Evening star., 1898-06-18
DISTRICT BILL IN THE HOUSE
The Consideration of the Conference Be.
port.
Mr.. Pitney's Proposed system of Elec-
trio Light COnduits-Free
Public Library.

| Late yesterday afternoon the conference
report on the District of Columbia appro-
| priation bill was brought up in the House.
The agreement was ratified upon those sec
| tions of the bill to which the conferees had
| agreed yesterday, as reported in The Star,
and action taken upon two of the contested
! items
Mr.. Pitney of New Jersey offered a sub
| stitute for Senate electric light amendment,
| which he explained as follows:
| The Senate amendment requires that all
| electric light wires in certain part of the
! District of Columbia, which are now over
head, shall be placed underground within a
| year. My amendment requires exactly the
| same thing with respect to exactly the
| same territory. But the Senate amendment
| provides that subways or cOnduits shah be
| constructed under regulations made by the
| District Commissioners and under permits
! granted by the Commissioners at the eX-
| pense and for the sole benefit of the COM
| pany or companies owning the present
| overhead wires, and that extensions of
| these conduits may be permitted.
| My amendment, instead of giving a
| monopoly to the one company or two COM
| panies, if such there be, which now have
| the overhead wires provides that the Com
| missIoners shall lay out a system of con-
du1ts to accommodate that territory, and
| shall permit any company to contribute to
| the cost of the construction of the conduit
| system and have the use thereof in proper
ton to the needs of the company. There
| are large number of provisions respecting
| matters of detail. Some of these l have
put in the same form or the same In sub
| stance as the Senate amendment, and 9TH
| ers In different phraseoloSy.
| For a System of Condufts.
| Mr.. Pitneys amendment Is in part as
follows:
| provided further, That all overhead
electric light wires and poles in the terri
| tory bounded by 3 street north, 1st street
| east the fire limits and Rock creek, i'll
cluding said Z street and 1st street, shall
| be removed within one year after the pas
sage of this act and that from and after
| the passage OF this act no further overhead
| electric light wires or poles shall be erect
| ed within said territory, and after the ex-
| piTation of SAID year no overhead electric
| light wires or poles Shall be maintained
within said territory. excepting, however,
| such wires and poles may De necessary
] in alleys for distribution purposes, as here
| matter provided.
THE Commissioners of the District of
Columbia are hereby authorized and re-
qured, soon practicable and within
ninety days after the passage OF this act.
| 10 prepare detailed plans for a system of
underground cOnduits for the territory
aforesaid, specifying the number, charac-
ter and location of the several conduits for
the said territory which plans shall pro-
vide Tor sufficient number of ways or
ducts in said conduits to contain the
wires necessary to take the place of the
overhead electric light wires and other
I
tory, and said condulLS shall also contain
d sufficient number of additional ducts TO
provide IOr ali probable future needs OF said
territory: and each conduit Shall also con-
tain at least two ducts which shall be re-
served for the use of the United States and
The District of Columbia.
AT any time within sixty days after the
| passage of this act any company or cor
poratIon now maintaining overhead or un-
derground wires in the District OF Coiumola
| for electric lighting, telegraph telephone
power heating or other purposes, may ap-
| ply in writing 10 said Commissioners lof
| duct rom in said system of conduits, speci-
tying as nearly may be the number OF
duets required for the present ana future
needs of such company or corporation ana
| the said Commissioners SNAIL after IuIly
hearing the said applicants and all other
parties interested, upon consideration Oh
| the whole matter, settle and determine not
| only the number, character ana location
| of said conGuitS, but also the total huHper
| of ducts to be laid in said conduits, ana
how many of said ducts shall be allotted TO
the several companies or corporations APP
| plying for duct room in said condults, ana
| how many ducts shall be provided and set
| apart for the other present and future
needs OF said territory; and said Commls-
| siCners shall thereupOn prepare the plans OF
/ said conduit system, which plans snail DC
| open to the inspection and examination OF
! any person or corporation applying TO III
! spect the same, and may be modlhed or
| amended by said Commissioners as cir
y,
! quire; and at the expiration of said ninety
! days the said Commission shall proceed
| TO construct said system OF condultS at
| the expense of the several companies or
| corporations TO whom duct room shall have
| been allotted as aforesaid, each company
! or corporation to contribute to the cost OF
| said construction in proportion to the duct
| room allotted TO such company or corpora
| ton.
| The said conduits when completed lex
cept such portion thereof shall be re-
| served for public use), shall be the prop
| erty of the several companies contributing
| to the cost of construction in proportion
| TO the amount of their several contribu-
| tions: but the use of said conduits shall be
| subject to the provisions of this act and TO
| such further laws as Congress may enact
| in that behalf, and the right to maintain
and use said system of conduits shall be
| revocable at any time by Congress upon
making to the parties interested therein
such reasonable compensation if any as
| shall be fixed by Congress.
| And the said Commissioners are further
authorized to issue permits for the con-
| struction of service wires, either overhead
| or underground. in the alleys of squares
| adjacent to street conduits, and for the
| construction and maintenance of such alley
| poles as may be necessary for the distribu-
| ton of electric light wires in such squares;
and any square located within 10 feet OF
| any street conduit shall for this purpose
| be considered adjacent thereto And
SAID commissioners may permit overhead
wires 10 cross alleys where necessary for
such distribution, but no overhead wires
| shall be permitted to be placed or main
| tanned across any street or avenue; and
| said Commissioners may also issue permits
Tor the construction of overhead electric
lines and extensions thereof and house
| connections Herewith in that portion of
the District OF Columbia which lies outside
| OF the fire limits. by any company or cor
| poration now carrying on the business of
! electric lighting in the District of Column
bia.''
! MIR. Pitney's substitute was adopted.
| The Free Library.
| He then offered a substitute for the Sem
ate amendment relating to the free public
library as follows:
| Free public library: For librarian.
$1,000: first assistant librarian $500; second
| assistant librarian, S120: and for rent fuel
| light. fitting up rooms, and other contingent
| expenses, 81, 100; in all, Sc, ,72O
| Provided, That whenever said library
| snail be opened for public use such books.
| periodicals and papers in the existing IL
| braries OF the several executive DEPART
| ments and offices of the government in the
| city of Washington in the Judgment of
| the head of the department. bureau or Of
flee affected are not required for the special
official use of said department bureau or