Newport daily independent., 1902-10-06

10 THE EDITOR:
 In head lines you designate as pro test the brief report of the city coun Gil, but recent efforts to intimidate citizens opposing the sewerage move ment do indeed give occasion for pro test, and they now protest against such conduct. Tn vindication of the course of these citizens in refusing to be made parties to the sewerage petition and in condemnation of the promo ters of that enterprise, it is only nec- essary to state facts. About August last these promoters sent out their agents by twos and threes to make 8 house to house visitation throughout the city and burdened with message of unbounded astuteness. These pro moters, knowing that taxes were bur- densome and costs of construction and connections of the sewer could not be approximated, these agents were di rected, when such objections were made, to assure the parties that'their names were wanted only to ascertain the number of real estate owners who would desire q sewer if the same could be had on reasonable terms, and that so soon as 'sthe authorities' could as certain the costs of constructing the sewer, making connections, plumbing, water rates, etc, that they (Ethe au thoriues') would refer the whole mat ter back to the real estate owners for them to determine what action, if any, they would take. These representa- tions were made to sixteen of the per- sons who gave notice of withdrawal, the other two being members of the city council who signed with like un derstanding. Should any one wish to verify this he need only to question the parties themselves, and in fact many others signed with like under standing.
 It is unnecessary to add that no such Information was ever vouchsafed by these authorities or any other person, but when investigation was made the real estate owners learned that the law had humanely provided that for com struction of the sewer proper they could only be charged with 20 per cent of the value of their real estate effect ed, or one fifth of such value, but for construction they could be charged to the limit of the plumbers conscience, and this was spot cash. 1t will be seen that every principle of law and justice gives right to these parties to refuse lending their names to measure so undefined and so fraught with possible disaster to the parties themselves, and yet when they give notice to have their names omitted from this petition they are met with a positive refusal and informed their act of signing was irrevoca0le. Outside the council room it is boastingly declared that these parties shall have the sewer, whether sustained by majority or not, and to those of the party withdrawing who | favored the license of liquors, threats were made that whiskey would be kept out of the city if their scheme of sewerage was defeated. The first observation was of course idiotic, the head of it's author would rattle with vaeuity. The second, though a little soaring, has some meat in it. Without expressing any opin- ion on the liquor question, it may we'll be conceded that the advocates of license are honest in holding that the license system is the only proper way to regulate that traffic and it is the only mode of procuring adequate revenue for the city. But whatshould be thought of sewer advocate who believing this true would nevertheless work against what he considered the l best interests of the city because some other advocate of license should op- pose his views on the sewer system.
 Enough of this. But as doubtlessly, MT. Editor, you expected a more lengthy article, I will switch to am other track. Let us moralize little.
 Suppose Carnegie with his bushels of money should visit Newport and call for Tom, Dick and Harry to ad- wise with as to the best means of grad