Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-09-27

sented, sometimes, as contract 10 nav
$4,000 per snnum-and again, $6, 900
per anDum. IL Is neither. II is con
tract to prosecute and defend all the CAGES
Except three or four pending Oct. ls,
1869, in all the courts; and sll the cases
which should be brought for or against
the city In respect TO scts and contracts
of the Alden administration, which should
be commenced within three years after
Oct 19, 1869. The contract was to pres
ecute and defend al these cases to their
final eRd-several hundred cases, In al,
probability, and involving a million of
dollars at least and likely to last for many
years. AL this was agreed to be done
for $4,000. 1t was very favorable
contract for the city.
But there have arisen some cases out
side of COopeT's contract, and am ac-
cused of opposing the election of City
Attorney in order to secure these cases
for Mr.. Lellyett, or for him snd Judge
Cooper. There Is no truth in this. |
vetoed one bill providing for q City At
tOrney because 1t left the Attorneys du-
ties insuficien'ly defined; but sent to the
Council with il another, which ] consid-
cred to be properly framed. If that had
been passed should have approved il
An unfortunate opposition was the coca.
sion Of its defeat
Unsciupulous persons have charged be-
hind my back that ! have enriched Mr..
Lelly5tt with corporation patronage. Now
Mr.. Lellyett has evidently performed q
very large proportion of the legal services
which have been performed for the cor
poratiOn during the last six years. During
that time over $50, go have been paid by
the corporation to lawyers; but only 81
$50 of it has been paid to Mr.. Lellyett,
including his salary while City Attorney.
Only $3.50 Of that amount uCds incurred
by my Administrations. Ia the first
year of my admins ration 81, 400 of the
above sum, incurred by former admin
istra'ion, vas allowed by mine. | had
nothing to do with the allowance; it was
not my province. Bat the account was
referred to special committee, and by
them submitted to arbitration, and after
it was settled By arbitration, the account
wss allowed sDd psid. | have no reason
10 doub. that the allowance was right.
Neither of the COopers, nor Mr.. Ewing,
nor Mr. LsllYett has ever asked me to
put dolls,'s worth Of business in the
hands Of either of them, nor am aware
that there is any large amount of business
outside of CoOper's contract to be sought
after. a few cases have arisen, as ] am
Informed, which have been attended 10
in part By Mr.. Lellyett, in part by Judge
Cooper, and in part by Cooper aad Lell-
yeti together; for the most part these are
recent, and the Council has been notified
by Mr.. Lellyett of the necessity of en-
ployiny counsel for them. Our object
has been to keep down the enormous ex.
pense of this department, and at the same
time have the interest of the corporation
protected. We have kept it down 10
less than So, 500 per annum, against 81
500 per annum in Me. Browns time, and
$l5, 900 per annum in Alden'5 time. And
by far the larger part of our expense for
legl services has been for law suits
| brought on during other administrations.
| Yet the service has been more efficient
than 1t ever waS, and immensely larger.
IT Is THE CLAIM HOLDERS
The claim holders are chiefly interested
| in this grumbling st our attorneys. There
sre several notable instances within my
| knowledge of persons who have claims,
| or represent claims, or whose friends or
relations have claims, that have been re-
sisted by our attorneys. If our attorneys
were less efficient, or would cease to re-
sis. these claims, the grumblers would see
4 Irfa ~. ~ ,n ,G n
from Murfreesboro, or another being q
connexion of the Mayor, or all of them
being paid reasonably for their services.
But so it goes. The claim holders
unite with those who want prOdigal sd-
ministrstion, and support some other than
ours, because they think it will pay the
claims which we have resisted That is
the secret of the complaints about my
patronizing my relations, and employing
foreign lawyer. 1t is because they want
their claims paid without litigation, and
hope to get an administration which will
lavish the peoples money upou cJntrac-
tors, usurers and shar7ers.
THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
Again, l am charged with hostility to
the public schools. l can hardly answer
this better than by quoting the following
passage from my address of last yesr:
'It was while the Mayor and major
ity of the City Council were still per,
picked for the means to keep the muni
cipal wheels in motion, tina. 8 question
arose about the public schools. Thehun.
dred and thirty three thousand in judg-
ments before Magistrates had been en-
ioined; but We could not know how Ions
that would last. Tue multiplied suits II
the State courts had been slsJ stayed b
the injunction; but this relief might b
of short duration. The suits IN the Fed
ersl Court were still increasing IN number
And though our attorneys had gained
few months delay in that court till sn y
ira term in February, new trials had nc
then yet been granted on the $50, 900 o
judgments which had been rendered il
May. Our police had been paid, our fire
men had been raid, and our labOrers IA
been paid. SOslsoI believe, had been on
teachers. But the taxeshad almost cease
to come in. In future it might be that on
] employees of ell kinds might remain i
whole OF in part unpaid. For my iIdI
Vidusl part had drawn for myself no
one cent of the much needed ready cssh
Our hesitation as to what would be be:
, TO do about the schools, was disapproVe'
} by some; but it was mostly by those wh
we're not ia position to appreciate IN
7 extremity of our embarrassment. Oh
streets mus be kept passable, or on
: children and teachers could scarce reac
D our schoclhouses. Oar police must b
: SUSTAINED, or our very lives and properi
would be imperiled. Our Fire Depar
4 ment must be kept up, or 8 confagrsliO
r might complete the ruin of our city. v
3 did hesitate, and we did insist on rig
: economy; and the brains Of our faithf
n Board of Education were taxed to I'll
It expedients whereby a suspension
| the schools might be avoiced.
II such way as should not impel
o those vital interests which must be 81
tanned, encouraged such schemes
II were suggested TO save the schools fro
', suspension. / offered individually 10