Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1895-10-25

: 90 l040s
mond Jo company with doing Is
much to disfgure the levee - any
railroad company. he accused it
Of placing q track there without
authority of the council and keeping
cars on it and in fact making . coal
yard of the levee.
Capt. Lamont replied that the Dia-
mond 10 company had no track nor
coal cars on the levee whatsoever.
and never had.
''Rrivats Jos's" Sensational Speech.
City Attorney Haas expressed him
self, Is he said, a. an ordinary
private citizen. and not in his
official capacity. The project was
such that il should be taken into deep
consideration before action should
be taken upon it. 1t was of little
Importance personally to anyone here
whether the bridge project should
carry or not. Maj. Beardsley had
spoken golden words with reference
to the levee. The levee was in q de-
plorable condition. And whose fault
is it, the speaker asked, that such q
state of affairs exists? The fault
lies deep and is long standing. It
is not the fault of the present .coun-
Gil alone, but of aldermen who had
sat there for years. Citizens and
tax payers had repeatedly come be-
fore the council and asked that the
levee be improved and protected.
The levee belonged to the city. vet
it had been stolen by private cor
porations. Here now comes q com
Pany asking for privileges. yet the
attempt is made to burden it with
oppression, while other companies
are allowed to 60 free. II the
river front is of the i'm
portance that it is claimed
of it require the steamboats, to chip
in and protect and improve it. Mr..
Haas condemned the present cause
way leading to the ferry and the
manner in which the company had
ignored the requirement of the ordi-
nances with reference thereto. He
did not believe in imposing burdens
on the new company alone. but in
making all corporations do their
part toward improving the levee.
Enforce the provisions of the steam
boat license, wrest from corporations
that they have seized and stolen un-
lawful. Make all share alike.
Aid. Dauber spoke in behalf of the
proper protection of the levee. Now
is the time to act.
Aid. Foss deplored the condition
of the levee. The council had been
remiss iii the past with reference to
the levee. The fact that the levee
had been neglected in the past had
doubtless had tendency to make
the aldermen more careful now. He
believed that il the council had any
rights with reference to unlawfully
acquired rights there, they should be
required to surrender them.
Aids. Maucker, Surman, Fender,
Nelson, Schneider. Kennedy, Tindall,
Dauber, Schroeder, johnson and
fSchreiner spoke on the situation,
Aid. Gall finally Withdrawing his
resolution.
Ex-Maycr Henry Carse addressed
| Cuo CouuCiI upon Tue proposed 0rQl-
nance. He looked upon it as q square
business proposition. The corpora
tions now enjoying the use of First
avenue should not be permitted to
longer block the path of other enter
prises looking to the Improvement
of track and terminal facilities.
There is really but one block of levee
now left. No effort should be neg
lected to protect and beautify it, and
make the approaches to it passable.
The ordinance in question seemed,
though. to be good one and should
be passed.
| The Ordinance Passed.
The ordinance was thereupon put
upon its passage, and adopted by q
unanimous vote of tho council. Its
salient features have all been given
in The ARGUS, but briefly it pro-
vides for approaches to the proposed
lower bridge at the foot of sixth
street with double track along the
river bank outside the present prop
erly authorized tracks of the rail.
roads now there from Seventh to
Twentieth streets, the section which
| plicifQd tho HI acu csion 1.ot ara~:~~