Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1913-01-23
BETTER AND CHEAPER
LIGHT SEEMS ASSURED
City Council Working Out Terms
Of Franchise to New Company.
COUNSELOR MELyIN'S OPINION
Private Consumers TO Have Advanta-
ges Of Competition Although Con
tract Was Made Before New
Company Applied.

BYLAWS AMI ordinances OF the City
Council, consisting Of Mayor Strange,
| Counselor Melvin and Alderman
Linthicum, held a meeting, at which
they went over very carefully the
terms of the proposed franchises
which the Annapolis Public Utilities
/ Company is asking of the city for
the purpose of competing in the
business Of furnishing electricity
and gas to the city. as well as for
commercial purposes.
The committee will probably
meet again before tomorrow night,
the time fixed for submit tting the ir
! report to the Council for final ac
tion. In view of the widesp1 cad
public interest in the matter, here
are the facts from the eity's Jtand-
point.
la the negotiations connected with
the contract for lighting the city
| legal question was involved as to
whether the city had entered into a
lighting contract with the oldsGas and
Electric Light Company for public
lighting, prior to the time that the
new company mad its proposal for
electic lighting, and the matter hav-
ing been referred to City Counselor
Melvin for his opinion on this legal
question, at the meeting of the City
Council held on Tuesday last, Mayor
Strange laid before the Council the
Counselor's opinion, there having
been at that time, two separate ques-
tions involved: first, the proposed ordi-
nance granting the new company GER
tain franchises for entering the city.
and. second, proposed contract with
the new company for street and pub
lie lighting. Counselor Melvin's
opinion was on this last question, it
being purely a legal one, and is as
follows:
January 81, 1918.
Hon. James +. Strange, Mayor of
Annapolis, Annapolis, Md.
Dear Sir In response to your re-
quest for my legal opinion as to
whether or not the City Of Annapo-
lis now has binding contract with
the Annapolis Gas and Electric Light
Company for lighting the city, re-
speetfully advise as follows:
fhe facts involved in this inquiry
are substantially these: On the ate
of the regular meeting of the City
Council held on December 9, 1912,
the Committee on Electric Lights
reported that they had received from
the Annapolis Gas ahd Electric Light
Company two written proposals for
lighting the city, one proposal being
on the basis of a three year contract,
and the other on the basis of FIVE
year contract, and the committee
formally recommended that the pro-
posal on the basis of the fiv s-year
contract be accepted. The Council
then, by motion duly made and sec
onded, unanimously adopted this re-
commentator, and acceptedthe com
pany' said proposal. subject to the
approval of the contract by the Couu-
selor.
This reference to the Counselor
was. of course, for inspection as to
mere matters of form concerning the
contract, and on or about December
ID, 1919, the two copies of the con-
tract, with certain corrections in the
form which in no wise affected the
terms agreed on, were re turned to
che Council Chamber with the Coun-
selor's approval as to form.
1t was at that time generally un-
derstood and agreed that this pro-
posal of the Company's, and its ac-
ceTtance by the city, constituted a
| completed contract, and, there hav-
/ ing been at that time no question on
/ this point, the prompt signing OF
| the contract was not urged by either
party. Subsequently, co wit, on or
about December 81. 1912. the Com
mittee on Electric Lights fled writ
ten request with the Mayor not to
sign this contract" until the next
regular meeting of the Board. The
matter was then referred to me, as
/ above stated.
The aforegoing statement of the
/ facts of this matter is sufficient to
show one point, at least beyond any
reasonable doubt, and that is that
from the standpoint of good faith and
equitable dealing the city is bound
bv the contract with this company.
| Then, too. taking the strieter view
! point OF the legal authorities, this
written proposal by the company and
the city's formal acceptance of il
constitute what is known in law as
completed contract, and the
mere fact that the actual signing Of
/ such contract has not taken place rem
ders tae proposal and acceptance
none the less binding.
There are q great many authorities
in support of this view of the matter,
but without referring to them al
| length / submit the following quota
tion as q clear expression of the gen.
eral rule of law governing such cases
"a contract is entered into between
two corporations when one of them BY
some corporate act proposes terms Il
the other and this other, a municipa
I corporation. thereupon passes al
ordinance embracing them, and ii can