Exhibit (23)
                                                     Commonwealth Edison Company
                                                     Form 8-K File No. 1-1839
 
                   CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
 
  As independent public accountants, we hereby consent to the incorporation by
reference of our report dated February 19, 1999 on Commonwealth Edison Company
and Subsidiary Companies' consolidated financial statements as of and for the
year ended December 31, 1998, included as an Exhibit to this Form 8-K Current
Report of Commonwealth Edison Company, into Commonwealth Edison Company's
previously filed prospectuses as follows: (1) prospectus dated August 21,
1986, constituting part of Form S-3 Registration Statement File No. 33-6879,
as amended (relating to the Company's Debt Securities and Common Stock); (2)
prospectus dated January 7, 1994, constituting part of Form S-3 Registration
Statement File No. 33-51379 (relating to the Company's Debt Securities and
Cumulative Preference Stock); (3) prospectus dated September 19, 1995,
constituting part of Amendment No. 1 to Form S-3 Registration Statement File
No. 33-61343, as amended (relating to Company-Obligated Mandatorily Redeemable
Preferred Securities of ComEd Financing I); (4) prospectus dated June 13, 1997
constituting part of Form S-4 Registration Statement File No. 333-28369
(relating to Company-Obligated Mandatorily Redeemable Preferred Securities of
ComEd Financing II); and (5) Form S-8 Registration Statement File No. 333-
33847 (relating to the Commonwealth Edison Company Excess Benefit Savings
Plan). We also consent to the application of our report to the ratios of
earnings to fixed charges and the ratios of earnings to fixed charges and
preferred and preference stock dividend requirements for each of the years
ended December 31, 1998, 1997 and 1996 appearing in Exhibit 99 of this Form 8-
K.
 
                                          ARTHUR ANDERSEN LLP
 
Chicago, Illinois
February 24, 1999