The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-10-08
BRoTHERToN MAY SLIP IN.
THE MACHINES HEAD WAY GET on
THE POLICE BOARD.

Enough of His Friends Get Into the
New Council 10 Give Him "a Ma
jOrity of One Vote In That Body.
BrothertOn May BE In Position
TO Checkmnte Mayor Woodward In
bringing About Reforms In the
City Government - Mayor Collier
Fires Bomb Into AtIanta's Poll
tics by Saying the Defeat of Water
Bonds Was Purchased.
Atlanta. Ca. Oct lone of the odd re-
suits of the recent municipal primary is
that Capt W. Il. Brotherton, the head
of the city machine, who seemed TO have
been completely whipped in the election
of Woodward as Mayor, viii. in an likeh-
hood win out In his own personal am
bition. that is to be police commissioner
1t was generally charged and believed
during the campaign that Capt. Broth
erton was advocating the nomination Of
Mr.. Martin in the hope of securing seat
on the police board through his success.
This was one of the leading issues in the
campaign. Mr.. Woodward making much of
IT. and when the result was asceTtained,
the partisans Of that gentleman exulted
as much over the supposed blasting Of
Brothertons hopes as over the success Of
their candidate.
Mr.. woodward, in many of his speeches,
boldly declared that If he was elected
Mayor, Brotherton would never be made
police commissioner. The Mayor has a
vote on this in case there is tie in
Council, which seemed possible even at
that time. Mr.. Woodward also dared Mr.
Martin to come out and say that he would
or would not support Capt. Brotherton
for commissioner in case he was elected
Mr.. Martin declined to do so, and this
virtual admission of the combination with
Brotherton was considerable factor IN
his defeat. Now. however, it turns out
that taking the old councilmen who hold
over into account, enough new members
who are friends of Capt Brotherton have
been elected to give him a majority of
one vote In that body While Brotherton
and his machine got il in the neck on
the mayoralty. barely a sufficient number
of his friends standing for Council
slipped in, and viii be in
position to place him on the police board
despite the avowed warfare OF Mayor
elect Woodward. There is little doubt
that Capt. Brotherton win ask his friends
to do this, and in view of the bitter feel
ing between Woodward and Brotherton,
it may be that the latter Will nave sutfi-
Gent influence with his faction an Coun-
ell to make all kinds of trouble for the
new Mayor, when ne comes to carry into
effect any of his proposed plans and re-
forms In the city government
This feature of the election has caused
a good deal of gossip since a canvass of
the new members of Council shows that
enough of them are Brotherton men to
give him a majority in elections, and the
politicians are already figuring out a
completely of interesting situations when
the new admins tration goes in.
Mayor Collier to-day sprung another
bomb in local politics by coming out in en-
interview declaring that the Georgia cleo
trio Light Company was responsible for
the defeat of the water bonds. He and
Mr.. Atkinson, president of that company,
have been at outs for quite a long time,
neither losing an opportunity TO crack
the head of the other every time there
was an opening. The source of the trou-
bic is the proposition for the ownership
by the city of its own lighting plant, the
Mayor being the father Of the agitation,
which resulted in a favora BILE vote by the
people at the recent election.
Mr.. Atksnson's company has been en-
1oying an income from the city of $780, 900
q year for the past five years for furn-
AShti5 titt CITY AButSs anu AidNuid any ne IS
opposed to giving up a good thing. Now
the water bonds were lost by only eighty
eight votes, and Mayor Collier declares
that Mr.. Atkinson openly opposed the
water bonds for the purpose of bringing
discredit upon city ownership of its pub
lie utilities, thereby producing a favorable
argument for a continuation of the light
ing contract with his company. There
were only 164 votes cast against the wa
ter bonds, and as the electric light COM
pany controls more than that number of
votes the intimation of the Mayor is plain
iy that Mr.. Atkinson exercised his con-
troll and thus secured the votes that lost
the proposition.
The Mayor characterizes the conduct of
Mr. Atkinson as an Outrage" and says
he wants to put the people on notice of
the kind of a fight that will have to be
met when II comes TO getting rid of the
Georgia Electric Light Company, at the
expiration of its present contract with the
city.