Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-12-07
ORDINANCE NOW
UP TO COMMITTEE
City Council Hears New Propo-
sition From Central
Union.
PAY THE LITIGATION COSTS
company Also Agrees to Place Wires
onder Ground and Improve the
Service Generally.
PAY THE LITIGATION COSTS

1oPAOue company last n1fnI1
ai.aough the Indications are tina it
VII 90 SO before long. The ordipince
mas read and referred to meetilg OF
.ne committee of the whole which Is
70 take the matter up next Tuesday
evening.
AS mas heretofore been told in The
argus, the ordinance asks for a %
year franchise and in return promises
70 make number or improvements
III the service and equipment Of the
company In the city. The wires are
70 De placed under ground in the fire
district and as far out as Seventh
avenue on Seventeenth street and con-
siderable care is to be exercised in the
placing Of poles in the otherfparts of
the city to see that they do not inter
Iere in any way with thoroughfares.
The service is to be gre&tly improved
and the company assures the city that
the same rates will be charged in this
city as are charged in other cities Of
equal size. The comJany agrees in
the document to supply the city with
20 phones for the use of the city Off
cials and to assign 70 phones for the
use of the police department.
To Pay Cost Of Litigation.
On authority of the company rep
roSentatives & clause was inserted in
the ordinance providing for the de-
fraying of the costs by the company
OF. the litigation it has been engaged
in with the municipality the past
three years, dating from the time the
validity of its franchise was ques-
toned and attacked. On acceptance
by the city CT the ordinance the com
pany promises to pay to the city the
sum Of S3,5O0.
While the maximum rate question
has quite properly been a sticking
POINT in Rock Island all along the pub
lie. too. hfs a right 20 be protected IN
re standard CT service to be main
LINED under the new conditions. The
company has given its ultimatum in
reference to rates. holding that it
ill not depart from its known pol
il not 10 insert a maximum rate
arge in an ordinance. However. il
{ IS agree that the rates here will
Re &c higher than those charged in
lilies Of similar size. mere is nj
Hnring that tho company has been
ruishing miserable service 10 its
! cal patrons. II mas claimed that
! was handicapped owing to the lin
/ aJ;cns Of its plant, net desiring tc
so ahead with extensions until it had
q new ordinance. Thus it behoOveS
the council TO weigh we'll every clause
CT the new proposition and to place
the company in a position where it
will be obligated to take better care
of it's patrons here in the matter OF
service than it has in the past.
w. B. Mann, indianapolis, general
counsel of the company. and c. H
Rottger, Springfield, division superin-
tendent for Illinois. were present at
the meeting of the city council.
Filter Up Again.
The filter matter cane up before the
council N a recommendation from the
Pittsburg Filter Manufacturing com
pany to the effect that several slight
additions be made to the contract
which is TO be entered into between
the company and the city. The con-
tract provides that the company be
paid from time to time according TO
the amount of work which has been
done. Now the company wants to be
able to collect for such material as 1t
machinery as is prepared for shipment
and about which the city has been
given 10 days notice.
In addition to this, the company
wants a clause inserted in the contract
which assures that the title to the
plant shall remain in the company un-
til the whole amount of the contract
price is paid. There was some OBJ
lection raised again this latter clause,
the directors being for the most part
the aldermen who opposed the grant
ing Of the contract to the Pittsburg
company as recommended by Engineer
j. W. Alvord. No action was taken
on the proposed amendments to the
contract, as the alderman wanted time
II think them over.
other Business Done.
being the first meeting of the
tn, the reports from the police ma
the police magistrate, the plumb |
ing Inspector, and the superintendent
of the Waterworks were read and plac-
ed on file. On motion of Alderman
Blochlinger it was decided to give city
water free to the West End mission,
as 1t is in measure both church and
a school, and was deserving of the
same advantages given the latter.
The bids for the supply of coal for
the use of the city during the coming
year were opened and referred. The
bids include figures from the follow
ing companies: Rock Island Sand & |
Gravel company, Central Illinois Fues
company, Coal Valley Mining company |
Port Byron Lime association, c. E. |
Myers Coal company, and the Rock Is
land Fuel company.
Pr. Trenkenschuh put in bill for |
$3,225.75 for the relaying Of the Sew
enteenth street sewer, and it was re-
ferred to the finance and waterworks
committees
Piles Cured In to IA Days.