The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1882-03-02
MORE ABOUT THAT SALE

| know the governor Will readily admit
that lac cannot be accused of slackness
in looking after his personal interests
and that with him personal interests
bring down the scales every time on his
side. This was why he jumped 81
the chance to beat the city oui
OF 81 900. But we do not know as the
governor is 10 blame. There are hun.
dred men ready at any time 10 take such
Bargains as the city offered, if they have
any more 10 offer ION the sly" It Il
with the city council that the public will
deal, and they will find, before they get
through with this inexcusable aud
eaIpabie piece Of stupidity, thai
! il is u"La question of .green-eyed jeal
Oasy'i or ',gImpSoE weeds" No amount
Of fns(Ian OF &ofdy silaff with whEcI 1hil
beneficiary of the council may seek to
cover this transaction will fool nyhody
Just think OF The matter for an
instant: Governor Eskridge, or any
member of the city council has = piece
Of property for sale. A gentleman Of.
fers them 1900 for it. They decide to
take it, Another gentleman Steps up
and offers $4,000 for the same property.
They refuse TO take it. That's business,
isn't il? Does any sane man or any
member Of the council transact his
own business that way? We but echo
the almost unanimous public sentiment
when We say there is something very
suspicious about this sale.
II was the manner of doing the
business that people object TO as we'll as
the loss To the city on the sale.
After the questionable manner in which
several transactions i'll connection with
the water works were put through the
council, and after the hurried way
in which certain gas ordinance was
adopted, it was hoped there was an end
to surreptitious legislation in our city
affairs. Some people charge that the
| affair was "cut and dried'' before the
council met. We do not know rs TO the
truth of such charge. but certainly
there WAS not SD much hurry in the mat
ter that il could not have been postponed
Tor n day or two or referred to a CON-
mittec Ia investigate rs To the
value Of the property. The fact that
Eskridge was given the priv.
lege of buying this property without
even an attempt to get other bids on it
is another very suspicious circumstance
in this transaction. The council evil
IDENTIFY repudiates the old saying that
competition is the lift: of trade" Had
not Captain Warren happened 10 be
present the city would have lost clean
$500 on the corner lot The motion to
rescind the vote after selling the west
30 feet was not made until WarreH
agreed 10 pay 5000 for ii, and Fox
stat d in that motion that u party was
prcsen: who said lie would give that for
il, and then after the vote was rescinded
Warren male the offer publicly. Why
was the council in sIch a hurry TO sell
the cast "a feet to Eskridge that they
could not ask Warren what he would
give for it, especially after his offer of
$500 more on the other piece than they
wanted TO sell il for? They all knew
that Warren would buy anything that
he thought was cheap.
Why was not notice given that the
property was for sale? If the city has
| n SO job 10 give to Il mechanic he Is re-
quired to bid on it, and the members of
the council will shave him down to the
last penny 1t is all very we'll for the
interested defender of this foolish trans.
action TO talk of the penny wise and
foolish" way of doing things, but il
that shoe don't fit the council then we
do not know what would be a proper
| characterization.
Another feature Of this transaction
about which the public expresses itself
very freely is the price nj which the
property was sold. Had that 81 feet
been divided into two lots they would
have sold readily at $1,000 each. 1t is
the very best and most valuable vacant
ground in the city to-day. The
governor seeks to make the impression
| that il was only fit for jimson weeds
and dog fennel Why did he seek to
| rush All
under suspension of the rules to buy it
| Nearly block away gentleman is of.
fered $4,000 cash for a piece of ground
six feet narrower and fifteen feet shorter.
4 lot was sold on Fifth avenue the 9TH
or day, occupying the same relative po-
sition as theiciiy lots on Sixth, for ST.
$50, including wall privilege which
was valued at $3.50. ar 81, 800 Tor the lot.
| 81, 500 IN cash is offered for another lot
on the alley on Fifth avenue.
The city lot sold was worth
every cent of $4,000. The city council
could have ascertained these facts with
out any trouble. No wonder Esktidge
Is pleased with the action of the city
council in tins matter.
We want 10 say, in closing, that We
are not actuated in denouncing this
transaction by personal motives in the
least. We hal no money 10 buy the
lots, and no friends that wanted them,
| that we know of. No one octside of The
Office had said word To us about il pre-
vious to our article of yesterday. We
will say freely that we had just as soon
see Governor Eskridge have the lots
as any man in town, IL he had gotten
them fairly and paid what they were
worth II is not personal interest that
actua,es us. Neither is it locality. We
don't care the snap of our finger which
street is built up. We want To see them
/ N l,,,sl W. ha inc
anybody To see the eX-city lots covered
with good buildings, aud we are ready
to support any reasonable and fair prop.
Osition to erect a city building on what
is left of the lots. The person who
accuses us of personal motives in
this matter misunderstands us entirely
What we denounce without stint, and
what we have denounced heretofore, is
the fact that the city officers, elected
and trusted by the people, should trans.
act the public business in the manner in
which this sale was conducted. The in
terests of the people are never safe So
long as such snap judgment ways
are permitted. We are satisfied that the
city has lost a cool 81 900 by the hasty
sale of its lot in this case, and the peo
pie ought to so emphatically denOuncG
this work that it would not be consider
ed healthy to repeat it.
Bradlaugh ia evidently "thOrn in the
flesh of the British house u: commons
His case has just assumed another phase
Originally there was trouble becaus,
Bradlaugh declined to take the pre-
scribed oath. He was unceremOnicusly
hustled out. Then, when he announced
| hio WILLINGNESS 20 taG tho oath . 80