St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-06-12
N0TLOWRYSDAY
His Cable Line Proposition
Knocked Out by the City
Council.
Aldermen Not in a Mood to
Meet His Expense
Guarantee.
mo Exclusive Franchise"
the WatchWord of a Pub
lie Meeting.
A Mass Meeting Called to
Discuss the New PrOpO-
SitiOn,
Which Proposes a Franchise,
but Not the Hated
Exclusive"
Prominent Citizens Declare
War on Exclusive Fran
chiSeS.

The principal business taken up by
the council yesterday afternoon was the
Lowry cable proposition, and this was
rejected after vigorous debate by a
majority of one, with thirty-One votes
cast. After the committee report had
been read. Aid. Grimes, of the Eighth
ward, seconded by AID. Parry, of the
Seventh ward, moved the adoption of
the resolution. Aid. Potter moved an
amendment to strike out all that part OF
the resolution referring to the payment
of any money or damages to the street
railway company. The motion and
amendment were reduced to writing
and brought before the council. Aid.
Gray called upon the city engineer to
give the council an estimate of the cost
to the city if the Hastings Il Dakota
tracks should be lowered.
Mr.. Rinker said it would be hard to
give an estimate. He understood the
cable power would be located at Thirty
first street. He thought it would be a
simple matter to put in a temporary
power at Twenty-ninth street while the
tracks were being lowered and the
bridges built. In that case the damages
ne tQOugQG would DE SllSHC.
Aid. Downs-This is in some respects
an extraordinary proposition. We have
no right to enter into an agreement with
Mr.. Lowry or any other individual to
guarantee him damages. 1t is entirely
out of order.
Aid. BarrOws took a conservative
view. He agreed with Aid. Downs as
to the right in the matter, but he saw
an opportunity to rid the city of the
motors and to secure the expenditure Or
large amount of money that the city
needed at present. He for that reason
favored the proposition. Aid. Grimes,
who favored the resolution, called at
tentlon of the council to the fact that
the motor had a prior existence Oh the
crossing to the Milwaukee road. Aid.
Warren, Parry and Gray favored the
proposition. and Aid. Adams and LOye
opposed it. the latter because it was es-
tablishing a dangerous precedent.
Aid. Potter said he would favor the
proposition if the aldermen of the
Eighth and Thirteenth wards would as
sumo the damages, but he opposed the
city entering into any such contract.
President johnson left the chair and
Potter amendment. He thought the
council could gr d up Nicollet to the
height which wou'd Je made necessary
in case of the bridging of the Hastings
Il Dakota tracks. In that case the cable
line could be run over temporary
bridge, and the damages, if any. would
be slight. He asked whether the city
attorney had said there would be case
for damages against the city in case the
roadbed were lowered.
Mr. Warren, chairman of the railroad
committee, answered that the city at
torney had so decided.
Aid. Downs exclaimed, sarcastically,
that, if the damages would be so slight
as some of the aldermen claimed, Mr..
Lowry did not need to come in and ask
the city to stand the bill. He had made
enough money to stand it himself. The
Potter amendment was then put
before the council and carried by the
following vote:
Yeas-Adams, Brazie, Russell, Billings,
Downs, Enstad, Ellingson, Fultz. Ingenhutt,
Swanson and Vogt-16.
Nays - Barrows. Brueshaber, Bradish,
Durham. Flaten, Farnsworth, Gray, Grimes,
Meloy, Parry, Sterling, Thompson, Wood
ward Warren and President Johnson-15.
The original motion was then rejected
by practically the same vote, standing
IA yeas, 16 nays. Brueshaber and En-
stad changed yes to no before the vote
was announced, or the resolution would
have been adopted. Aid. Gray, of the
Thirteenth ward, gave notice of a mo-
ton to reconsider at the next meeting.