Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

REVENUE OF CITV ■ yp 5300,83(1 IN YEARI9I2 Council Will Have Extra $450.- 000 to Spend if It Antici pates 1913 Increase. i city's revenue increased just ; ,300,833.73 in 1912, according to figures . oinpiled today by Graham West, chief I rrk to the comptroller. on these figures the 1913 city budget .] be based. The total actual reve ... is $2,838,017.53. Approximately one-half of this uoiint was anticipated and appropri ated when the 1912 budget was made ;li , last .January. The remainder was pportioned later ip the year. if the finance committee of the new , 'ministration anticipates an equal in- .■ase in revenue for 1913—and city of- I i ;ai< generally agree that there will j an equal Increase —the new council . a;, have $450,000 more money to spend J was available last January. Treasury May Be Strained. h yor-elect James G. Woodward has j.ii. meed, however, that he will op „,s>e anticipating any revenue. If he i its his point, the treasury will be j •orely strained. Comparative figures of the city's I evenue arc as follows: 1912. 1911. ■ lxeß $2,053,939.33 $1,809,019.84 | eases 216,400.28 218,861.12 1 Police court.. 82,654.96 81.406.4-7 j Xear-beer ii- , enses .... 55,000.01) 14,675.00 j Totals- .. . .22,838,017.53 32,537,181.80 I The tax assessors said today there • ■ lid be a large Increase in assess-| cents in 1913, but limy would not ba:-:- ; ... guess. The officials expect a gain i .'.roximating the $19,000,000 gain of I ' ills’ year. Ti ■ water department wilt show an iii-T.-aae in revenue equal to the gain of ji . p-ar. $56,803.57. No Other Marked Increases. The other departments show no ap- • liable Increases. Wiiile the 1913 budget will contain appropriations totaling more than $5.- fiiHi.O’)”, the actual monej to be up- ; ■ ioiied is the amount stated above, i T.? difference is made up by bond | ....lay. tiie expenditurof ..inch is > n-.uy specified, and placing assess-| .••nts for street and sewer work on . . slues of the finance sheet. The total figure? are thus gieatly increased. I'ouncllniau W. G. Humphrey, of the Elg.r.h ward, is expected to be the new :'airman of the finance committee, sueweding Alderman John S. Candler. But Councilman Humphrey nor any one is absolutely sure whom Mayor Woodward will appoint, and Mayor Woodward won’t tell. AUSTELL THORNTON TO BUILD COUNTRY HOME AT ASHEVILLE GSHEVILLE, N. Dee. 31. Aus tin A. Thornton, formerly of Atlanta, 'l:., who has resided here for the past -everal months, announces that he wnl build modern country home or. the farm of 100 acres near here, which lie. recently purchased lr<-:n Governor- j elect Locke Craig' and Garland A. Thom - j'li. of this city. Mr. Thornton owns ' "fisiderable property in Atlanta, and ■v ill spend a portion of his time there, although he will call Asheville ills home hereafter. Mr. and Mrs. Thornton are admirers ■f good horses, and it is understood that they will maintain large stables in onneetion with their country home. At ine recent Asheville horse show their nimals won many valuable cash prices -nd premiums. UNDERWOOD CONEERS WITH WILSON TODAY ON SPECIAL SESSION TRENTON, N. J.. Dec. 31.—Impor tant announcements concerning the ex tra session of congress are expected as result of today's conference between f’resident-elect Wilson and Representa tive Underwood, the majority leader in ’he house. The meeting took place at 2:3’? '’’clock, the morning' being devoted by -'lf. Wilson to state business. John Maynard Harlan, of Chicago, son of the late Justice Harlan, of the United States supreme court, visited the governor today. He Is an old friend. AUTOMOBILE CRASHES INTO WAGON IN FOG The dense smoke-fog today was the 1 mse of an accident. Dr. Dan Y. Sage, of 431 Washington street, was going north in an automobile on the Wash ington street viaduct in front of New som’s stable. The coast seemed clear, but he heard a rasping noise and felt n Jolt. A wagon belonging to Walker Brothers, wholesale grocers at 2 Wash ington street, had blocked a narrow passage apd Dr. Sage had taken off one of its wheels. The automobile lost a tire and a fender. KILLS MOTHER-IN-LAW: SLEEPS PEACEFULLY KENDALLVILLE, IND.. Dec 31.—Ed ward Hart shot and killed Sarah Mc- Bride, is mother-in-law. and fatalb wounded his wife. Keana, at their home in LaGrange. Hart slept peacefully in the home where the tragedy was enacted ano was arrested after a posse searched six hours for him. KOTTED HUSBAND'S DEATH j • ■ ' "aS A>;. " •/:.<. llWTPkfMBnr j®. .