The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1919-10-24
For Mayor.

consultation with a number of his
friends, as a candidate for re-elec-
ton to the Office of Mayor of Union
City, election to be. held Saturday,
January 8, 1920. The candidacy of
Mr.. Pittman has really been a mat
ter of doubt for the reason that he is
under obligations 70 his employers,
the Lake County Manufacturing Co.,
for practically all his time, and he
was not willing to impose upon the
people of Union City if he had no
time to devote to public AFFAIRS.
Therefore when an urgent demand
was made that the Mayor stand for
reelection, he at once put the mat
ter I'D to the men who are entitled
to his services, and with their con-
sent he comes before you again, ask
| ing for Endorsement to the Sc
cond term. In political parlance, the
Endorsement for second term is
Democratic birthrigEt. Therefore
the Mayor and his friends feel that
as a candidate he is entitled to more
than the usual consideration, with
other things being equal.
Mr.. Pittman, however is not re-
living upon his claims for indorse-
ment any more than upon his record
in Office, his stewardship as Mayor
Some five years ago Mr.. Pittman
moved to Union City and from the
beginning he demonstrated the fact
that he is a man of sterling charac-
ter, sound business principles, exc
cutive ability, and an aggressive ma
ture combined with discretion and
| Judgment. In other words, he has
the qualities which are the moving
forces in the building of big bust
ness and public utilities.
However, with floating indebted
ness of over fifteen thousand dol
lars and the handicaps of war and
high prices, 1t was to be seen clearly
that the policy then most advisable
was to liquidate as nearly as possible
and to conserve every resource
against a more trying and exacting
period of warfare, and this policy
was religiously adhered to by Mr..
Pittman and his board. And so
when the armistice was signed the
financial conditions had improved to
the extent that it was thought proper
to make some street improvements.
In the meantime we should have
mentioned that early in the winter
the water supply was threatened, and
necessity demanded a new well
which was bored and installed at a
cost of six thousand dollars.
Before the Inauguration of the
street work new school building
to take the place of the one destroyed
by fire was built for the colored PEG.
pie of Union City.
Beginning with the street work
it is proper to mention the fact that
Mr.. Pittman has always favored 9
hard-surfaced pavement for the bust
ness streets of Union City. He was
settled in his belief that no substi
tute would take the place of asphalt
wood or concrete; and it was only
after two attempts were made to get
the property owners to agree to al
abutment plan, whereby part of thu
! cost was to be assumed by the pro
perty owners and the other part b.
the city, that the hard pavement
proposition had to be abandoned.
OF course the board could have gon'
ahead and involved the city in NOR,
debt and taxes for this work, bu
Mr.. Pittman's judgment was that i
wasn't good business, also an in
justice to tax every property owne
in Union City for the benefit of tn,
owners of business houses almost ex
clusively. 1t must also be stated her,
to the credit of the board that onl!
two or three property owners hell
. out against the abutment plan.
r Now as to the Tarvia paving.
: is not altogether satisfactory. Blu
. nowhere was there anything better
/ to offer. Every town which is no
using solid pavements is experiment
/ ing with substitutes, and most o
them are using Tarvia. Our streets
} are being improved with crushed
limestone and Taryia, and on tn,
theory that some improvement Il
better than none at all Tarvia il
J being used in Union City. Mr.. Pitt
] man and his board, in these troub
lous days of unrest, strikes
! riots and the uncertainty of getting
: orders for supplies filed, or none a
| all. are doing everything they cal