Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-03-28
THE LEGISLATURE.
Cities and Towns Dilatory in
Street Railway Hearings.
Schemes for Building Expensive State
Highways-Clinton's Contest Over Sew
age PIant-oas investigation
Question.
Especial Correspondence of the spyJ

Especial Correspondence of the Spy)
Boston, March 26.-Several of the
cities and towns of the commonwealth
are just awakening to the fact that the
committee on street railways is consid-
ering the bills proposed by the special
committee appointed to investigate the
relations of the street railways in the
commonwealth and the municipalities
At Fridays hearing on these bills, the
city solicitor of Waltham appeared and
asked for further time. This gentleman
also represented that the solicitors of
MedGord and Newton had instructed him
to ask for time on their account as well
as on his own, and the result was that
the hearing was continued until Tues
day.
OF the two bills proposed by the spec
tal committee, there is only one that
seems to receive serious attention from
the con mittee this year This Is the bill
which provides for an additional tax
upon street railway companies, accord
ing to their gross income per mile Of
tracks. The percentage varies from l to
2 per cent of the gross income of the
companies and is paid to the cities and
towns in proportion to the number of
miles of tracks operated by the road
within their limits The bill also pro-
vides for a division of profits above
per cent dividends with the municipali-
ties in which the companies are located.
In return for these concessions there are.
several concessions to be made to the
street railway. companies. The most i'm
portant of these is a fixed tenure for To-
cations and no revocation of location
without the approval Of higher authori-
ty than now obtains, the local boards of
aldermen or selectmen.
Although the hearings of the commit
tees were advertised in every county in
the state, hardly city or town has been
represented at the hearings which have
been in progress now for a whole week.
The roads and bridges committee is
still mulling over the numerous
schemes for a state highway along the
north shore, and if the persistency Of
the senator from the Lynn district
counts for anything the commonwealth
will soon undertake the construction
of state highway along the shore be-
| tween Revere and Lynn, and parallel
! ing a wide boulevard along Revere
| beach, a portion Of which has already
| been constructed.
Under the plea that the metropolitan
| district should have a slice of the high
| way appropriation, those interested in
/
| ing the construction Of the highway al
ready mentioned. notwithstanding the
| fact that It's use for general traffic pur-
poses would be very limited and not
withstanding the demand for the con-
struction of the Salem and Lynn turn
pike as state highway. If there is
| any reason for the expenditure Of
many think the money should be ex-
pended in the construction of the road
| that Is used by the farmers and gerden-
| ers of eastern and northern Essex and
| by the people in general.
There is another extravagant state
highway scheme in northern Middlesex
and northern Essex. This Is the build
ing of state highway from Lowell to
the sea-" This subject was broached
two years ago by enthusiasts from
Lowell, and was in fair way of sue
cess until certain land owners in the
suburbs of Lowell wanted the highway
on the south side Of the river instead
of the north. Nothing will kill the
whole scheme of state roads so quickly
as the enactment Of a few of these
special bills, which not only call for
extravagant road construction, but take
the original authority of state highway
building out of the hands of the COM
mission and place 1t in the hands Of the
legislature.
Two bright Worcester county lawyers
have been opposed to each other during
the session on bin that is of consider
| able interest to the township Of each
man. They are District Attorney Her
bert Parker of Lancaster and Gen. John
| w. Corcoran of Clinton The bill in
dispute is a measure to provide system
of sewage disposal for the town of Clin-
ton, whose old course has been abolished
by the taking Of the Nashua river as a
source of water supply for the metro
! politan district.
| Clinton is now forced to obtain a new
system of sewage disposal, and Is going
to adopt the filtration system. but being
| a small town territorially and a large
one in population, she is obliged to go
beyond her own limits in order to se-
cure the land for the filtration beds
So she goes to Lancaster the town
northeast on the Nashua river, but her
| manner of going hasn't pleased the
Lancasterians, and they have shown
| fight. The result, happily, has been eff
fected by compromise between two or
three of the parties interested.
1t has been agreed by the town OF
Lancaster, or those who represent her
and the metropolitan water board, that
Clinton shall have her filtration beds on
the cemetery lot" so called, in the
town of Lancaster. Clinton will have to
pump llCl sewage " THESE Deus, ana
this will be more expensive than the
original plan, which provided for beds
further down the river, and which
would be reached by gravitatlon The
obnoxious proposition has been disposed
of as far as Lancaster and the metro
politan water board are concerned, but
there may be further fight from Clin-
ton.
The gas question is still with the leg
islature. The recommendation of the
house committee on rules, on Thursday,
for the admission of the two bills for the
repeal of gas charters those of the Mas
sachusetts Pipe Line Gas Company and
the Boston Gas Light Company, are on
the house calendar and will come for
consideration early 1.-The next week.
1t is doubtful, however, if anything
can be accomplished along this line
This plan failing there will be nothing
left for the house members who believe
in action. but house order for investi-
cation. And the chances for success of
this order are not as good, apparently,
as they would have been Immediately
after the defeat of the joint order by the
senate. 1t is possible that the house may
rise to the occasion but it doesn't look
bright at the present time.