* ' ZOzIMK la ’??, tw* liliil lira"'®.:.. flgMgg*'- // ' ii 11|ilia ill ilk M .di " T ' k If ■’ . ■- "jj 1111 k i 'J I ' 11 ; I' 'I ] I z f'-iF ‘ ZZ ill 4'f z ■» -■ ■ WHIZ4B3W®F - —-■ -■ / * ■ .i!;s. Katherine King, who planned the death of her husband. cowm io I GET COUNTY SITE Secretary4)f State Makes Deci sion in the Bitter Contro versy in Murray. i Phil Cook, secretary of state, today! decided the famous Murray county seal • coiltrove,s,v in favor of Chatsworth. In ruling in favor of Chatsworth and against Spring Place, th*' m.'tary threw out entirely the *27 votes east in favor of Eton, on the ground that E*or. was not included in the ordinary's cal) for a county seat removal election, and that all votes cast for it. therefore, were merely no votes at all. In the original call for this election, it was stipulated that the contest should be between Spring Place, the present county seat, and Chatsworth, a new town on the Louisville and Nash ville railroad, which traverses the coun ty. Afterward, however, Eton was in jected into the light, and the vote given Eton, if counted, would have deprived Chatsworth of the required two-thirds of the vote east. Tile vote was divided as follows. Chatsworth 662. Eton 427. and Spring Place 153. Secretary Cook holds that only 1.017 of these votes are legal and. in that view, Chatsworth received 862 against Spring Place s 155—0 r a tear iwo-thirds and over in favor of Chats worth. This case has attracted no end ol attention throughout north Georgia, and feeling In Murray and M nitfield coun ties has run very high because of it. It was appealed to Secretary Cook some two months ago, all three sides to the controversy being represented by able counsel at the hearing. The case may be appealed to the leg islature. but the Impression is that Sec retary Cook’s ruling means that Chats worth will be the county seat eventual ly. if not immediately. Since the case was appealed, a large number of those who voted for Eton have assured the seer tary of state that, as between Chatsworth and Spring Place, they much prefer Chatsworth. RAIN IS FORECAST. The new year will have a baptism of rain. The weather map portends nothing else but showers on the first day of 1813. and th* promise of rain tonight and probably Wednesday has been posted. THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 1912 R. R. CHIEFS CHARGED WITH MANSLAUGHTER FOR DEATHS IN WRECK BRIDGEPORT, CONN., Dec. 31. Bench warrants were Issued by Judge Case in the criminal superior court to day at th, instance of the state’s at torney. Stiles Judson, for Henry J. Horn, of Boston, vice president; Ben jamin R. Pollock, general manager, and I Charles N. Woodward, general super i intendent of the New Haven, officials lof the New York, New Haven and I Hartford Railroad Company. The men are charged with man i slaughter in causing the death of pas | sengers who lost their lives in the | wreck of the Springfield-New York ex- I press on the New Haven road, which was derailed and wrecked while taking the short cross over at Westport bridge, October 3 last. More Officials Indicted. INDIANAPOLIS. IND., Dec. 31. Sweeping indictments of all the "men higher up" In the C. H. and D. Railroad Company were returned by the Marion countv grand jury today. The indict ments were returned with a view to bringing legal punishment upon the of ficials for tolerating such conditions as brought about the recent C„ H. and D. wreck at Irvington, in which 16 lives were sacrificed. In addition to the officials. Engineer Willis York and Brakeman Carl Gross were indicted. It is understood the in dictments charge involuntary man slaughter. BANK CLEARINGS OF YEAR SHOW HEALTHY INCREASE OVER 1911 Increase in th*? volume of Atlanta's business for 1912 over that of 1911 may be measured by the comparative clear ing house figures, which for 1912 show an increase of $38,8111.833.85 over 1911'* total. The increase is approximately 6 per cent. Clearings for the period of twelve months which ended at noon today amounted to $691,941,254.20, at which figure the records of the Atlanta Clear ing House association for the year were closed. For the twelve months of 1911. the figures were $653,130,420.35. The figures reveal that during the last two months of the year clearings were less than In the final months of 1911, the shortage in December amount ing to nearly $3,000,000. However, in every other season of the year, except the late fall, the 1912 figures are far and away above those of the preceding year. JUDGE C. J. WELBORN RESIGNS. The governor has received the resig nation of Judge C. J. Welborn, of the county court of Jeff Davis, to take ef fect Immediately. 2 INDICTED FOB KNABE SLAYING Veterinary and Undertaker of Indianapolis Held for Killing Woman Physician. INDIANAPOLIS. IND., Dec. 31.