Omaha daily bee., 1909-12-19
DUNN HAS GARBAGE SCHEME
Says Only Way is to Let Job So Con-
tractor Can Make Money.
CONFERENCE BRINGS NO RESULTS
Officials Talk Over the Situation
ana Pass Up Everything 20 COun-
ell in Committee of the
Whole Monday.

After a two hours meeting Of the city
council Saturday morning. the garbage sit
uation was left practically in statu quo
pending the regular council meeting next
Tuesday evening. The only definite step
decided on was to order taken from the
file all ordinances touching the collection
Of garbage and their presentation TO the
committee Of the whole Monday afternoon.
Mayor Dahlman, Health COMMISSIONS
Council, Police Judge Crawford, Assistant
City Attorney Dunn. T.. B. Mcpherson and
Guy Axtell all met with the councilmen.
All Of the latter we're present except
Davis and johnson. Davis is out Of the
city and Mr.. johnson honors Saturday as
his Sunday.
Mayor Dahlman and Councilman Berka
exchanged a few thrusts as to the respon-
slbility for the existing situation and Coun-
Gilman McGovern and Messrs. Mcpherson
and Axtell followed suit. Otherwise the
meeting was peaceful and flowed along the
viaduct Of talk without interruption.
The mayor at one point rather took the
council to task for having labored since
last June, with the result OF producing a
resolution that will invite a lawsuit and
nothing else done.
Mayor Will Bear Brunt.
II am here to assume any responsibility
that rests on me, or all the responsibility
up to this very minute, if necessary" said
Mayor Dahlman. And l I'm here now to
say TO the council that ] the
existing contract be declared at an end;
that the contracto be released. he to re-
lease the city and start everything all over
new. What is the council ready to dor"
Berka took warm exception to the init
nation Of the mayor that the council had
been derelict in It's duty.
II am a member Of the special commit
tee named to consider this matter" said
the First ward councilman. I'VE have been
considering 1t ard doing everything pos
sible to bring a proper settlement. 1t
doesn't lie in the province of the health
commissioner or the mayor to come here
and c~riticise the council and 1 am going to
resent anything Of the kind all the time
no matter who makes the insinuation that
the council has failed to do It's duty"
What are you prepared to do now?"
asked Mayor Dahlman. w may talk all
day, or start a lawsuit that will drag
along for a year or two. but what is to
be done to remove this garbage that is
getting knee deep all over the city?'
COUNCILMAN Berka said his resolution
presented a wav out. IL a mandamus suit
would lie, and called attention to his reso-
luton. alluded to by the mayor, as present.
ing the opportunity to the city legal de-
partment to get action, II that was decided
to be the proper way.
Councilman McGovern called Guy L. Ak
tell to the floor and started a cross-exam-
nation that brought forth only a reitera-
lion of the determination Of the garbage
contractor to refuse longer to attempt to
live uD to his contract. -at
Because the city does not protect us in
our contract" he said.
About every, councilman present took a
hand in the argument, Brucker going so
far as to say that the contract now in ex-
istence is null and void. Every lawyer
and every judge knows that" he said.
Finally Assistant City Attorney Dunn
got the floor, on invitation. He stated the
m~andamus, as proposed by Councilman
Berka's resolution, would not work, and
went further.
you may amend this contract said
Dunn, 'or give these people forty con-
tracts, and you will still fall to have gar
bage and refuse removed unless the people
doing It can make money out of the work.
We fought that matter out here for seven
years ana mao DOZENS OK suits, Ihally going
to the supreme court and beating every
ordinance. We defied injunction after in
junction, and no man OF the many arrested
ever paid = dollar. and now you have ex-
sctly the same situation. The contractor
has gone in the hole $4,000 or 10000. as
any other man will under similar clrcum-
stances
Dunn Outlines n Plan.
Dunn then outlined what he believed
could be done successfully.
That thing" he said, rs to let the con-
tract for gathering garbage to men who
have teams and want to employ them to