Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1891-09-01
THE BRIDGE BONDS.
rHE CoMHIrrIB ON TIEASm HELD 4 LONG
SESSION LAST EIGHf,
And wrsstlsd for QuiIs Time With the Problem
Airport From the COmmissionas-A
Subcommittee Appointed.

Inc COUNCIL OOinmiVVOo w
met last evening at the City
Hall, with the Commissioners OF
the Stone Bridge Loan and the
City Solicitor, to endeavor to ind
some way out of the present difficulty
brought about by the attempt to float
bonds at four and one-half per cent. In
terest. As preliminary, a report from
the Commissioners, heretofore laid be-
fore Council, showing the exact sltua-
ton. with some comments and advice
fnom the Commissioners, was reao'
This report, which has hereto
fore been published in the REGISTER In
detail, showed that up to. date S3O,oOO
Of the 500, 600 of bonds had been dis
posed of, leaving a balance OF S69,5OO
unsold In the hands of the Commission
ers. OF the bonds sold, $2S,5O0 were
sold at the first offering, bringing In
total of $40, 2O4.37. and $4,000 were sold
at the second offer, bringing in total
of 81, 0O4.19, a grand total OF S31, 1886,
of which S166.25 was premium, and
S572.31 accrued interest.
A general discussion of the situation
followed, In the course Of which Mr.. +.
P. Jepson, one of the Commissioners,
read letter from Jones & Fail, bankers,
of 80 Broadway, New York, kindly offer
ing to take the issue at so cents on the
dollar. Mr.. Jepson said he replied to
this in fitting terms, with the advice
and consent of the other Commissioners,
and added that there was some further
correspondence with the firm, during
which it came out that there was gen
eral trouble in floating municipal bonds
at this time, number OF instances De-
ing cited where cities which had been In
the habit of getting a premium for four
and four-and-a-half per cent. bonds, had
been obliged to put up the rate OF inter
est to six per cent, or at least tlve-and-
a-half. Mr.. Jepson also recalled the
situation six years ago, when he went
East to dispose of some OF the bonds OF
the loan of 1885, bearing five per cent
interest The best offer he could get
was 925 on the dollar. Cleveland,
which had been in the habit OF getting
a premium for four per cent. bonds, was
barely getting par for tives at present,
and so on with other cities. Various
reasons were assigned for this situation,
in detail, by the gentlemen, and there
was very long discussion as to what was
best to be done, good part of the
talk being taken up with an attempt to
get a more favorable construction out
of the State law, which provides that
"before the Commissioners shall make
any sale" of bonds, they shall advertise
the same in some convenient paper for
thirty days. The Commissioners COM
piled with this law when they made the
first offer, and again when they sold
the 50, 600 at the second offer, and were
unanimous that they would be COM
PEELED to readvertise for any subsequent
offering, but there was an idea
among some of the members OF the
that the law meant simply
that there should be one advertising OF
thirty days before any bonds were sold,
and thereafter, II the bonds were not
all sold at the first offering, subsequent
sales could be made without again adj
vertising the fact. The City Solicitor
was called upon for an opinion, and
said there could be no doubt but that a
thirty day advertisement was necessary
every time sale of bonds was con-
This knocked in the
head the hope that perhaps enough of
the bonds could be sold in
time to meet the forthcoming estimate
of Paige, Carey g. Co. for work done on
the bridge during the month OF August.
This estimate, it Is expected, will
amount to something like fifteen thou
sand dollars, and will probably come
into Council at the meeting week from
tonight.
Various projects were advanced, as a
means of getting rid Of the bonds, one
Of them being to have purchasers Of the
electric light bonds take a certain pro-
portion of the bridge bonds, and
another to have a special election
to raise the rate Of interest from
four and one-half to six per cent, Mr..
Riley giving it as his opinion that in the
event that such proposition would not
be carried before the people the situa
ton would not be changed, as the pres
emit bonds would not be affected in the
least, but this afforded no relief, even If
there were assurances that 1t would
carry, as money was needed at once to
carry on the work, and to meet the pay
ments on a contract to which the city
was bound.
Finally Mr.. Maxwell suggested that
perhaps a subcommittee could be OF
some assistance to the Commissioners In
making a sale, and he offered a resou-
ton appointing a subcommittee of
three, one of whom should be Chairman
Pollock, to cooperate with the Commits
sioners, the latter to al once insert an
advertisement in the papers calling for
bids. 1t is the hope of the Committee
that at least portion OF the bonds can
be sold by private arrangement with
some of our own citizens, and the city
be thereby enabled to meet her pay
ments on the work as they come due.
The Chair appointed Messrs. Maxwell
and Farrell on the subcommittee, and
they were at once called by Mr.. Pollock
to meet at the City Hall this afternoon.
Chamberlain's Collie, Cholera and Diar-
rhOea Remedy
Is famous throughout the United States
4