to the common man in the most economical way. Of late the move ment for large and small public parks and playgrounds has gone on rapidly in American cities. Related to parks are public baths, public libraries, art collections, museums, zo ological gardens, etc. Some have seen danger in this policy of "giving something for nothing," but the public sees no such danger as long as the things supplied gratify the higher tastes—as art, music, literature, and social recreation. These give no encouragement to the increase of improvident families and to the breaking down of independent character.
Streets, roads, and bridges were once owned largely by pri vate citizens. Here and there still are found toll roads and toll bridges built under charters granted a century ago, but tolls on public thoroughfares are for the most part abolished.
Public markets, where the producer from the farm and the city consumer can meet, are old institutions. About two thirds of the cities of 30,000 population or more have public markets or scales, and fully one third have public markets of importance. New York city has six large retail and whole sale markets for selling meat and farm produce, in which rents or fees are charged, and several open markets. There has recently been a large movement in this direction.
The providing of apparatus for extinguishing fires is al ways a public duty ; the conveyance of waste water is in creasingly a public function. The supply of pure water for domestic and business uses, for fire protection, and for street cleaning, while often a private enterprise in villages and sometimes in large cities, is increasingly undertaken by pub lic agencies. Most of the larger cities now own their own water-supply systems. Public ownership of gas and electric lighting is less common, as the utility supplied is not so essen tial and the industry is somewhat less subject to monopoly; but the difference is one of degree only. Street railroads are often under public ownership in Europe ; but there have thus far been few cases of the kind in the United States and Can ada.' § 5. Localized production favoring monopoly. A num ber of these enterprises have characteristics in common which appear to make inevitable their drift into monopolistic con trol. Waterworks, gas, electric lighting, street railways, tele phone systems, are among these. However fierce may be the competition between separate private companies for a time, sooner or later either one company drives out the other or buys it up, or both come to an agreement by which the public is made to pay higher prices.
A feature favoring the growth of monopoly when such in dustries are left to private enterprise is the need to produce and supply the commodity or service at a given locality. While two street railways can compete on neighboring streets, it is physically impossible for two or more to compete on the same street. Two systems of water-mains or gas-mains can be put down, as sometimes is done; but this is not only a great economic waste, but the tearing up of the streets is an intol erable public nuisance. This difficulty is less marked in the case of telephones and electric lighting, and some persons still cling to faith in competition to regulate the rates in those in 4 See ch. 17. § 5, industrial revenues of governments.