Birmingham age-herald., 1894-10-18
Decide to Make an Appropriation
 for Schools.
INTERESTING DEBATE
Over the Purchase of Much Needed Hose for th } Fire
 Department.

The regular semi -monlnly meellng oi tuo board of aldermen was held last night. The following members were present: Mayor l Fox; Aldermen Ward, Thomas, Robert son, Smith, McCartin,l Jones, Meade, Parker, Mcknight and Lowery. | Minutes of tue previous meeting were
 read and approved.
 Ex. Mayor Lane was present aud address l ed the board in behalf of the city schools. | He said the board of education had met last | April and fixed a budget for the present l scholastic year, and the board had subse- | quently ratified the action of the board of | education. He said teachers had been en- l gagged at stated salaries. The recent reduc- | tion ordered by the city council would
 cause deficit of $1500 at the next pay day,
 which would come before another meeting l of the council. He said the teachers occu-
 patton would be gone if he was unable 1 to make a contract by the begin | ming of the scholastic year. l He urged the council to restore the origi. | the teachers who had acted in good faith. | He said the city should not let the schools | break down now at the beginning of the l year. The financial condition of the city | was known in April when the council made | the appropriation for the city schools and l the action taken at that time should not be l receded from.
 After MT. Lane had taken his seat MT. l Smith offered resolution, appropriating $i2, 900 to cover expenses of the city schools l until January 1.
 | MT. Lowery opposed the resolution for I the reason, he said, that the city did not
 have this money to appropriate. He said
 he was in sympathy with the public schools, but felt that reductions must be | made. He moved to lay MT. Smiths reso- l lution on the table. The motion to lay on | the table was lost, Messrs. Thomas, Rob- | ertson, Parker and Lowery voting "aye." l The question recurred on the original l motion and MT. McCartin spoke to that. He said that the legislature would soon l meet and he had assurances that some- thing would then be done that would l enable the city to maintain the standard of
 its schools. He said, .We don't want l teachers too cheap.'
 l MT. Thomas said that when the appro- l priation was made in April the board had ] in mind the Birmingham amendment, | which failed to pass at the August election. l MT. Parker wanted to know if the legis- Iature would make any provisions for the relief of the city officers whose salaries had been recently reduced.
 Mir. .Lowery didn' t think the city schools l would necessarily have to close if the re- l ductions were enforced. He opposed ap- l propriating $12, 900 in accordance with the l Smith resolution.
 I MT. McCartin said the teachers had lost | one months salary by the opening of l schools being postponed one month. l The resolution was adopted, Messrs. l Thomas, Robertson, Parker and-Lowery 1 voting no, and the mayor, and Messrs. 1 Ward, Smith, McCartin, Jones, Meade
 and Mcknight voting aye. l Chairman Smith of the finance com mittee reported favorably a number of 1 bills, which were ordered paid. l City Engineer Kendrick stated that it would take more money to complete the
 wall ct the cemetery than S10O, the amount l formerly appropriated, and recommended 1 that an additional S100 be appropriated. l The recommendation was adopted. | J. J. Odon agreed to give deed to half l the lot in the cemetery owned by him for | $50. He claims that the lot had been sold 1 twice, and to him first, and that two bodies l had been buried there. He declined to ac- cept the offer of the city to deed him any | lot in the cemetery. The mayor was em-
 powered to adjust the matter. | THE HOSE CONTRACT. l Mr. Thomas stated that the fire commit l tee had awarded the contract for 4000 feet 1 of hose at 90 cents foot to Milner & Ket- l tig.
 l minutes of the last meeting regarding the l purchase of hose. The committee was in- | structed to give the contract to the Gutta l Percha Hose company of New York, price l and quality being equal.
 l MT. Thomas explained the different bids l submitted, and said the Milner & Kettig | bid was the best.
 | MT. Jones said the Moore & Handley company would stand in the shoes of the 1 Gutta Percha Rubber Hose company and l give guarantee. They offered this hose | at 80 cents foot, 10 cents cheaper than the l committee had agreed to pay Milner & | Kettig, and on three years time. | Chief Mullin was asked for an opinion as | to the quality of different hose. He said l the Gutta Percha Rubber company's hose l had given better satisfaction than any l other he had ever used.
 MT. McCartin said the Gutta Percha | company had offered two-ply hose at 80 cents foot and so did the Eureka com pany. The committee contracted for three ply hose.
 MT. Jones moved that the fire committee | be instructed to countermand their order l for hose and place it with the Gutta Percha 1 Rubber Hose company.
 MT. Lowery moved to lay the motion on | the table. The motion to table was lost and the motion prevailed.
 | Mir. Smith moved that the mayor and | city attorney be instructed to purchase l hose in accordance with the resolution 1 adopted at previous meeting. | MT. Parker moved as a substitute that l new committee be appointed to buy the 1 4000 feet of hose.
 | MT. Jones offered as an amendment to | fire chief and Chairman Thomas of the fire l committee be appointed on the committee. | The amendment was accepted by Mir. l Smith and MT. Parker and offered as the l original motion.
 | There was opposition to Chief Mullin be- l ing on the committee and MT. Jones