Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-08
CITY COAL AND WOOD YARD.
The Old Danvers Agitation and What
Became of It

From the Springfield Republican.
At the spring town meeting Of Danvers.
Mass, in 1900, the town voted. by PIT to
1885, to petition the legislature for leave to
eStah1sh "a fuel yard for the purpose OF
supplying itself and It's inhabitants with
wood, coal and other fuel" The petition
was duly signed by the selectmen-Daniel
+. rope, Albert A. Bates and Roswell D.
Bates. The petition came In so late that
the rules required 1t to go over to the Leg
islature of 1901, and the necessary four.
hfths vote to suspend the rules could NOT
be had A part of the vote Of the town was
that the representatives of our district
be requested to present this matter to the
legislature and to do all in their power to
further the same"
In 1901 the matter was referred to the
committee on towns. On March 1 they re-
ported unanimously against granting the
petition. The socialists of the house,
Messrs. MacCartney of Rockland and Carey
of Haverhill. did their best to secure favor
able action. Mr. Carey moved a substitute
BILL such was presented by the petit
TONERS. This bill embodied a full scheme
for municipal fuel plant. Section l gave
authority to the town to do the business.
Fuel could be sold ito its residents inhabit-
ants and such persons and corpora tons
as may be doing business within the limits
of said town" Section authorized the
town to set up the necessary plant. land.
buildings, teams, bins, and on. Section
authorized the town to borrow $40 900 for
that purpose Section 4 authorized the
town to borrow $4,000 for other purposes
of the act. Section required all fuel sold
by the town to be paid for on or before the
delivery of the same, and If II was delivered
in violation of the law, then the man who
W m thn
for the money. Section 9 provided for
three commissioners to have charge of the
business, to be elected at town meeting and
put strict bonds upon them. with penalty
of fine and Imprisonment for violation OF
their trust. The commissioners were to
fix the rates at which fuel should be sold.
but should not sell any at less than cost.
It was further provided that all profits
from the business should be applied to
liquidatng the debt for it, and If there waa
a balance the town should vote what to
do with 1t; that any loss to the town from
the business should be charged to the yard
account; that the fuel should be sold at q
uniform price to all persons and for all
quantities; that after the first five years
the commissioners should establish sink
ing fund, which should clear up the town
debt for the business at the end of fifteen
years; and that the act take effect upon
acceptance by two-thrds vote of the
town at a meeting called for the purpose.
sharp debate occurred over the bill,
and the arguments for 1t were in the So
cialist vein. showing how much cheaper the
town could supply itself and its people by
using the towns credit, buying largely at
wholesale rates with better credit than
private persons, and urging that II was as
reasonable for town to have a fuel yard
of its own as to have its own water sup.
ply. Conservative arguments on the inn
possibility of carrying out the idea pre-
vailed with the house and the vote on the
substitution of the bill was 81 yeas to u
nays. The matter was not presented In the
legislature of 1902.