Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-06-01
OUR CITY GOVERNMENT.
MEETING OF THE BOARD OF CIVIL
AUTHORITY FRIDAY NlGHTI
The Board of Aldermen Meet and Vote to
Accept the Propos ton of the Electric
Light Company to Light the Entire
City by Electric Lights.

At the meeting of the Board of Civil
Authority Friday night. the only matter
heard was the appeal of the Porter Man
ufacturing company from the decision of
the board of assess ors. George W. Wales
appeared for the company and j. w. Rus
sell at the request of the Board, stated the
position taken by the assessors. The
company's property in this city is listed
at s4S00, and the board of assessors in adj
dition to that assessed the stock to each
individual stakeholder at 500 per share, it
having been rated last year, when the
company did not pay any tax, at Sl3 per
share, the par value being $50 per share.
The company claimed that this amounted
to double taxation. The Board voted to
sustain the appeal and the tax on the in
dividual stock was abated.
ELECTRIC LIGHT DEBATE.
The Board of Aldermen held meeting
after the adjournment of the Board of
Civil Authority for the purpose of receiv-
ing the report of the street committee on
the electric light question. Chairman
johnson presented the report which was
signed by himself and Alderman Sutton,
recommending that a contract be en-
tered into with the Brush-SWan
Electric Light and Power company to
erect thirty lights in the business
portion of the city, the lights to be of 20O0
candle power EACH the price to be 80 cents
for every light run until midnight and Is
cents each extra for not less than 10 that
burned all night The report provided
that at the end of three months the city
should have the right to adopt the propo-
sition of the company for lighting the
whole city.
Alderman PIERCE of the street committee
said that he did not agree with the ajority
of the committee and he presented mnori-
ty report recommending that the Board
accept the proposition of the company to
light the entire city 252 nights in IA year
for $500, lights for any further number of
nights to be paid for at the same rate,
the city to reserve the right to terminate
the contract at any time when the com
pany should refuse or neglect to fulfill
their contract, and the contract to con-
tlnue in force not less than three nor more
than five years.
Alderman Kelly moved that the MAORI
ty report of the committee be accepted and
adopted and Alderman PIERCE called for
the ayes and nays. Alderman Englesby
called for the production Of the plan re-
commended by the majority and Alder
man Sutton said that no such plan was
written out as to the location of the lights
and that it would be impossible to locate
the lights III advance Alderman Englesby
thought that the minority report
SnOulu De tuOpltu us ullt most pruCIlCdDle
and as the one that would prove most sat
isfactory to the taxpayers. He was not
satisfied, however, with any report that
did not open up the matter to competition
The vote was called for and it resulted IL
follows:
Ayes-Booth, Cook, johnson, Kelly
Sutton, B.
Nays Englesby, McKillip, PIERCE, Wat
son, Weaver, 5.
The motion was declared lost
Alderman Weaver said that so far rs he
had learned the people were In favor Of
lighting the whole city with the electro
lights
Alderman McKillip said if 30 lights wer,
begun with, the Board would be flooded
with petitions for electric lights OH othe
streets and he moved that the minority re
port be accepted and adopted.
Alderman sutton thought the opposi
ton to the minority report was tactlou
and he hoped those who voted in favor o
the majority report would vote against thu
minority report.
Alderman Kelly said he was in favor o
the electric light and he was in favor o
any means that would get it the soonest
Alderman johnson said that he wa
sorry that any feeling had arisen over thu
matter and to get at the matter at once h,
would waive all feeling and second tn
motion TO adopt the minority report
The minority report WAS then unanimous
ly accepted and adopted. After the trans
action of routine business the Board ad
journed.