Evening star., 1869-10-05

TO withhold payment until certified vouchers
are presented that all material and labor
paid for,l paced. l - .
Mr.. hatton called up bill TO take up aud
relay cutters on west side OF fth street, between
| Massachusetts avenue sad streets; passed
M. Boyd reported ball to pay deficiency for
grading and travelling OF U street. from t6tn
| 10 Connecticut a venue and l6ih street from u
street TO Boupeafy; passed.
Mr BeaIi unSer = Suspension of the resoIu-
tions reported substitute for Altermaus
| bill 10 refund 60 Gen. u. U. Howard amoaat
expended in laying water main to square l,u54;
passed.
/ The CANAL QUESTION.
! The bill for tee improvement of the Wash
| lngton canal WAC taken Up, when MI. Williams
| asked and obtained leave 10 withdraw
| amendmeGt ne proposed. providing for q tax
Of One-eighth of ooe pr cent. 10 pay Ine cost of
! the Improvement, because there was no aurnor-
ity 70 make such assessment, the Corporation
| being prohibited Rasing ar assessment OF over
SO, 20 without the consent OF Congress.
I Mr.. Hall said that he under stood that there
had been ever four feet OF water in the canal
| curing rae day, and therefore there was no
! necessity for the passage OF tie bill
Mr.. Boyd said ne had seen during the day
more than four feet Of water outside Of the
/ canal.
The Char announced that tn. question was
{ on the substitute offered by Er. Holmes for
, Advertising in New York. Philadelphia, and
| Bal iImore fo- proposals for cleaning il out,
making Si2asOtU appropriation.
Mr Boyd opposed the Substitute. and he
| could not see why they should adverrIs. Ia
other cities when there were persons hereswho
Mr.. Holmes defended his substitute. saying
that under the plan proposed oy the committee
there was no telling what the work " on Id cost.
Mr.. Hail reiterated that he did not believe
the cleSuing of the canal was feasible. He be-
leved tnas the canal should be filled up, as 1t
could not BE- of any use. and the reclaimed land
sold. He was told that tne reclaimed land
/ would bring one and a. half millions. and the
Interest on TINS amount would amount u
! SgO.t0p
power 10 sell any land mat 10 ignt be reclaimed,
and Mr.. Hail replied In the Affirmative.
Mr. Detrlcg said that all wound agree that
! something should be done, aud speedily. la
answer 10 Ar. Hall, he said the extension of
! the sewers would eat up the million and a half
even II the land Is sold at the amount stated
! The question was simply snail the city open
| this Canal, or shall a company do IL, Corpora
/ uors could Dot manage with profit, and he
referred 10 Pennsylvania, which spent forty
! millions on her canals and q few years ago sold
her interest Tor ten millions. This canal seems
/ TO NIL up every sev-nteen years. In 1892 IL was
navlgaole, and in l-4O It was neeessar to clean
IL out, ana In seventeen years more IL is neces-
sary 10 clean II out. The objection to giving IL
| 70 company that tney work It against tia.
interests OF the city, he met by saying that such
| could be guarded against by stipuiating Wnat
shaiI be the charges, and also SAID that it
might be stipulated that the work saall
oe executed ny our own laboring classes
| the canal was 70 be cleaned 1t would b. dcne
! by company, Where is the Corporation to
ootaln the mouey to pay tor cleaning a.! He
had understood too that the Mayor would veto
the bull II passed, because there Is NO money
] (Mess:s. Boyd and knight said th,y had l.,
tnat II the bill passed the Mayor would order
tne work.) They could not raise the money
until they evied the tax, ard he asked d,d they
| propose 10 keep men u, work until this time
next year without money. If tney could raise
the money he could point on, better uses for it
EullQlQg market hOuSes which W.
credit to the city, yielding q revenue
Mr. Boyd offered substitute for the oIll an.
ior the WORK to be done under .Se ai
the Mayor, the president Of the Board of
Aldermen and one other member OF that Board,
10 De appointed by the said president and the
president OF the Board OF Common Cout eli and
Two members OF that Boara, TO be appointed by
us president, who, for the purposes of this act
snail be styled canal board, which board shall
nave control over all work, purchases and ex.
penoitures under this act and the said board
shali lei u out Dy contract or by the day, as
tney may determine; also, be authorized to EN-.
ploy competent engiueer 10 superlnteCd d tho
work, and 10 employ such other men and
means as the said canal board may deem exps-
dent ioT the faithful and speedy completion of
Mr.. Boyd said that he offered this subs;i.
