The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-07-29
COMMON COUNCIL
KEEL S LIGHT CONTRACT


Rejects Ordinances Awarding Con
tracts for Lighting City Building
md Hose Houses for Three Years.
Meeting Broken UP by Excitement
on Main Street, Which Makes Ad-
vertising for Bids Again Neces-
sary-other Doings of Council.
The somewhat stormy careers of the
lighting contracts for the city building
and the two hose houses were checked
last night in common council by both
ordinances meeting with a sudden
death.
The light question is now where it
was month ago. There is no con-
tract for any of the buildings; bids
will have to be advertised for again
and the same drawn out councilmanic
ceremony will have to be gone through.
A Joint meeting of councils will have
to be called and the ordinances award
ing the contracts will have to go
through each council.
Some action would have been taken
at last nights meeting obviating the
. necessity for re-advertising for bids, but
Just as council was considering such
a step, the car collision on Main street
took place. A councilman, shouted,
There's woman run down by car
Move we adjourn" shouted another.
In good deal less time than 1t takes
to write this paragraph, council had
adjourned and the city hall corridor
was choked with hustling councilmen
led by the newspaper men. Perhaps
the manner of adjourning was not
what would be called dignitied, but it
was at least record time. No session
of councils in this city ever broke
up as did this one.
The action that council intended to
take was to have the ordinances modi-
fled to read for one year. But for ad-
journment, this would have been done,
and there would be no further delay or
additional expense.
Last nights action of common coun-
Gil established the fact that there is
an overwhelming opposition led by
Mr. Sahm against a contract for more
than one year. A contract for a longer
period, it can be safely predicted enjoys
no immediate chance of going through
the lower branch. The members so
is no mistaking their course.
When the select council ordinance
granting the three years contract for
the hose houses to the Lackawanna
company came up it was given to the
light committee, on motion of Mr..
Kennedy, to report forthwith. Messrs.
Sahm, Thompson and Cook, the COM
mittee, took the ordinance and return
ed in a few minutes with an unfavor-
able report The report was adopted
unanimously. The contract for the
city building in favor Of the Carbondale
Gas company Jared likewise.
When the latter report came up, Mr..
Nealon inquired why the committee ad-
vised such action. Mr.. Sahm spoke
for the committee, saying:
''At the joint session Of the light COM
mittee we voted in favor of a one-year
contract. Councils in joint session ac-
cepted and adopted this report. Select
council, at later meeting, undid this !
work by amending the contract for |
three years. If council can do this |
fail to see the necessity for light |
committee. Furthermore, I am op- |
posed on general principles to long |
contract 1 don't think councils have |
any right to legiSlate ahead for three |
years any more than they have for |
thirty-three years. No law should be |
passed by them that will tie the hands |
of coming councils. And, then, as l |
said at an earlier meeting l believe
we will get better service from a yearly |
contract than under one of larger
time. 1t may cost a little more, but
it will be cheaper in the end, because of
the better service the company will
give in order to renew the contract"
The report was unanimously adopted.
Later Mr.. Kennedy sought to have
some action taken that would prevent
longer delay and the readvertising for
bids. The lightning-like adjournment,
however, forestalled such action.
The minor business transacted was
the passing on third reading of the
select council ordinance providing for
a hydrant in the Third ward, and the
in the following resolu-
tons:
Directing city engineer to prepare an
estimate of dredging the channel of the
Fallbrook creek, along where it has
given so much trouble.
Providing for cross-walks on Fall
brook street In front of the Italian
Catholic church, and in front of the
congregational church on Church
street.
A resolution directing that Spring
street be graded and ditched between
Ninth and Salem avenue, was referred
to committee with instructions to re-
port at the next meeting.