The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-23


Board OF Supervisors providing for the grant
ing of any privilege shall, after its introduce
ton be published for Ave, % days and
after after its passage
of the board for his approval. If
he approves. he shall sign it; If not, he shall,
within ten (10) days, return 1t to the board
with his objections in writing.
On April 18th inst. request was made by
me to Hon. John A. Russell. clerk OF this board,
for copy of said order 1858.
Thereafter complying with my request he
has forwarded me copy OF the same
This order thus sent me on its face purports
to grant privilege over certain public streets
in this city to corporation.
1t therefore becomes a subject for the cog
niZance of the Mayor and his approval is essen
tial to its validity.
The Legislative act of March %, 1898, is
merely mandate of the law commanding that
franchises shall be sold instead of being sub
ject to the mere caprice of the granting au-
thority.
spirit to take away from the Mayor his power
or responsibility over the disposition OF munie-
ipal franchises.
Hence, as all these proceedings have occurred
while presided over the board and are within
nv knowledge and as the law imposes on me
the duty of action in relation to this order, the
same has been duly considered and my assent
thereto is withheld.
The municipality on October 8, 1898, passed
order 9240, declaring the conditions ION
which railroad franchises may be granted III
this city"
These conditions are set out in ten sections,
which are supposed to contain all things neces-
Sary to be observed and complied with on the
one hand by the grantors OF the FRANCHISE, anu
on the other by the parties in whose favor the
grant is made.
Section 1 of order 9240 specifies the fran
chise to exist for a definite number of years,
but the franchise under consideration states
that the term shall run coequal with the terms
of some franchise owned by the Market-street
Railroad Company.
Section 2 provides that the road may be
operated by various means, but that prior to
electricity being used, the consent OF the Board
OF Supervisors shall first be obtained. order
2S58 (the present franchise) quotes sections OF
the general law about constructing ana repair
ing tracks, and which are more clearly set
forth in sections and 6, but leaves out as OF
no importance the portion OF section above
Section 3 of order 924O defines the methods
of operating roads according to various means
of propulsion; it specifies that for cable roads
the width of the slot shall be three-fourths OF
an inch, and refers again to that portion OF
section giving the Board OF Supervisors au-
thority, after the granting OF the franchise, to
erect poles along the route.
This part is ignored and omitted in section 3
OF this franchise and the width OF the slot is in
creased to seven-eighths OF an inch.
Section of order 9240 specifies that the
rights conveyed are (hrsD subject TO the gem
eral laws now in force, or such other laws and
regulations as may hereafter be made; (sec-
ond) that yearly statements shall be made and
2 per cent OF the gross receipts shall be paid to
the credit of the Street Department fund ;
(third) that $40, 600 must be expended within
one year on construction, etc., after the pas
sage OF the order; (fourth) and the eonstruc-
ton of the road be completed within three
years from and after the passage of the order,
the cars TO be run at specified intervals, also
specifying the liability OF the company for sub
sequent street Improvements. This franchise
or order 1858 ignores items 1, 2, 8 and 4, aud
quotes portion of the general laws regarding
paving, etc, between the tracks, unless other
wise ordered by the Board OF Supervisors.
Section of order 9240 authorizes the au-
thorities to pave or sewer, but so as not TO OBJ
struct the free passage OF the cars. Omitted In
this franchise.
lawful TO run cars at more than eight miles per
hour. Section 6 of this franchise says nothing
about rate OF speed, but requires the company
10 file a promise to permit mail-carriers to ride
free.
Section specifies the rate of tax per car.
Not mentioned in this franchise.
Section says work to be commenced within
one year from passage OF order, and 10 be COM
pleted within eighteen months thereafter.
This franchise is silent on this point.
Section 9 requires that bonds be filed to
guarantee the carrying out of the terms of the
franchise. This franchise eXacts no bonds.
Section 10 requires materials necessary in
the construction of the road 10 be of California
manufacture, but this franchise is silent on
that point.
1t is shown above, this franchise, as granted,
does either not embrace the conditions re-
quired by law, or does contain them in an
altered form.
Before the passage of this franchise the
agents OF the Market-street company had forci-
bly, seized the blocks embraced within the
grant and, through its agents, in the midnight
hour, tore up the pavement and commenced
laying its track until stopped by the author
tiles.
The burglar who enters your house at night
and abstracts your property cannot escape
punishment by coming into court and Offering
10 pay for the stolen property, nor should a cor
poration which has committed grand larceny
be permitted TO come before the Board of SUI
pervisors and offer to pay for a privilege which
it had unlawfully appropriated beforehand.
The street should first nave been restored to
its original condition, and then, if q fran
chise was asked, it should, under these circum-
stances, have been refused, or If granted at all
should have contained all the legal restrictions
set forth in order 9240; but under no eircum-
stances should franchise have passed YER
batim as submitted by J. l.. Willcutt, secretary
of the Market-street Railway Company, and
enclosed in his letter to the board dated Febru-
airy IA, 1898, and drawn up by the shrewd law
yers of the law department of the Southern Pa
cifc of Kentucky, leaving out nearly all the re-
strictions imposed by law and by the regula-
tions of your honorable board.
For the above reasons, |, as president of this
board, object TO order 1858 and hereby veto
the same.
Respectfully submitted
ADoLPH SUTRo, Mayor.
Taylor moved that the veto take the
regular course, anu wagner moved an
amendment to have it placed on file.
Taylor explained that it was unusual to
place vetoes on file. Wagner insisted on
his amendment, which was carried by a
vote of eight to four.
Relative to the action of the last Legisla-
ture in repeating the revenue law of 1874
providing for the collection of taxes for
city and county purposes between the sec
ond Monday of July and the first Monday
of August, extending the time of collect
ing taxes to the first Monday in October,
thus precluding the possibility of pay
ing municipal indebtedness for the
first four months of the fiscal
year, as heretofore, City and County
Attorney Creswel wrote to the effect
that the new act, dated March %,
1895, Enthusiastically repealed the old one,
and the law must be enforced and obeyed.
He held that if any arrangement of the
municipal finances should result from this
action of the Legislature the responsibility
must rest with the lawmakers. The As
SCISSOR had commenced making assess
ments of personal property under the act
of 1874 prior to its repeal. According to
the old law the expenses of the government
of the city for the first few months of the
fiscal year were paid as they accrued from
the taxes collected from July to August.
The communication was referred to the
Judiciary Committee.
City and County Attorney Creswel gave
an elaborate ODiniOn on the much-diS-