Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1875-06-02

tlVeS united WITH ,lu0 nepuoilCduo aou oFoi
came the remaining 800 Conservatives and
100 Republican allies This combination can
never occur for II years as the clerks cannot,
under the present order, be elected, except at
intervals of 6 years, while the Commissioners
come at / and years There must be better
organization OF the party before next fall and
the candidates so selected as to suit local inter-
ests. ALloClS.
Meeting Of the Board Of Alderman.
An adjourned meeting of the Board Of Alder
man was held last night, bare quorum OF the
members (fVe) being present, and about
dozen spectators watching the proceedings from
without the bar.
The Salary bill, as passed by the Common
Council having been read Mr.. Moore moved
TO amend by inserting Clerk OF the Market
5000, aud his motion being carried, he said be
would move TO CONCUR in the action Of the other
Board, though the bill was not entirely salts
factory to him. There should have been gen.
eral reduction of from Is to 20 per cent 10 the
salaries of all the Offices, and not special reduc,
tons in some of them. The financial condition
of the city demanded retrenchment IN every
branch of its affairs salaries as we'll as others,
still he was willing to accept it as 1t stood
Dr. johnson said regularly as this season OF
the year TOlCu dlbuuu lHIiS S0AS w ~ Wv
CITY Council this same ridiculous display of at
tempted economy in cutting down individual
salaries. A competent officer should be paid
fair wages, but the proper course to be pursued
| would be 70 limit the term OF all officers OF the
CORPORATION to Two years and make them lnell-
| pible until they shall have been out OF Office Tor
| one year. unless their services be deemed lndls-
! pensible, in which case make their eligibility
! to third term conditioned upon unanimous
! vote Under the existing rule the city was gov
! erned by Office seekers and Office holders. 10
tation in Office was the pauacla required. vi
course the Office seekers aud Office holders aud
| their friends would oppose any reform IN the
| line Indicated, and will make strong party
against such movement, but that should not
! deter US from making it. With regard to the
| Office OF Clerk Of the Gas Works, every one
who knew anything about it knew that one
man could attend to the duties Of that office
and also be the Superintendent; in other words
one man could do what two men now do. Why
not consolidate the offices then and give one
man a lair salary for attending to the duties
instead of employing two men at stlnted saa
ries. he didn't waot to hind.r the passage oil
the bill and would vote for it as it stood, though
| he thought the saary of the Corporation Attor-
ney ought to be at least 500, and that OF the
! City Surveyor an equal amount he gave no.
tice of bis intention of Introducing bill! pro.
| viding that no officer Of the corporation shall
serve during longer term than Two years oil
continuous service unless his services be deem
ed indispensable, 10 which case he can serve a
Logger term by the unanimous vote OF Council.
| The bill! Was then passed, all the members
voting for it.
| The appropriation bill was then taken up
though as only five were present 1t could not
be passed
Mr. Moore moved to amend by striking out
$1,000 for repairs Of streets aud inserting 49,
500. He said that 30 one more than himself
would like to have the streets OF the city re-
paired, but unfortunately our condition did no!
warrant such expense now. The people were
sorely pressed down by cxhorbiant taxes, and
with the strcest economy in all branches OF
the citys affairs it would be years before any
relief could be obtained ia the way Of reducing
taxation. The idea he had was that the
streets should be rcpaived in the exact spot
in which repairs we're necessary, and not to
repave whole blocks as had been done on
| Prince street. The Superintendent of Police
he thought with the chaiD gang aud So, 500
| could get through the year very well. and even
do something towards making Union street,
the great business street OF the city, passable.
DR.. johnson said bad as our condition is,
Council could do much TO ameliorate it. The
! great dcsideratum was systematic lack OF that
was the incubus resting upon Us. Ii Council
| had the backbone to say to the railroads TO
which we had subscribed $500, O00-to pay the
| interest on which is the source OF our troubles
| keep The four miles of the city S streets you
| occupy without compensation 10 good cnndl
| ton and abolish your discri Initiating tariff OF
| freighis against Alexandria, and make them
do it, things would be vastly better as it now
was he understood O barrel Of -four could be
carried from Lynchburg to Baltimore TOR less
money than the same barrel could be brought
from Manassas to this city. That there was no
system about the street improvements was ap-
parent Observation-Disclosures were dug one day
for 20 other apparent reason than for the pur-
pose Of being filled up the succeeding one.
Better stop all the repairing and devote the
appropriation to keeping the streets clean and
clear of the filth and sagoant water that now
disigures them and breeds disease. But there
was no unauimity in Couocil to carry out
either of the true real reforms he had alluded
to- but sufficient unauimity to have a tax laid
upon us to pay interest 90 Corporation bonds.
If there was to be 10 restrictions on expcndl-
lures for repairing streets he opposed any ap
preparation for that purpose, and when re-
pairs were necessary let the property owners
pay two thirds of the expense aud the city the
other third when the bills were brought 10.
He would certainly vote for the amendment,
and it was adopted.
DIR. French m0ved to amend by striking out
the appropriation OF 5000 for repairs TO pumps,
saving that about three fourths OF the people
mad flameron wafer for which thew paid and