Iute mat tine work might be speedily done.
He claimed thar II the canal was made aayI
gable, either by the city or a COMPANY i,
would benefit the city at least thres and a
half millions. He claimed that the revenues
q.
the highest offered by q company Is eight
thousand. If II Is closed aud sewers cnt
through to the river, /, would cost from four
teen TO twenty millions.
addressed the board ciaimias, ~ rsi o9s; en. and
cut sewers through was preposterOus, and in
answer 10 the closed sewer project SAID that
during the storm the canal, as wide as IL was
could not hold the waters. He contended III Al
because it contemplated that the Work snouia MD
be done by the day stuItIfles himself for every
man pledged himself in the last campaign TO
provide for the work belnl done By the day
Members here, by their actions, seemed TO
have the idea that all men who worked by
tie day were chs ating the C)rporation.
Mr. Si INNS said that he came in the Board
an honest man, and Intende to 60 cut an hon.
est man; and he believed that work could De
dOLe by the day well by the lob. Some.
thing should be done with the canal, and that
speedily, and the corporation could not do IL;
therefore he had as good right to advocate
the selling Of the canal as others had to advo.
cate other projects. If they could show him
how the corporation could pay the men ne
would vote for the bill, but ne could not see
where toe money was " come from.
Mr. Gaines urged that the corporation could
not do this work, and advocated disposIne OF
the canal to company, and taking the money
the company would pay annually and expeud.
ing II on the streets, where the men could work.
No laboriDg man liked 10 work knee deep in
mud IN the winter Ii this work was to be
done THIS winter, collins would be seen daily
on the streets next sprIng. He proposed to let
cculd 60 on Ill The various wards.
Mr. Piper opposed toe arching scheme, and
was IN favor or putting II IN navIgabie coudi.
ton The question was. however how and by
whom can ~ be done, and he claimed that as
long as Il Is left IN the hands Of political par les
II viii be used as hobby, and at cons idsrabie
length te argued III favor of selling II to a com.
PaEy.
Col. Holden thought as an AlI.wise Proyl.
dence hao permitted us to live through heated
term with the canal here, He would permi, US
10 live through d cold term. He believed that
II sl.COO,GO was expended II would DO sunk.
lie believed the money is required on our
streets, bnt II the canal can be cleaned too, aud
the hands pad regulhry, he would vote for This
bull ana tor dong the work by the day He
Was HotCppCs,d 70 opening the canal, out his
plan was u postpone action until toe CON-
mitiTss can 20 70 Congress and ask taem 10 aid
u Ia cleaning II
Mr. B-aIl moved 20 recoInmIt the bill
Mr. Earcn moved 10 lay Mr. B.all's motion
On ih- taolE; caTrIed-yeas, i6; nays-Messrs.
Beail, BroHD, and TiLEey.
Dir. Ua'toL moved 70 make the bill read
'unCsr the EGpsTiGterGence of the Surveyor
and SnperiIteL dent Of Streets, &C. instead Of
under he Mayor: lost.
Mr. Boyd'B substitute was rejected. Yeas
Messrs. BOYD, Browne, Hatton, Mc knight, Nut
ter. and the PTsI Nays-MessIs. B-alI,
DetrIck, Gaines, Hall, Holden, Holmes, John.
son, Piper, Sirnms, Taylor. Thompson, Tinney,
and NeBable-l3.