The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1873-04-02
THE CITY FATHERS.
Il SPICY DEBATE ON THE TREASU.
REPS REPORT

/
| for the Pioneers.
A regular meeting of Council was held yes.
terday afternoon, at five o'clock, at which the
Mayor and fourteen aldermen were present.
Several petitions for lhe. remission of pen.
alties, reduction of assessments, &C., were
read and referred to appropriate committees.
A petition of the South Carolina Jockey
Club for remission OF penalties was granted.
A petition from q number of citizens oi
Ward No. Z, and memorial from W. J. Ma
grath, Esq, president Of the South Carolina
Railroad, against the opening of Shepherd
street, between King and Meeting streets
were read and referred, together with the
petition for opening the street. to the joint
committee on streets aud railroads.
petition and protest from snndry citizens
OF Ward No. s, asking for reconsideration oi
the action Of Council In granting the South
Carolina Railroad Company the rightto ex'
tend its track through the streets TO the
Cooper River front, was read and referred 10
the joint committee on streets and railroads.
A petition from the Shaw Memorial School
protesting against the laying of the South
Carolina Railroad track through Mary street,
opposite that school, on the ground that the
lives of the pupils would be endangered there.
by, was referred TO the same committee.
petition of residents of Line street for the
opening of drain through that street from
King to President, was read and referred to
| the committee on tidal drains.
A petition was also presented for the ex-
tension of Cannon street at the west end, and
| was referred to the committee on streets.
The following report of the chief of the
Fire Department was read and received as In
formation:
CHARLEsToN, 8. O., April !, 1873.
| Hon, MAJOR and Aldermen or Charleston, s c.: :
GHNTLBMEs-I have the houor 70 report TO you
the condition OF the Fire Department aG this date.
| All the steamers and baud engines have the
necessary amount OF hose, say eight hundred leet
| to steamers and four hundred feft TO hand en-
| glnes, LII good serviceaole condition, and ready
| for any emergency.
Chief Fire Department.
The report of the city sheriff for the month
of March, with the receipt OF the city treas
urer for $3368 81, was read and referred to
the commltte on accounts.
The iolnt committee of accounts aud wsys
and means made the following report on the
| addendum to the city treasurer'd annual re-
port:
The Joint committee Of ways and means and
on accounts, 10 whom was referred paper ID.
sued from the treasury, aRd purportlng TO DO an
| ordinance, and statements Of receipts and ex'
penditures, respectfully report, that on exami-
nation OF said paper they ind IL inaccurate ID
/ or 0r6ar
psrtalnlng 10 the custom OF former COUNCILS OF
the city.
Under these circumstances they deem 1t un-
| necessary to make any extended report TO Coun
Gil on the subject, but would respectfully aud
| confidently refer 10 the Mayors annual report,
and The official statements accompanying u, ior
| a correct exposition OF the financial condition
and prospects OF the city.
BERNARD 0'NBILL,
FIR ,NOIs ]. PkLZsR,
Chairman Comm ttee Ways and Means,
w. B. SMITH,
Chairman Committee on Accounts.
A motion was made to adopt the report.
Alderman Voigt requested the chairman Of
the Joint committee to read the addendum to
the treasurer's report before action was taken.
The addendum had never been read In Coun-
ell, and most of the aldermen were Ignorant
of It's contents. He therefore made motion
| to have the addendum read.
Alderman Gage was anxious to hear the
sddendum, and seconded Alderman Volgrs
| motion.
Alderman Pelzer, the chairman of the joint
committee, was about 10 comply with the
aldermen's request, when the Mayor objected
| to the reading as proceeding entirely out OF
order
Alderman Gage considered 1t courtesy due
the treasurer that paper submitted by him
| to Council should be read. There were many
rumors In reference to that paper floating
about town, and the people had become anx-
ious to know its contents. These rumors
| we're 10 the effect that the expenditures of the
city for the past year had exceeded the ap-
propraiions. If there was any truth In these
rumors, and that paper could show 1t, he
thought 1t would be much the better plan to
have the paper read, 80 that Council could
know the mistakes it had made, and avoid
falling into them again.
Alderman Bowen thought that Council
should have sufficient confidence In the honor
aud ability of the gentlemen composing the
COmuitlCos W UAoun sho sAS@ooASA
paper had been referred, to accept their re-
port on that paper Without question. The ad-
dendum was said by the committee to be In
correct In several respects, and he believed
that the people of the community had sufh-
cient confidence In the integrity of the Coun-
ell to accept It's stalements, IL spite OF any
thing that had been published by newsps-
paper or newspapers against l..
Alderman Gage said be had been told on
that very day, by gentleman In position to
know. that the expenditures of the city were
exceeding The appropriations.
Alderman O'Nei said he presumed he was
the person alluded 10 by Alderman Gage, as
he remembered holding conversation with
him on the subject. He had told the alder.
man that the expenditures for the street de-.
partment were at present exceeding the ap-
proprialions, but he held that the over ex-
penditure would be more than counlerbal-
anced by the permanent improvement result.
Ing TO The streets.
Alderman Sweegan, of the joint committee,
| differed from the other members In their
| Views of the treasurer's paper, aad favored
| the reading of the same.
Alderman PeIZer stated that the treasurer
10 the paper under discussion had charged
the city with deficit of $4,000 interest due