318 Called Meeting of City Council August 24, 1877 Council called to order at 8 o'clock P.M. Mayor de Frees in the chair Roll called and the following Members answered Alderman Desmond, Cook, Jones, Dunmore, Fogle, Hard and Withers Absent Alderman Woffenbaugh, Maas, Robinson Gorman Present On Motion of Alderman Hard the reading of the Journal of last Meeting was dispensed with His honor informed the Council that he had called them together for the purpose of discussing the question of Sewerage The Hon James Smith County Judge H. Dreyehoff Capt. M. B. Mather and several other gentlemen were present and the matter of sewerage was fully discussed. Alderman Cook moved that the City of Austin pay one third of the expense for the building of a Sewer from the Capitol to the river, providing that the County of Travis pay one third and the remaining share can be raised by subscription from Citizens Alderman Cook withdrew his Motion. On Motion of Alderman Desmond the subject of Sewerage was postponed Alderman Cook Moved to adjourn. Motion lost. The Special Committee to whom was referred the matter of paying the Mayor fees in cases where persons convicted in Mayors Court have worked out the same on the public Streets submitted the following report Austin Texas August 25th 1879 To the Hon Mayor and Board of Aldermen Gentlemen Your Committee to whom was referred the question of fees of the Mayor to beg leave here to submit the following report. That the Charter of the City of Austin, prior to the amendments of 1876 reads as follows, to wit. And for such work and labor the person so employed shall be allowed, exclusive of his board, such amount as may be fixed by ordinance, not to exceed One dollar per day for [illegible] days work, Which amount shall go towards --- Page break --- 319 paying such fine and costs, (Concluding Part of Article # 1st City Charter) Article #352. City Ordinances is an exact copy of the above Article of the Charter, Article #125. in fixing the fees of the Mayor, gives him in addition to his salary certain fees In the Judgement of your committee it was the design of the Legislature to compensate the Mayor for services performed by him in his Judicial capacity, when the convicted parties work out their fines and costs upon the public streets, as well as that said parties should pay the Mayor his fees, when they elect to pay their fines and costs, instead of working them out upon the streets- If the Mayor does the work, he is certainly entitled to his legal fees. If the convicted party pays his fine the city gets the benefit of it. If he works upon the public streets the City gets the benefit of his labor, in either event the services performed by the Mayor are equally great. As he is entitled to his fees when the convicted party pays his fines and costs into the Treasury, why is he not also entitled to his fees when the convicted party works out his fines and costs upon the streets, especially when if the party payed his fine and costs instead of working it out upon the streets, The City would have to take money out of the Treasury when said work is done. The labor performed in either case by the Mayor is equally great. The words in the section of the Charter above quoted. To wit, (which amount shall go towards paying such fine and costs" are too plain to admit of construction. So the fee of the Mayor paid by the party working upon the streets is certainly not. When the Charter speaks of paying the Mayors fees, it means what it says, and not that his fees are paid by the party working upon the streets. This is the construction placed upon the above provisions by all of his preceeding Mayors from the time of their enactment. The Amendments adopted in 1895 repealed the above sections and gave the Mayor a salary of $200- per annum in lieu of all fees. A Court of Competent Jurisdiction at the suit of one or more of the Aldermen, declared the said Amendments to be unconstitutional, and null and void and enjoins the Mayor from receiving a larger salary than was allowed him under the Charter before amended in 1895If on final hearing the Amendments are declared unconstitutional and void, it necessary follows that the Charter to say stand do as if the amendments had never been adopted. and that the Mayor is entitled to the Salary and fees of the office unaffected by said amendments --- Page break --- 320 Wherefore your Committee recommends that the Mayor be authorized to draw his warrants monthly upon the treasury for the amount of fees due him from conviction of parties who work out their fines & costs upon the streets Robt. H.C. Ward Louis Maas E I Bremond We find from the records of the Office as is shown by the statement of the City Clerk (hereto attached, that, the Hon T B Wheeler as Mayor, was during the year prior to the Amendments of 1875, which were adopted by a vote of 1207 for to 475 against, the sum of $884.00 cash and $857.25 in Warrants for costs paid & worked out by prisoners Add to that his salary of $600. which together makes his compensation for said year $2255.75 in the above stimulus the fees derived by Mayor Wheeler and other Mayors, from the issuance of license and signing of deeds are not computed, although they drew them. Your Committee are of the opinion that if the amendments are declared unconstitutional upon final hearing, the Mayor is entitled to said fees allowed. This will be one of the unfortunate results of having the Amendments declared unconstitutional by the Courts On Motion of Alderman Withers the report of the Committee was received Alderman Cook Moved that action on the report of the Committee be postponed until there was a full meeting of the Board. Lost Alderman Withers Moved that the report of the Committee be adopted Alderman Taylor called for the Yeas & Nays The Yeas and Nays ordered and the report of the Committee was adopted by the following vote Yeas Aldermen Bremond, James, Garmon, Ward and Withers Nays Aldermen Cook and Taylor Alderman Ward Moved to reconsider the adoption of the report of Committee on fees of the Mayor The Yeas and Nays ordered and the motion was lost by the following Vote Yeas Aldermen Cook & Taylor Nays Aldermen Bremond James, Garmon, Ward and Withers On Motion the Committee on Streets to whom was referred the matter of Signing a Bill for --- Page break --- 321 the benefit of the citizens in ward "y" was requested to report at next meeting On Motion of Alderman Bremond the Council adjourned Approved September 21st 1877 Jno S Herbok City Clerk Regular Meeting of City Council September 3rd 1877 The Meeting was called to order at 8:30 P.M. Mayor Wolfson in the chair Roll called and the following members answered Aldermen Cook, Offenbaugh, James, Maco Robinson, Taylor Ward and Withers Absent Aldermen Bremond and Harmon Quorum present The Journal of the meeting of August 27 (last meeting) was read Alderman Ward moved to correct the the Journal by striking out the motion to reconsider the adoption of the report of the committee on the payment of certain fees to the Mayor. Carried On Motion of Alderman James the Journal as amended was approved Petition of R C Roerberg and Joseph Nall asking authority to build a platform with shade over it for the purpose of receiving Cotton, on Pecan Street adjoining [illegible] [illegible] On motion of Alderman Cook the Petition was referred