New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-05-13

REGULAR MEETING.


CITY COUNCu-oTFICIAI
REGULAR MEETING.
CITY HALL. NEW ORLEANS, /
Tuesday May H. 1874. s
The Council met this day at II NJ, il
regular session.
Presentation. Louis A. Witt. Mayor
presiding, and Administrators Brewster
Calhoun. Fitzenreter, Lewis, Schneider
Sturcken and Turnbull.
Communication from the Mayor and Ad.
minfstraters.
The following message from the Mayo,
and the accompan ying documents were
read and ordered to be opread upon the
minutes:
MAYoKAlTY o! new ORLEANS, I
City Hall. May IL, 1874 !
To the City Council of New Orleans
Ipresent herewith to the Council copy
of power of attorney given BY me to Hon.
Louis Janip, of Washington, District OF
Columbia, and Albers c. Janin, Esq, OF
New Orleans, to receive from the United
States General Land Office certificates of
location or scrip tor land awarded by the
United States Supreme Court in October
last to New Orleans, together with q com
munication from the Hon. Henry D. Ogden,
attorney for New Orleans in said suit.
LOUIS A. WILT, Mayor.
Whereas the Supreme Court of the
United States, at its October term Of 1879,
rendered q decree against the government
and in favor OF the cities of New Orleans
and Baltimore for certificates Of location,
or scrip, for l04, l46 acres Of land, now
therefore Louis Janin, of Washington, Dis
trict of Columbia, and Albert c. Jannin, OF
New Orleans, Louisiana, are hereby con-
stituted the attorneys-in-tact of the city Of
ceive from the United States General Land
Office the portion belonging to said city OF
said scrip for l04, 146 acres Of land, and to
receipt for the same.
A. Witt, Mayor.
Sworn to and subscribed, New Orleans,
May 8, 1874.
JULES MESSY,
United States Commissioner for Louisiana.
NEW ORLEANS, May ), 1874.
To the Hon. L. A. Wilt Mayor
In response to your inquiry have the
honor to state that there will be no extra
charge incurred by the issuing Of the au-
thorizatiOn to the Messrs. Janin. The au-
thorization is needed to enable me to COM
Will MY COutA0OtS VAA' ~ pAocCSuCC
the suit to its termination. 1t is well I'M
derstood that the city will in no wise be
liable beyond the original agreement with
me. Very respectfully,
The Mayor presented the monthly report
of the Administrator of improvements for
April and the monthly report Of the Ad-
ministrator of Police for the same month,
and both reports we're received. The
former, which was ordered to be spread
upon the minutes. is as follows:
DEPARTMENT OF IMPROVEMENTS, I
May j, 1874. :
To His Honor L. A. Wilt, Mayor of New Orleans:
have the honor to submit herewith my
report tor the month of April, 1874. Be-
fore proceeding to the details will men
ton that the amount of expenditures ex-
coed by far that of any previous month Of
my administration of this depaI tment. The
and the honorable Administrators that an
apology is not necessary.
1t was required that the most strenuous
efforts should be made, almost during the
whole month, to save our city from being
overtiowed and thousands Of lives and mil
lions of property from destruction. With
the help of Almighty Providence, and using
all the exertiOns and means within our con-
troll, we succeeded to accomplish that end.
Sincere thanks are due to your honor
and the honorable members of the Council
for your cooperation IN providing the
means, and assisting me in the manage
ment Of our defenses against the terrible
element at the most dangerous points,
night and day, and exposed to winds and
heavy rains. Thankful acknowledgment,
also, to Mr.. W. II. Bell, our worthy City
Surveyor, for his energy, zeal and good
Judgment, and to the supe rintendents, fore
men and men, who kept, with their hard
labor during days and nights, the immense
volume of water of the Father OF the Wa
tiers within it's artificial limits.
On the evening of the sixteenth the river
had reached its extreme heighth, nine inch
es above the high water mark of 1871, and
some few days afterward the lake four
inches within the mark of 1871. The
amount of rainfall to the morning of the
twenty-ifth was ten inches and upwards,
and we NAV say wind, lake, rain and river,
for several days, ombined in the contest
against us, and our efforts to save this fine
city.
As hereafter enumerated in detail the
month of April has caused to this depart
ment a grand total OF expenditures amount
ing to 1914, 225 Al, of which at least $4,000
occurred by reason of the threatened over
flow. Comparing, however, this outlay
with that caused by the crevasse in 1871,
accounted for only in part in the month of
June and amounting to $97, ll8 % from the
budget, and taking all things in considera-
ton, we can congratulate ourselves with so
small an outlay to have prevented an lnun-
dation which outside of the loss OF many
lives. would certainly have been followed
by ruination of our wealth and commercial
;txyT IN
BUREAU OF STREETS.
Carts hauled ballast and shells and 2O5O
loads of street scrapings, and removed 39oo
leads OF garbage. Topromote public health
an order is now rigidly enforced, that
kitchen stuff, ETC.. must be taken by the
otfal carts either to the rear Of the city and
dumped where it can not be offensive to
residents, or discharged at the nuisance
wharveS.
Heavy rains and the water sepping from
the river proved very detrimental to the
condition of our streets and retarded their
being well worked until the latter part OF
the month, when favored by clear weather
and decline of river and lake, repairs
were rigidly set in operation.
CarrOllton avenue. st. Charles avenue
and Valence street, Washington road, First,
Eighth, Josephine, Fulton, Felicity. Mag
polia. Delord, both sides of Canal and
Broad streets, Bienville, Claiborne, Louisa,
Lapevrouse and Frenchmen streets, re-
ceived extensive repairs by use of shells,
ballast, etc, and are now again in good
condition.
Paving gangs were employed in the First,
Second and Third Districts, to repair round
stone streets and ballast roads.
Bridge gangs repaired eighty-six bridges,
twenty.slX crossings and eight plankroads,
many of which were seriously damaged or
washed away by the heavy rains, and
built three bridges and five crossings, ex,
pending $500 feet assorted lumber and
necessary quantity of spikes.