The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-09-19
THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN
.ISHMUN STREET PAYING CON-
 TRACTS ORDERED AMENDED.

Work Must be Completed by December l.
 The Lamp Committee Recommend Many
 Transfers of Funds-Report Adopted
 Board of Finance Refuse to Allow Two
 Bills Without Instruction Opinion of
 Corporation Counsel-Appointmen of
 Constables Made-Keport of Engineer
 Kelly on yitrified Brick.
 A special meeting of the board of al- dermen was held last evening for the purpose of acting on a resolution pass ed by the councilmen last Monday eve ming, ordering the work of paving Ash nun street completed before December 1, 1896. The resolution was concurred in, and the city clerk was ordered to instruct the beard of public works to so amend the contract with the J. E. Miles company, for laying the brick pavement on Ashmun street, as to insure the completion of the work by the time specified in the resolution. The contract will be signed at once as amended
 Some time ago the court of common council passed a resolution ordering the city engineer to make tests of the bricks offered by the different bidders, and compare them with the Syracuse brick, which was taken as the standard for the paving of Ashmun and Wooster streets when the order was first passed. Last evening the report of the engineer was read before the board of aldermen and ordered tabled for printing.
 The report slows that, as compared with the several other grades of bricks, the loss in the case of the Syracuse bricks was almost entirely by chipping. In the case of the other bricks it was mostly by wearing of the brick and rounding of the edges.
 The lamp committee reported in fla vor of making the following transfers: $G05 from, the telephone appropriation to the sundry account; S33.70 from the gas lamp account to the gas setting and resetting appropriations; $700 from the lamp appropriation to the electric light account; $1,274.43 from the gas lamp to the naphtha lamp account; $500 from the Welsbach burner for gas lamps appropriation to the appropria- tion for lighting public buildings; $50 from naphtha lamp setting and reset ting appropriation to sundry appropri- ation; $100 from the Welsbach burners on gas lamps to the sundry account for the purchase of lanterns.
 The recommendations were adopted.
 The board of finance on Thursday re- fused to endorse the bills rendered by Chief Engineer Kennedy and Fire Com missioner McDonald for the expenses incurred while in attendance upon the convention of fire engineers at Salt Lake City and of the special committee of investigation instructed by the board of public works to investigate the as- phalt companies in Boston and other cities.
 Last evening the report of the board of finance to the board of aldermen was read and ordered to be printed The amount of money involved is $55711.
 The report was based on the opinion of the corporation counsel, which holds that the public boards have no author ity "to send special committees at the expense of the city" without the au- thority of the court of common council. The report and the opinion of the cor poration counsel were tabled for print ing.
 Petitions asking that Orchard and Lamberton streets be top dressed were referred to the street committee.
 The petitions of John Reed jr., w. P. Leonard, Edward w. Smith and J. Tut tie for appointment as special consta- bles were referred to the committee on nominations.
 Alderman George w. Bromley asked that action be taken on the nomination of I.eander Burnell for special consta- ble Bunnell is watchman at the Bos- ton asphalt works on Orange street. MT Bromley urged the appointment of MT Bunnell on the ground of the neces- sity of protection to the watchman. Alderman Brennan urged the same rea- son in support of his asking the board to act upon the nomination of E. w. Smith Both men were appointed.
 A communication was received from the New Haven orphan asylum asking that an assessment for d sewer be abated. The communication was re- ferred to the committee on claims.