The Portland daily press., 1873-04-08
City Affairs.

1 " lSs
VIM. senter and VIM. H. Ingraham, wer
drawn as grand jurors, and James M. Paine
and VIM. L. L. Gill, as petit jurors to serve q
the next term of the o. s. Circuit Court.
Ordered That the Auditor of Accounts b
and IS hereby authorized to lay before tn
City Council on or before its next stated meet
OF the City of Portland for the current imam
cal year ending March 81, 1874. That tne Jon
standing committee be, and are hereby ulSLI atoLIe
to ascertain and report what INC ipt;ng p;th,f the
expenditure would be of properly v, nthar room.
Common Council room and dnerlV OF seJ ventilated
| That for tba nurpose of payment OF tne eX
nendimres of the city of the usuai monsniy
bills by the 1ded City drfasdh by the Committee on Ac
upon anu 'r;or to the passage of the usual appro-
Ouna u;nt,on bill, the Mayor be, and he hereby is
Pthori zed to draw his warrant on the Treasur-
er for the amount of the same, to be charged to
the proper appropriations. That for the pur.
pose of defrayng the expenses the present
financial year, and contemplated in the annual
appropriations of the year, the CITY Treasurer
be authorized to hire on the credit of the city.
in anticipation OF receipts from taxes, and in.
come OF the current year, from time to time
sacn amounts OF temporary loans as may be
required Tor the above purpose not exceed.
ing $4,000 a month. That three ventilators
be placed in the Common Council room at q
cost not exceeding $50. That the bills for gas
in the Old City Hall be approved. That the
following scale of prices shall be charged fol
licenses for 1884; circuses and shows under
tents, S40 "a day; negro minstrels, slight OF
hand, feats of agility, balancing, ETC., $5 a
night; theatres, So night; local associations,
by consent of Mayor may exhibit free. 1t
shall he the duty of the City Marshal to see
that every performance has been licensed, and
in case of Noncompliance prosecute the same.
Hhoff fha pr,tl RIIIId
directed to tender to the managers of the
Name General Hospital Fair, the free use OF
City Hall and other rooms in the City Building
that are vacant, or may without Inconvenience
be made vacant.
Petitions-Of James Bickford for permission
to erect a wooden building on the corner of
Cumberland and Avon streets, was referred; of
Smith and Brown for sewers on ST. John street
was referred; of N Dow and Others for recon-
struction of sewers on Cumberland street, re-
ferred; of Poultry Association for use of City
Hall, referred with power; of John 7. Cole for
damages by defect in sidewalk near corner of
Oxford and Myrtle streets, referred; of Sarah
III. Burke fer damage by defect in sidewalk on
Myrtle street, referred; of L. A. Hill & Co. for
permission to erect steam engine, referred; of
Union Wharf Co. in relation to dock, referred; !;
of James Bailey and others for gas lamp on
Spring St, referred; of H. A. Turner and others
for changs of sewer on corner of Cumberland
and Washington streets, came up from lower
Board; of L. q. Partington and others for a
sewer on Mayo street, referred; of William
Gould for authority to send Augustus Gould to
Insane Hospital, graEted; of Size & Nevens
for permission to erect q stationary engine, no.
tice ordered; ofHiram Beal for sewer in Spriug
street, referred; of E. H. Gillespie for permis-
sion to erect wooden building on Federal
street, referred; of Cornelius Connolly to erect
wooden building on Centre street, referred; of
John d. Kinsman to erect wooden building
on Spring street, referred; of Thomas Bresin
and others for sewer on Anderson and Oxford
streets was referred; of police force for in
crease of salary was referred; of W. G. Ray
and others for an examination of all buildings
and report of hazardousones by the Chief En-
gineer of the Fire Department was referred
petition for sidewalk on Centre street was re-
ferred.
An ordinance relating to the compensation of
the Fire Department was read and passed to be
engrossed.
Several amendments to the city ordinances
relating to powder magazines were referred to
the Committee ON Licenses.
Charles S. Roach was appointed Sd assistant
engineer --..--.
franklin Berry and Joseph E. Woodill were
appointed special policemen without pay.
