The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1921-06-08

to wear. The only difference in the
three pieces Of roadway was about sc
worth of asphalt TO the square yard
was spread on the Liberty street end
purely as a matter OF experiment TO
determine if it would protect the sur
! face for any considerable length OF
time. The specifications for these
three pieces OF work, the price paid
ifor same and the contractor that did
1.-THE work was one and the same, SO he
has balled himself up again in trying
! to dig up non essentials.
Mr. Jennings has reference to q
conversation that had with him with
regard 70 his candidacy last summer
| for mayor. l wish to say to him that
| this process Of frost bitten feet is all
| in his Imagination as about everything
| else he says in his article is. l had
perfectly good and valid reasons 10
| Quit council last summer when l re-
signed and have never entertained Tor
q moment since the rcmotest idea OF
offering to serve the city either IN the
capacitv of mayor or councilman, al
though having been urged for both
since my resignation. / have all /
can say grace over in financing my
own private affairs and assisting IN
the affairs of the financial institution
with which l happen 70 be connect
ed and certainly l would not under
take the strenuous job Of financing the
city Of Sumter in its present debt-rld-
den financial condition.
+
ed that the floating debt OF the city
was about one hundred thousand dol
lars | find from the records that
| it is now something over two nun
i dred and sixty thousand dollars and
still growing.
Mr.. Jennings refers to my quitting
council on account of DIVISION OF
opinion in the purchasing Of fire en-
CINE. He knows very we'll that THIS
was a mere incident and the last
| straw. as there was a sharp division
of opinion in the council on the pur-
chase of the electric light plant. 1t
was not my purpose to refer TO thlS
angle Of the city's affairs, and regret
to have to do so now, but inasmuch
as my policy of waiting for more
normal conditions in the eXpendi-
ture of public funds and an analysis
Of the way this matter was handled
would not be out Of place.
Mr.. Roosevelt who conducted the
negotiation for the sale Of this plant
for the lighting company offered
council three options, one being 10
put the plant in thorough condition,
enter into an agreement to sell to the
city within two or three years if they
still desired to purchase, or if the rate
was deemed too high they would be
willing 20 revise this rate to a 12:r
basis, or if the management was OBJ
| jectionable to replace it with new
management, all Of which was re-
jected by Mr.. Jennings. as ne stated
| that he had council pledged to
purchase the plant and it was his pur-
pose to buy The upshot Of the whole
| matter is instead Of having Il !flant
equipped for three hundred and nifty
thousand dollars, being the proceeds
of sale of bonds for this purpose, the
cost is up around twice this amount;
thu. interest alone on this investment
amounts to some three thousand or
more dollars per month or 500 q day.
Take the power house for instance:
estimated to cost considerably less
than one hundred thousand dollars,
now up to one hundred and thirty
thousand dollars. and everything else
bought at the peak Of high prices.
Had a conservative policy been adopt
ed these half price brick, lime and ce-
ment that Mr.. Jennings speaks or
would have been available for TINS
| lob. Doubtless machinery could be
| bought for much less today, so this
] matter of building. regardless Of mar
ket conditions, is evidently an expen-
sive passiine for the taxpayers. 1t
| is his idea to adopt this identical pol
;cy for hard surfaced roads and the
result would be the same.
referring to the one hundred and
twenty-five miles of road promised, he
makes reference to il in his former
article. / have heard h m my s.
refer to op G hundred and tWen--
tty-fiVtr miles as the approx
mate mileage and i: has been
contemplated by all parties that one
hundred and twenty-five miles was
what would have 10 be built. These
statements about cost Of material and
road construction being down about
half is pure fiction. Just two or three
days ago the city Of Columbia let a
contract for eleven thousand dollars
worth Of four inch sidewalk, with
quite a number of contractors bidding.
and the price was $1.G0 per yard, just
twice. what the city Of Sumter paid.
IN conversation two or three nights
ago with the contractor on the con-
crete read from Florence to TimmonS-
vile, he stated their price was more
than $500 per yard, exclusive Of
excavation. so this is additional evl-
dence if he needs it in his magma
ton Of this great reduction he speaks
about.
Mr.. Jennings most beautifully side
steps my reference to the favoritlsm
shown the Peoples Bank. as ! knew
he would do He blunders around