People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1897-08-19

"oulu accept MI. wares proposition,
and asked that the pumps be kept
going until the council could ratify
an agreement reached at an informal
executive session held yesterday after.
neon.
Superintendent ESpy sent out a
courier after tile man who was turn
ing off the water, and the fires in the
pumphOuse were started up again.
The water was turned on again on
Main street for the convenience of
the business men. The Santa Fe and
a few Of the other industries IN the
city had not been shut off when the
order came TO Uurn on the water.
In accordance with request from
City Attorney Woods 20 Mr.. E,py to
outline what ne understood to be the
proposition made by Mr.. Ware tn the
city fora settlement Of the difficulties,
the superintendent wrote out tile fol.
lowing letter and handed it to the
council last night:
H. L. Woods Esq.
In reply to your inquiry, my under
standing Of the proposition which the
water company will accept is this:
That the city will pay the back
taxes for all the back rentals due, and
pay $1,000 per year aud the taxes for
hree years from January l, 1897, and
either party to have the right to can
Gel the contract at the end Of any
year by giving ninety days notice:
and further, in the event the stand
pipe should blow down or some serious
accident should happen at the pump
house, the contract will bt termin.
ated. D. A. ESPY, Superintendent.
When the council was called to
order at $3.50 o'clock last night the
members bad evidently discovered
that the water company had the city
ION the hips, and were prepared to
accede 10 their demands. A half hour
previous to the opening of the council
was taken up ty the cOuncimen in
holding whispered consultations. The
cold, diSagreeable fact that they had
played their last card in game of
pure bluff, forced the cOuncilmen to
give 10 and they realized that some
quick action was necessary to prevent
the city losing its best industry, the
Santa Fe round house and division al
terminus. Agent I. E. Purdy was on
hand to inform the council that the
Santa Fe was ready to steam up AMI
pull out for Winfield Immediately
after the waterwOrks closed down.
The Santa Fe was not taking a hand
in the'tight; all they wanted was as
surance that they could be supplied
with water at this point. Superinten.
dent DJlan stated while here yester.
day morning that there was no danger
Of the division being removed so long
as the road could be supplied with
water. They did not care who sup.
piled it; all they wanted was assur-
ance that they would not be incOven-
fenced any more by the fight between
the city and the water company. Mr..
Purdy's object at the meeting of tee
council last night was to learn
whether there was any danger of the
Santa Fe having to put on a water
train to supply the ROAD at this place.
II the council had failed to patch a
truce the Santa Fe would have begun
preparations this morning for remov-
ing the division TO Winfield.
Mayor Brown called the council to
order at $50 o'clock. The letter
written to the council by Superin.
tendeut ESpy, outlining what he
thought to be the substance of Mr..
Wares proposition to the city. was
read. There was moment of silence
and then Councilman Pember arose,
and for the purpose of getting the
matter before the council, moved
shat we accept the letter from Mr..
Espy as a proposition" The motion
was seconded and Councilman De-
muth objected to accepting Espy's
letter as a proposition. He agreed to