The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1881-02-05

Works are as we'll managed under the
present Trustees as ever those Of any Gas
Company we're. Why this was not the
case in Mr.. Brownies time may perhaps
be partially explained by Mr.. Brownies
warning certain OF the Trustees that q sol.
icitude for economy would render them
unpopular. Duty mot popularity has been
the watChWord OF the present admintstra.
ton. II q Aithful discharge ofduty brings
popularity and gratiies the citizens, then
matters are as they should be. II It does
not bring popularity, then the officers will
do their duty while on guard just as
though It did. That the affairs OF the
Works are well and honestly managed is
simply proved by the fact that the price
OF gas has been maintained, which is the
least renumerative in the country when 1t
is considered that the city pays nothing
for its gas or the erection Of lamp-posts.
And 1t has been maintained notwithstand'
ing Mr., Brownies confident prediction
based no doubt on the experience OF h Is
own management that it could not be,
There is probably not gas manager In
the United States who fails to continually
and carefully compare the amounts OF gas
the works with what is shown by the con-
sumption accounts 10 have been used or
sold, Such comparisons are the main de.
pendanCe oil gas man in governing his
leakage, any great difference between
production and consumption for given
period indicating extraordinary leakage.
Now was Mr., Brown culpably lax in the
discharge OF his duties as to fail to make
such comparisons, while the city was
being robbed by the employees OF the gas
office, or Is 1t fact that he did know that
the proportion OF gas unaCcounted for was
immense, and yet opened the door for the
frauds to be perpelTated by keeping his
knowledge to himself. He may take
either horn OF the dilemma he pleases,
II he says he had not access to the hooks
at the office to determine what gas was &C.
counted for, say it was his duty to de.
mand access to them, The reports made
by the Secretary to the Council would
have shown him what was accounted for,
He Is keen at looking up the reports OF the
present administration. Was he equally
keen at looking up those made in his own
timer
"Mr, Browne takes great credit to him
sell Tor putting IN some apparatus during
his term. AZ regards that when the i'm
provements were made in 1872 Mr.. Cover
dale, the Cincinnati gas engineer, super.
vised that work, "a am informed. When
the new apparatus was put in in 1875,
al which time Mr., Browne allowed the
contractor to put In broken center seal,
Mr.. Otto Bender, Morris, Tasker & Co,'s
engineer WA present While WAa "siudV.
ing my lesson" at his suggestion, invent.
ed method OF transferring tar by the use
OF steam, at nominal expense, Mr.,
Brownies primitive method Of doing the
same work was to pump barrels full Of
tar and roll them to convenient place
and allow them to drip out, This was ac'
complished OF an expenditure OF labor
which the value Of the tar would not JUS
tify, There have also been many other
improvements made while studying my
lesson, which l will take pleasure In show
ing them to Mr.. Browne II he will call at
the works."