Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1869-05-30
CITY COUNCIL
CALLED MEETING OF THE BOARD or
MAYOR AND ALDERMEN.
Arofsr Grand Flank Movement on tn
City Treasury
The Nicholson Pavement Contractors amer
Bonds and Ledger Balances.
Consideration of their Propositions Post
poned till Tuesday.

pOnsd till Tuesday.
| -
AT a called meeting of the Board OF
Mayor and Aldermen of the city Of Mem
phis, held yesterday evening at iour
| O'Clock, the following proceedings were
transacted:
On. motion of Alderman Cartwright,
Alderman DvertoOkthe Chair andthe roll
having been called and a quorum louhu
to be present, the Secretary READ the ioi-
lowing:
MESSAGE FROM THE MAYOR.
Mayors OFFICE, May %, 1869.
The Honorable Board Of Aldermen:
You have been convened on the call of
tbraa of vour number, at the request Of
Wessrs. Il. E. Brown & Co, for final set
| Element with the city under their Nichol-
son pavement contract. You viii re-
member it was a mooted question WheJheT
| or not the said T. L. Brown 81 Co. had
any claim whatever against the city till
| after ali efforts to collect 'front.' the property
| owners had been exhausted. To set this
question finally ut rest it was mutually
/ agreed. and the same made a matter of
written contract between the city and the
said T. Z. Brown * Co., that in c~onsidera-
| ton of a loan by the city to the said I. &.
1 Brown & Co. oftwoh undre and seventy
five one thousand dollar city bonds that
| the said 7. Z. Brown & Co. would relin-
uuish the city until after all efforts to
collect from the property owners had
failed.
A new proposition is now suddenly
sprung, and a called meeting of the Board
| Of Aldermen demanded within three days
| of the regular day of meeting; the lead
ing features of which are these:
First, The said 4. e. Brown q Co, pro-
pose paying in paving claims against the
property owners for the two hundred and
seventy-fve bonds loaned them, at the
rates of SOC for the bonds. This PROPOSE
ton, in my ~Opinion, cannot beentertalned,
for the reason that the city, believing its
bonds will soon be worth much morethan
SOC. is unwilling to sell at that price, even
for money, which is now much needed,
while the proposition proposes to pay in
paving claims against property owners
the payment of which may be deferred till
city bonds are worth 70 instead Of soc.
The next proposition is still more Objec-
/ tioDable in that il asks the city to give a
ledger balance for about $500, 900 for an
equal amount of paving claims against
property owners; the said ledger balance
to be due one year after date, with inter-
est from date, and to be estimated at S5e
on the dollar. andthe consideration being
the release of the city from any and all
liability on h remaining paving claims
against property owners.
Now il is our purpose to make the ledger
balance and all the liabilities of the city
worth their par value, within the year in
4 dicated. and. to meet his the
parties make the additional proposal to
allow for said ledger balance Whatever adj
vance NAV be realized in that time. This
they can well afford to do, for the accep-
lance of q proposition ofthis nature would
necessarily result in such a loss of conf
dence in your management of the city's
-e-s- - 1-o.,II oc,-o (, - roEtr1F i, InNra-
citation rather than an enhancement of the
citv's credit. As a final and conclusive
objection to the acceptance of this or any
other proposition of a similar nature, it is
only necessary to add tina it is our first
duty TO protect the credit of the city, and
this cannot be dOne If we voluntarily as
sumo such weighty liabilities without
something more tangible in return. The
leading aim OF the Mayor has been TO
diminish the amount of the city indebted
ness so as to fully restore its credit with
in this administration and in this effort
he has been efficiently sustained by the
Board of Aldermen. and nothing is palmer
10 nv mind than that the acceptance of
this proposition would go very far toward
undoing all the good We have done.
Yours, very respectfully,
JNO. W. LEFTWICH, Mayor.
Alderman WolcOttmovedth the Board
postpones all action on the matter until
the next regular meeting, in order to give
the members Of the Board to understand
the proposition. He further moved that
Mr., Brown be allowed to cOlHe before the
Board and make a statement Ofthe nature
of his proposition. Alderman Moffet sec
onded the motion, and said that this mat
ter, which was of such vital Importance to
the credit, he might say the financial ex-
istence of the city,, should not be rushed
through without giving the Board chance
TO understand it.
Alderman Cartwright said that there
was no disposition whatever to rush the
matter through the Board. He thought
himself, however, that it would be best TO
postpone action until Tuesday.
The motion of Alderman Wolcott was
put and carried.
Alderman CLANCY moved to adjourn.
The motion was then declared out OF
order, rs by the motion just passed, Mr..
Brown was invited 10 address the Board.
The Chair then invited Mr.. Brown to
the stand, and he proceeded to lay before
the Board the minuti@ Of the PROPOSE
tons laid before them inthe Mayors mes
sage.
He commenced by explaining 70 the
Board the reason why the meeting had
been called and assuring them that there
was no desire on his part to hurry them
in their deliberations of the propositions
made by him. He merely wished to lay
I HIS Ri AZ AAAAA4A AA a HACH11 A4AAAa
He then took up the original contracts
made between the city and the pavement
contractors and the various notifications
of the s8me-taking the ground that the
city had failed 10 carry out their obliga-
lions in every respect. He alluded to the
bond transaction 1.-THE obtaining Of the two
hundred and seventy-fiYe bonds, and said
that by rights the city instead of merely
lending them the bonds should have paid
them that amount for money, They (the
contractors were in a tight place at the
time, and to sue or stop TO consider was
ruin. and they were forced to the humil-
iating alternative of borrowing what was
Justly their own. He read the resolution
authorizing the lending of the bonds, and
said that II did not invalidate the terms
of payment of the original contract. The
city was the endorser of the claims which
he wished 10 trade them, by that contract,
so it could lose nothing by accepting the
propositions made by him.
We have not time TO follow his remarks,
which were very lengthy andin manyin-
stances very personal toward Mayor
Leftwich and the City Attorney, in their
official capacities, any further. At their
conclusion, the Board adjourned. The
matter will, no doubt, receive a thorough
ventilation Tuesday evening.
GENTLEMEN-Take notice thai we sell
Gents All Linen Handkerchiefs four dol
lars per dozen, worth six. British Half
| Hoaa Il m nor dozpn worth 81 pntfpd