The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-03-08
FOURTH OF JULY REPORT.


the committee to be 81, 005. SO, and the ex-
penditures S6, $500, leaving balance of
SAG. Al to be returned to the city. Alder
man Rounds moved that the report be re-
ceived and placed On file in the city
auditors office and where,any person may
see the amounts paid to the committee by
outside individuals and the amounts paid
out.
Alderman Leighton asked to have this
report placed before the committee on &C
coants to be examined. He said he under
stood that $1,000 had been taken from the
contingent fund to pay some of these bills
and he wanted TO know how this had
been done
Alderman Rounds said he considered it
an insult to have the report of this COM
mittee questioned by any one. He was
perfectly willing it should be examined
by any one who wanted to see it, but he
did not like the slur on the committee.
He should ask that other special commit
tees which had expended money during
the past year should make a detailed re-
port rs the Fourth of July committee had
done, and particularly would he ask for a
detailed report on the entertainment of
the officers of the steamship Pallas.
Alderman leighton said that the city
had appropriated $500 for the Pallas enter
tainment. OF this amount $3.50 had been
expended and the balance had been re.
turned to the city. He understood that
the committee on July 4th had incurred
bills to the amount of $1,000 over and
above the amount collected and appro-
priated by the city. This amount had
been paid from the contingent fund. The
July 4th committee had exceeded it's
authority.
Alderman Rounds asked the Mayor il
any money could be paid out of the con-
tingent fund without the committee on
accounts first passing upon them.
| The Mayor replied that he thought such
thing would be impossible.
| Alderman Rounds-"The gentleman
| from seven is chairman of the committee
on accounts. He must have known these
bills were being paid out of the con-
tingent fund for if he had not signed
them they would not have been paid. 1t
was his fault if anything went through
| the committee which ought not to have
gone through. -
| Alderman Leighton-"These bills of
the July 4th committee I approved with
the understanding that they must be paid
at once, and that the committee on the
celebration had money enough coming in
from the railroads to make up the sum
expended which would be turned back in.
| to the contingent fund. Some $1,000 was
taken from tho contingent fund and only
$i46 was returned to it,"
Alderman Rounds then explained that
the committee on celebration had been
1 promised by the railroads ten per cent
rebate on ali fares to Portland on July
4th. The railroads carried immense
crowds, in some places larger crowds than
they had ever brought to this city before
on July 4th. These roads should have
turned into the committee enough money
/ to more than make UP the $1,000, but they
didn't do it. They sold limited amount
,, of excursion tickets and after these tickets
were exhausted they sold regular tickets,
thus cheating the committee out of what
they should have received. 1t was moth
| ing for which the committee could be
blamed and they did the best they
could under the circumstances.
| The report of the committee was then
| ordered on file and the common council
acted in concurrence.
Alderman Mcdonald reported favorably
on entering into contract with the
Peaks Island Water and Light company
and introduced an order authorizing the
mayor to contract with the company for
twenty MIGRANTS for fire purposes for q
term of twenty years at the rate OF $50
each per year.
The order was finally amended by leav-
ing the contract price and the length of
the contract to be decided by the mayor.
The order then had a passage and also
COMPLIMENTARY TO MAYOR
RANDALL.
Alderman Kehoe then made a very neat
speech In which he moved that vote Of
thanks be extended to the mayor for the
courteous and impartial manner in which
he had presided over the deliberations Of
the board for the past year.
City Clerk Dyer put Alderman Kehoe's
motion to vote and it was unanimously
passed.
In reply the mayor also spoke of his
pleasant relations with the board Of alder
men and thanked them for their courtesy,
hoping that the pleasant relations would
never be interrupted between himself and
the members of the board personally.
The board then adjourned.
IL IN COMMON COUNCIL.
All of the mem bers of the common
council were present when President
Virgin called the council to order. There
was one vacant chair only, and that was
~