Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1899-03-18
City Affairs.



piaining their purpose to use only such
part as should be necessary of the
amount asked for, which is $4,000
For it may be found that a good bridge
can lie built for $4,000, so that $4,000
can be saved. We see by the annual re-
port of the City Clerk, just out, that
there is at present over $1,000 in the
brRlge fund, so that if the bridge could
be built for $4,000 we might get along
and only sell $4,000 of bonds The
$50, 600 could be carried along until the
bridge lund, from taxation. would meet
it, We get about $1,000 per year now
from the tax levy made by the county
so the building of the proposed new
bridge need not cause any increase in
taxation, if properly handled.
TAXATION.
The present levy is as high as we
can stand. What every taxpayer
wants is decrease in the levy, not in
crease. Yet it is safe to say, If an en-
ergency should occur when it should
appear necessary to go to the Limit,
which is three per cent. then many
would say, go, if you must.
1t is always a problem with the
Council how TO get along and 40 what
seems necessary and keep inside the
limit. "Cut the garment according to
the cloth and not draw too much on
the future.
1t has only been owing 20 the liberal
increase in building and the material
additions 10 the tax duplicate from
this source that the Council has been
able to do in the las few years This
feature is like a thermometer-just as
soon as the new buildings stop going
on the dupncate just then the Council
will stop. improvements will cease,
and the old jog-trot pace of simply
taking care of what we have will be
resumed and Marietta win lapse back
to the conditions of 1888. We are
willing, however, to leave the question
of tax to the Council, believing they
w.. do the right thing, all of item he
ing taxpayers.
ELECTRIC LIGHT LIANT.
We want to call attention to the de-
STABILITY of locating tnis plant on the
city property just below the lock, so
thatthe fine water privilege can some
day be taken advantage of. There are
several cities in the country which are
using water power TO run electrical
machinery. and these are the very cit
les that are furnishing their street
nights the cheapest. One city furnish
os electric lights to the citizens and
thus makes enough to pay all the ex
penses of the street lights.
There is no good reason why a city
should furnish the citizens water and
not lights. The city could furnish
lights at cost, same as cities furnish
water. But we are getting of from our
subject. Marietta has decided not to
furnish her citizens with light, but has
decided by a vote to furnish her own
street lights. Now, what We are in
siSting on is that the splendid water
power, right at our door, may be util-
lied. According to the City Clerk
statement, we find we paid the River
Gas Co last year for fuel $500. Water
mower would cost about One-fOurth
that amount per year. That would
save the price of the building in a few
years.
This location, i. e., just above the
Phoenix mill on the river bank, would
be near the coal switch ,over two hund-
red and fifty feet from any building
that could with any show of reason OBJ
ject to the location, and would be near
the center of distribution of electrical
power we nave heard so much talk
about
The next best location would be on
the corner where the q. & o. ticket Of
fee now stands. The next, water
works; combine IL with the water
works and save money by running the
two plants with one set of hands.
The city could do the pumping at
night just as well as in the day time,
and the same engineer could run both
engines.