The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1914-05-14
City Attorney Files Suit in the Dis
trict Court to Compel Tele-
phone Company to Pay
the City $l235
ACTION BASED ON
NEW ORDINANCE
Council Fixes Charge Of $l.OO Per
Pole which Company Declines
toPay Failed to Render
Report on Poles

In petition filed yesterday in the
district court by city Attorney Ham
merly, the city of Chickasha, in a suit
entitled the City of Chickasha VS.. the
Pioneer Telephone and Telegraph Co,
asks that the defendant pay 1925 to
the city for the use of the streets and
alleys of the city, according to the
terms OF an ordinance passed assess
ing the company 81 each for all teIe-
fhone poles erected and maintained
within the city limits by the company.
The petition alleges that on Janu-
airy l, 1914, the city council of Chick
asha, in regular session, duly passed
an ordinance covering the erection and
maintenance of telephone poles by tel
ephone companies in Chickasha and
for the privilege of using the streets
and alleys therefor, placing tax of
II per annum for each pole maintain
ed and used by such companies and re-
quiring true and correct statement
to be furnished the city each year as
to the number Of poles; that the or
dinance as passed by the council was
duly published according to law in the
Chickasha Daily Express on January
s, with an emergency clause attached
and that it was in full force and effect
thereafter.
The petition further alleges that
during all times and specifically on
April !, the Pioneer Telephone com
nany owned and used within the city
limits 1885 telephone poles and that
by the enactment of the ordinance and
by reason of the use of the streets
and alleys for placing telephone poles.
the defendant became justly indebted
to the city Of Chickasha in the amount
of $i2S5. The plaintiff also asks that
not only that amount be paid by the
defendant, but also interest at 6 per
cent from April / until final settle
ment of the claim Is made.
The case grew out OF one Of the
first official acts OF the council in
1914 At the first meeting OF the
year, January l, an ordinance was
read providing that tax of 81 per
pole per year be assessed upon all
telephone companies operating and
owning property in Chickasha. The
pf5neer was the only company affect
ed by the ordinance. The emergency
clause attached to the ordinance made
is law as soon as published, which
publication occurred on January S.
just five days after its passage. At
the meeting in which the ordinance
was passed, five of the eight council
men were present and all voted in
favor Of the measure.
According to the terms fixed by the
ordinance, the telephone company was
instructed to make true and correct
report of the number OF poles owned
and maintained by the telephone COM
pany, within the city limits of Chlcka-
sha. This the telephone company neg
lected to do and at a subsequent meet
ing the council, a committee was nam
ed and instructed to count all the tele-
phone poles owned and maintained
within the city limits by the Pioneer
Telephone company.
Following the report of this com
mittee, some weeks elapsed and no
communication of any kind was receiv-
ed from the telephone company. Pro
ceedings were then started and re-
suited in the filing of the suit yester-
day in the district court for the col
lection of the amount. The telephone
company has not answered the plead
ings in court and according to law have
80 days in which to file such answer