Certain sidewalk assessments were estab-
lished.
An order establishing hose company, to
consist of ten men. was referred.
The bonds of VIM, Hayes and Edwin A.
Leighton, as constables, were received and ap-
proved.
The order on the salary bill was passed and
sent down. 1t was returned amended. The
upper Board did not accept the amendment, but
offered one of their own, to which the Council
did not assent. The amendment by the Council
gave the old salary and a uniform, the cost of
which shall not exceed $50, to the police and
deputy marshas. The amendment by the
upper Board was an increase of salary of $50.
Other salaries remain as last year, except the
alor IF how of fhn -, ant
which were raised $l6 each, making $66 per
year.
The following communication and an accom-
panying order, were presented by the Mayor
and referred. ..ie II
To the Honorable Board of Aldermen and Com
mon Council oftte City Of Portland:
Gentlemen-Section of the City Charter
prescribes among other duties of the Mayor,
that He shall from time to time communicate
to the City Council or either board, such infor-
nation, and recommend such measures as the
interests of the city may require"
In accordance with previous notice given
you, would now most respectfully urge upon
of providing for a re-valuation of the real es-
tate of the city, the last valuation having been
made in 1860. Twelve years have now elapsed
without any readjustment of values, which [
am satisfied from my own observations is much
needed The present Board of Assessors have
devised plan for making new valuation
which have carefully examined and believe it
to be not only feasible, but plan which will
commend itself to each member of the City
Council as being just what is needed at the
present time, and can be obtained at small
expense to the city. At my request the As
SCISSORS have submitted to me the plan and the
following statement, which 1 now lay before
you. viz: q
"a new valuation, partly to correct inequali-
ties in the old, and partly to obtain more con-
else and perfect description of the parcels of
real estate, is greatly needed. .4
We are fully of the opinion that the most
effective and available way of recording such a
re-valuation is by divisional plans of the streets
whereon each lot is plotted, its size and owner
ship designated, and the street numbers marked,
bound in book form. With the plans at hand
when property is Sid, the name of the pur
chaser could be entered under the previous own
er's name and thus the identity of the lot and
its ownership could always be easily traced. z
Such plans would likewise be almost invalua-
able for future reference in tracing titles to
real estate in the city. 7=F-Llr
Furthermore permanent record would thus
be obtained of the street-numbers of each build
ing and lot. and the confusion in this particular
now existing would be forever avoided
l have become satisfied that a re-valuation
can be better made and at less cost to the city
by the Board of Assessors than in any other
manner. We have within our limits .46h miles
OF streets 1t will require two hundred sheets
of drawing paper 24x30 inches, each sheet con-
tanning eighteen hundred lineal feet of streets,
plotted on a scale of twenty feet to one inch.
am informed by the City Civil Engineer that
the work can all be done in his Office in connec-
ton with regular duties and without any in.
crease of office expense. The skeleton plans
when completed are to be delivered to the As
SCISSORS and they enter Oh each lot the name Of
the owner, its size and street numbers, in
order to perpetuate these numbers and have
each building to correspond to the number on
the plan. 1t should be their duty to prepare
suitable paper numbers which should be pasted
on each building now built, which will enable
its owner to make it permanent, and thereby
relieve the City Council from the flood of petit
tons annually presented for the re-numbering
of our streets. H4s fF-4 rv1-ol =
In accordance with the foregoing views I
have prepared an "order," which, if accepted
by you, will enable the Assessors to commence
their labors at an early day and we may hope
to have the new valuation go intu effect In 1874
Very respectfully, your ob't serv't,
GEo. Z. WEscoTT, Mayor.
The following order came up from the Com.
mon Council: That on and after MAY 1st
next, the city shall be divided into two Fire
Districts, to be called the First and Second Fire
Wards, and shall be bounded as follows: All
that part of the city lying east of line run.
ming thro' the centre of Centre street and Preble
street. across the city, and taking in all the
alarm boxes numbered below 81, to be called
the First Fire District or Ward, and all that
part of the city west of the aforesaid bounds
and including all the hOxes from 81 inclusive