Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1878-02-06
The B0Srd of Street Commissioners
Duplicity Exposed.

The BOSrd Of Street Commissioners
Duplicity Exposed.
From the published proceedings OF
the Board of Street Commissioners
Oct. 10Th, 1877, when the plan adopt
al by the Turner Hall meeting for
compromising the city debt was sub
mitted and agreed to, we clip the fol-
lowing:
The Clerk laid before the Board a letter
of inquiry from J. A. Beal. Connecticut, as
TO the amount and time of paymen of rail-
road bonds. The Clerk ordered to reply
by sending him copy of the proposed
plan.
We presume the clerk did as he
was directed and forwarded a copy of
the plan spoken of, under which was
contemplated the registry Of taro thirds
Of the bonds before the levy of any tax.
MIR. Beal, if he should have occasion to
write to the clerk again, will find that
the Board now proposes to pay nothing
until ''aN the outstanding bonds and
coupons shall in the opinion of the
Common Council have been registered"
This changes the situation vastly. OBJ
serve the phraseology. 1t requires
that the Common Council shall be sat-
isfed that all the bonds and coupons
are registered. Who, knowing the
material Of which Common Councils
are made here, has any confidence in
the good faith, of this proposition?
Who supposes that Council made up
Of Films, and Olins and Maertzkes,
would ever be satisfied that all the
bonds and coupons were registered,
until there was not one missing? Who
believes that they would not bubble
and pretend that the law had not been
complied with, and that hence no tax
could be levied, Notwithstanding there
was every reason to suppose in the
nature of things that more or less, of
the bonds had been destroyed in one
way or another and would never make
their appearance? The faithlessness
Of some of our city fathers in the past
is too fresh in the minds of the public
to inspire confidence as to the future.
We have not forgot ten the law for the
exchange Of bonds, and that it is a
dead letter to-day because The Union
League Mayor and Council refused to
carry out its provisions. Nor have We
forgotten how the Common Council a
few years ago failed to provide for the
payment of the interest on certain com
promise bonds, and that the credit oil
the city was saved by individual effort
to meet obligations which the author.
tiles repudiated. With these facts
remembered. why should the public
not look with suspicion upon this new
scheme, and distrust the men at whose
hands they have been betrayed p? The
present Board of Street Commissioners
sitter obligating itself to carry out a
certain plan which possibly might, bu,
probably would not, have resulted in a
compromise, now changes front ana
adopts measure which means repudia
ton ana nothing else. Any scheme
therefore, which leaves it optional with
the Council to do or not do as it pleases
and permits it to take refuge behind
any convenient subterfuge which i
may invent for the occasion, is moi
worthy moments notice. There
must be mandatory powers only. Anc
then there is no guaranty that tkt
same will be enforced The plaines
provisions Of law with reference to the
exchange of bonds, and payment Of
interest, have been nullifod by Com
mon Councils in the past; why may
not other provisions equally plain and
obligatory be treated the same way in
the future.