Johnstown weekly Democrat. (Johnstown, Cambria County, Pa.) 1889-1916, 1890-05-02
THE CITY COUNCIL.
Proceedings of the Meeting of Both
branches Last Evening.

III tnelT Respective TooInS On monuay eNen-
ing, and were called to order at O'clock.
THE SELECT COUNCIL.
President Yeagley occupied the chair.
The minutes of the last meeting were
read and approved.
Mr.. Moses presented petition from the
citizens of the Fifth and Sixth wards as
follows:
To the Honorable, The Mayor the select and
Common Councils ofthe City or JohastOtcn.
The petition Of the undersigned citizens OF the
Fifth and Sixth wards, residents and property
owners on Somerset street of the city of Johns
town respectfully represents:
That we are heartily in favor OF having
single track OF street railway on said Somerset
street, beginning at the South end OF Franklin
street bridge and continuing along the entire
length OF Somerset street, connecting with
Morris street at the residence of Mr. Hartzell.
Any recommendation you may make to said
street railway company that will favor the
prayer of your petitioners will be endorsed by
us.
Signed by one hundred and five petitioners,
The petition of William Warner, asking
for permission to lay a private sewer
from his residence to the Stonycreek was
read.
Permission granted, the work to be
done according to the regulations of the
late borough of Johustown in regard to
such matters.
A message from the Mayor was read as
follows:
MAYORS OFFICE, CITY OF JoHNsTowN,(
April 2S, 1890.
TO the select ana CJntntoR Council Of the CitV or
,JohnstOlCn:
The City controller has recommended to me
the pToprlety of repairing the weigh-scales In
the Sixteenth ward, and the erection Of a small
building as an Office for the weigh-master. The
estimate OF the cost is $50, He places It upon
the ground that the result will be a source Of
revenue to the city. Sooner or later there Will
have to be established scales throughout the
city. AS the matter now stands there has been
no appointment made for weigh-master within
the city limits, as It would be manifest injus-
tice to compel parties to travel distance OF Two
miles with load of coal and weigh the same,
then return distance of nearly two miles to de-
liver 1t. The weigh. scales within the limits Of
the First ward are being used by the appointee
Ofthe Council, OF the borough of JOhnstown
since the consolidation, for the purpose Of
weighing all such articles as people voluntarily
pre-. ent themselves to have weighed. The tariff
of charges being those fixed by the Borough Or
dinance, have not interferred because the rev.
enue will go into the City Treasury, and the
charges of the weigh-master are deducted from
the tariff. regard an ordinance requiring the
weighing of coal by the borough of Johnstown
as being now imperative in as much as no tariff
of rates have been made by the city authorities
and It would be difficult to determine how an
ordinance could be enforced. If system of
Weighing hay, coal or other articles is TO be
adopted, at least two If not three pairs OF sea les
should be constructed. Possibly two more SITS
would accommodate the people There should
be ve pairs of scales to do justice to the people
in our irregular shaped city,
forward to you the recommendation OF the
City Controller, because If we are to have sys-
TEN OF weighing, 1t would be advisable for us to
at once proceed TO the repairing of the scales
referred to, and the erection Of the other scales
in different sections OF the city
w. HORACE ROSE
Referred on motion to the Committee
on City Property, with Instructions for
speedy action,
A second message from the Mayor was
read as follows:
MAYORS OFFICE, City OF Johnstown,l
April sS, lSg0.C
To the Select ana Common Council OF the city
or JohnstO,Cn:
If 10 NV dutv Tn rennrt IN Won tho danInrabia
condition of the City Prison and Mayors Onice
Some steps must be taken to relieve the condi-
tion. There are four cells into which all of the
unfortunate beings, who from time to time are
arrested, are crowded for Trial and when SEN
tence of Imprisonment is inflicted they must be
confined therein.
1t is impossible TO keep the building in the
proper sanitary condition, end should a Board
of Health be instltutedit would undoubtedly be
condemned as a place unwholesome and unfit
for the detention Of prisoners, and the tTansac-
tion by the Mayor and police of the public duty
enioined upon them by law.
| shall regret as much as any citizen of this
city the useless expenditure of the public money
in mere temporary makeshifts, when the same
can be at all avoided without detriment to the
public good but our condition Is such that some-
thing must be done. and that speedily, to re-
leve the unfortunate state OF affairs connected
with the detention and punishment of the crimi-
nal class, TO say nothing of the imposition OF in
tolerable stencil upon the officials whose duty
| eompels them to pass considerable periods Of
time within the building now used as the Police
Headquarters, and City Prison and Mayors Of
| flee.
From the wreck of the municipal building the
iron cells have been preserved and returned to
nearly their former location. The cage contains
eight good roomy iron cells. which could, with
moderate expense, be prepared for the detention
of prisoners There are large quantities OF brick
lying on the lot owned by the city forming the
site of the former municipal building of the
Borough OF Johnstown. l recommend to you
the prOpTiety Of utilizing these brick by erecting
around the cells referred to, one-stCry uild-
ing sufficiently large TO encase the C ellis and In
clude the Police Headquarters and Mayors
Court Room. This structure should be built EN-
tlrely within the lines OF the former municipal
building, so that in the event of the city erect
ing upon that location municipal building. the
same could be constructed around the proposed
structure. This seems to me to be the most feas-
ible scheme we can adopt.
1t is absolutely certain that the present cells
will not do to detain prisoners lin when the
weather becomes warm. It is now but little be-
yOnd the line that marks nuisance, and that
which is not indictable as such. submit these
views to you in the hope that you will take some