The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1911-03-16

The work Of rebuilding the wrecked
houses at the village of Pleasant Prai-
RE was started Monday and it is
expected that within thirty days all
damage wrought by the explosion with
the exception of the damage to the
powder plant will have been cleaned
up. Following the agreement of the
officials of the company to pay damag-
es announced on Saturday afternoon,
contractors were employed to go out
to the village and to other houses in
the county and estimate the amount of
the damage. The officials of the COM
pany will not insist on the rebuilding
being done by contractors in its en-
ploy, but it will pay to the people the
estimated damage as shown by the re-
port of the contractors and they will
be privileged to use the money as they
see fit. All of the estimates are being
made by Kenosha contractors and it
is certain that the people win get ev-
cry cent that is coming to them in the
line of damages. Scores of claims are
being filed against the company for
minor losses and some formal an
nouncement will be made as to the
manner in which these claims will be
taken care of within a few days.
While nearly all of the head officials
of the company returned to Whining
ton on Sunday afternoon General SUI
perintendent George Patterson will re-
main in Kenosha and Pleasant Prairie
probably for a month to aid in settling
up the claims and the company will
also have an attorney here to give ad-
vice in these matters.
Tt will probably be a long time be-
fore the plant at Pleasant Prairie is re-
built and while the officials of the COM
pany state that they feel certain that
it will be rebuilt it is still possible that
the opposition shown to the industry
by the people of Kenosha and the sur
rounding territory may cause change
in this decision and that the company
may ultimately decide to abandon the
plant. ''We want to get the outside
damages fixed up before we start any
thing along the lire Of rebuilding the
plant' said one of the leading officials
Of the company today, "and when this
is finished it will be time enough for
us to look after our own loss. Condi-
tions are great deal better than we
had any right to expect and many of
the buildings of the plant can be put
into condition for use with little ex-
penditure. We propose to build roof
over the soda house at once in order to
save the soda not touched by the ex-
plosion but it will be long time be-
fore the other buildings are rebuilt"
The men who were employed at the
plant are all loyal to the company and
regardless Of their narrowing expert
ences of Thursday evening they. are
ready to go back to work in the plant
if the company decides to resume work.
If the plant should be abandoned all
of these men will be taken care of by
the company and gwen places in other
plants.
The work of making the. original
draft of the bill for the regulation OF
powder plants in the state was COM
pleted Monday by Attorney A. E. Buck
master and he will take the bill to
Madison this evening. It was expected
that a number of fine members of the
legislature would visit the plant on
Sunday but Assemblyman Nicholas
Schmidt Of Marathon county was the
only outside member of the legislature
here. The bill is to be sent to the sem
ate by the committee on state affairs.
It will regulate the storage of powder
in the state and will limit the amount
of the various sorts of powder to be
stored to such small amounts as to pre-
vent III the future any similar explo-
sions. 1t viii also demand from pow
der making companies monthly re-
port showing the amount of powder on
hand at the end of each days bust
ness. This report is to be sworn to by
the head officials in charge of the
plant. Senator Bishop is confined to
his room at Madison with hard cold
and for this reason it was impossible
for him to come to Kenosha on Sunday
but he claims that he has already Sc
cured unanimous consent from the
members of the state senate for the
confederation of the repllation hill