The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-11-25
THE COUECIL AID THE BRIDGE
QUESTION.

Council for Two or three meetings past
respecting an appropriation for Market
street Bridge, merits a passing notice,
because tis one In which the tax.pay-
ers OF the city have some concern. The
Board OF Supervisors, upon the faith
that the city would provide for contln-
uIng the work, appropriated $4,000 10
this Bridge; and the work now done
about absorbs that sum. A contract
for the masonry having been made, the
contract cannot be fulfilled without ap.
prOprlatiOn by the city. That the
Bridge was TO be built was supposed to
have been determined before the con-
tract was made; for not only was the
contract made by order OF Council, but
especial levy Of ten cents on The 500
WAS laid In I'D dItion to the regular levy,
with the distinct understanding that
the sum 10 raised should be applied 10
the Bridge. This extra levy, II was
supposed, would produce about slO, 900.
The taxes 80 levied are due to-day.
The friends OF the BEldge have now
made about three attempts 10 get some
order setting aside the money thus
provided for the object contemplated;
but, although clear majority In both
branches, they have been thwArted
thus far, not 30 much from the oppoSI-
ton made az from their own lack OF
concert and proper understanding
ofwhat they wanted to do. The reso!u-
ton passed by the Second Branch and
sent to the First, Tuesday night, would
have effected the object II 1t had been
40 worded as 10 express what was
meant; but It had been 30 hastily pre-
pared as to provide for the appropria-
ton Of $4,000 out OF the revenues do.
rived from each 800 Of property; which
wouldn't do for several good reasons.
The substitute adopted in lieu OF this
by the FIRST Branch expresses what was
intended, and carries out tho design
entertained by Council all tho way
through, as we have understood Il, viz:
that the extra tax OF 10 cents on the SlOO
should 90 10 forward the work on the
Bridge.
Now this extra levy having been
made for this specific purpose, the sim.
pie question Is, whether the money de.
rived from /; is to be applied as intend.
ed, or whether 1t Is TO be spent, Us II
assuredly will be II not 30 applied, for
some unnecessary object. The gentle
men who opposed Mr.. Wilson's sub.
stItute In the First Branch, Tuesday
evening, were not willing to admit that
they were opposed 10 building the
bridge, or even opposed TO making the
appropriation. One Of them stated thai
very little Of 1t could be used this win
ter. At the same time he said, and the
statement seemed 10 be acceded TO By
all present as fact, that whatever
part OF the appropriation was IN
drawn could be recalled by the council
at any time and there was danger the
next council, 10 be chosen In January,
would recall 1t. And finding the Treas.
ury at a low ebb, rs they are likely to,
this is not an unreasonable apprehen.
sion. Yet these gentlemen wanted the
money to be left In the treasury to BE-
drawn "as the work progressed" thus
leaving the committee exposed, first
to the chances Tor rather the certainty,
OF hndlng the money spent for some
thing else before they got ready to
draw It out, and second, to the risk OIL
having the appropriation repealed
whenever the whlm or wants OF this OF
the next Council might dictate. Mr.,
Wilson was quite right, we think when
he said on behalfofthe Bridge Commit.
tee, that this would amount to no ap.
preparation ut all.
II this money Is not act aside for
IhiH purpose, so that II cannot be
touched for any other, It Is sure to be
spent In some such way that when II Is
gone nobody can ever tell where II
went. II 1t were to be paid on the
debt. the proposition would be reason
able, but we have not heard that
anybody proposes that. It will
just amount 10 levy for extra
spending money, and every dollar OF Il
will go the way Of all the rest, without
either reducing the debt or accomplish.
Ing any other necessary object. Then
next year fresh levy will have to be
made, because the bridge must and
will be built rs all agree, only then the
city will be $4,000 poorer and the work
have been delayed q year.
1.-THE Bridge Is to be built, and II the
city isto appropriate money to build 1t,
this tax levied for that purpose ought
10 be 30 applied; and II It is not to be,
It ought not 10 be collected at all. But
1t will be collected, and therefore, Il
seems 10 US the duty OF Council Is plain.
Whether this money can be advan
tageously used on The bridge this
winter or not, In whole or In part, II
ought to be put beyond the power Of
the city officials to spend 1t. The
gentlemen who run the city have levied
heavily enough to pay current expen.
ses without this extra $4,000, and
therefore 1t ought to be kept out oil
their clutches. We trust all those gen.
tlemen In Council who are really solicit.
toua about the Bridge, and about the
pockets Of tax payers, will so far har-
monize as to embody their wishes In
some effective shape. .
-$AS
HENRY WARD BREoHRR has created
new sensation by taking ground Ia
favor OF excluding the Bible from tho
Public Schools. In his Thanksgiving
sermon he commended that the reading
ofthe Bible was no part of the duty Of
our Common School teAchcrs; no por-
tion OF the curriculum Of education In
thesChocl-room; no part of the proper
line 10 be pursued In an aggregation NJ