Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1900-03-17
CITY GOVERNMENT.
First Meeting Of New Board--0Id Pc
lice Force Re-appointed.
Union Gas and Electric Co. Must Remove
Poles Illegally Placed.

The mayor ana board Of aldermen
held their first session since inaugu-
ration. last evening. ana filled some
min offices The old police force was
re-ap0ointed ana public curiosity thus
set at rest. but the most important in
cidcnt III the meeting Was rving No.
dice on the Union Gas * Electric Go.
that ii had been setting poles illegally
and must remove them and set no MGR
without due consent from the authoIi-
tics.
The company has petitoncd for leave
t. erect poles in certain streets. and
tn" mayor, yesterday, ordered motto"
given as required by statute. that such
request was pending. The period re-
quired in such cases is II days. ana tn
board will meet. Saturday evening.
March 81, to decide upon the petition.
But without waiting for such permit
the company proceeded u set poles on
Temple street This is where the com
pany has its most important uptown
customer. the new WOODEN mill, which
it supplies with TIL current that runs
all the machinery Of the mill by means
Of electric motors. The company is
now transmitting this power over wires
strung on the poles Of the Watorville
d; Fairfield Railway & Light 90. and
has been notified To remove its wires
from those poles on April I. So it has
gone to work on the plea of urgency
ana begun setting its own poles in Or
der t. be able t. supply electricity -
the wooden mill.
Two poles which have thus been
~. t,,1
Il appears. placed within few feet of
the poles If the old company. and also
in unusually close proximity to the tel
ophonc wires. This being the case
Messrs Walter s Wyman. superin-
tcndcnt Of the Watcrvillc x Fairfield
Railway q Light 60. ana W. II. say
age. representing the telephone COM
pany, lodged q protest with the mayor
against the dangerous proximity Of the
new poles to the ola ones in view Of
the probability that life would be en-
danger"d when lincmcn ght be work
ing on the wires.
Mayor PhilbrDok accordingly presented
the case to the board OF aldermen. and
quoted fine statute. showing hat the COM
pany was net allowed to set poles until
leave in writing had been granted by the
mayor ana aldermen specifying the
height If the wires ard the exact location
Of the poles. He further called the atten-
ton Of the board to the fact that the
same company had set line Of poles all
the way from the River road to the Oak
land line, had strung wires On them ana
had been transmitting electric current
over The wires for weeks. without the
consent Of the mayor ana aldermen az
required by law.
At the mayors earnest Recommendation
q committee was appointed, consisting of
Aldermen Davies, Learned ana Pitcher.
instructed 70 notify the Union Gas ami
Electric 60. that the poles Illegally erect
ed must b. removed, and that poles must
not be erected without the consent Of the
mayor and aldermen.
The mayor reappointel the present po-
lice force, as fellows: City marshal.
Charles +. Davis; deputy city marshal.
George II. Simpson patrolmen, c. G.
Bridges, Ludger Belanger, j. 4. High
land. Philip HuarG. Roscoe Hanson. II.
+. Kinds. W. $. Jackson. Charles King,
James King. Thomas King. f. W. Lap
ham. J. W. Lemont. George Martin. Jo-
seph Mayo Daniel Morrill, Wilfred Nor
man, II. G. P0oler. John Pooler Harry
Rand. j. r. Roderick Levi Romeo, Ches-
ter Simpson. Edward Simpson, Charles r.