—Dr. W. B, Craig, of the Indiana Veterinary college, and A. M. Ragsdale, prominent Indianapolis undertaker, were indicted for the murder more than a year ago of Dr. Helen Knabe, former state pa thologist, by the Marion county grand jury, which reported today. 'The Indictment of Dr. Craig for the crime itself and of Ragsdale as an ac cessory closed a historical session of the grand jury, the secrets of which were carefully guarded, but which probed deep for facts. Undertaker Her Administrator. Surprise was occasioned by' the in dictment of Ragsdale, the undertaker who was the administrator and settled up the affairs of the lone physician who was found on the bedfin her apart ment in the Delaware flats on the morning of October 23, 1911, with her throat slashed in a manner that in dicated the hand of an expert with sur gical instruments. Th* police, after exhaustive work on the case, declared it one of suicide, while the coroner Insisted that his in vestigations, compelled him to decide on murder. A silken kimono is said to figure strongly in the evidence before the grand jury which returned the new in dictments. Some pillow slips are also involved, being articles that did not fig ure In or were overlooked by former in vestigations. Blood on Kimono. Part of the evidence before the grand jury is said to be the finding of human blood, by chemical analysis, in certain of the garments of Dr. Knabe, even after they had been washed. The discovery of the blood spots on the kimono nught be taken to indicate that fir. Knalre wore the kimono at the time of her death, but the witness who found'her says it was not on her at the time. Many new witnesses were ex amined by the grand jury which re turned the indictments today. MOVING DAV IN VIDALIA. VIDALIA, GA., Dee. 31. This Is mov ing day in this place, fully seventy-five families having moved in and out of town today. Most of the movers, however, are farmers moving to their new locations for the coming season. Several of the mer chants have also secured new quarters for the coming year DMITEIIS OFF FDR U. S. PRISON Special Train Takes Convicted Labor Men From Indianapo lis to Leavenworth, Kan. INDIANAPOLIS, IND., Dec. 31. Thirty-three union labor leaders con victed of complicity in the McNamara dynamite plots are nnw on their way to the Federal prison at Fort Leaven worth, Kans., where they will serve their term?. The "dynamite special’’ carrying the prisoners left Indianapolis at 11:35 a. m. oVer the Pennsylvania railroad. The train was made up of two coaches, one carrying sixteen prisoners and the other seventeen, and a diner and a baggage car. The prisoners seemed in a cheerfu’ frame of mind and they spoke cheering word? to one another. Attorneys for the men filed a writ of error and a writ of supersedeas today, but both matters were put over until Thursday by Judge Anderson. Guard For Each Man. Each of the prisoners was accompa nied by a guard on the way from the Marion county jail to the train. How ever, the trip was made without inci dent. In the party on the "dynamite spe cial" were some of the best known la bor men in the country. Among them were Frank M. Ryan, president of the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Workers; Herbert S. Hoekin, formerly secretary of that bodv; John T. Butler, vice president of the organization, and Olaf Tveitmoe, secretary of the California Building Trades council. Some called it the “dynamite special,’ others the “Leavenworth limited." and still others the "arsenal train." ' The wives of the dynamiters stood in the dusk of the train sheds clasping their hands tightly until the last whis tle shrilled its good-bye. Then they turned back—alone. Tearful Scene at Station. •Deputy United States Marshal Ed : Schmidt said lie feared no trouble. I There is u guard for each man, who | never leaves the prisoner. They sit in | double seats, the prisoner in front, the i guard facing him. Never for a moment • will this vigil relax until the somber I gate at Leavenworth swallows Its new . est consignment of lives. It i.as a .tearful scene-—that parting at the station. Hundreds of spectators crowded to tile gates to watch. Both [ | the convicted men and their wives bore I up bravely, however, and many dashed ; away the tears and tried to smile. Some ‘ of the smiles were wan and some of the I faces were pale with grief. The women | v. ere attractively dressed and some of them in extremely fashionable mode. The convicted conspirators, many of them at least, looked like prosperous business men off on a trade Journey. Tiie manacled wrists told a different story. GIRL COUGHS UP NEEDLE IMBEDDED IN GOOSE ST. LOUIS, Dec. 31. — Miss Margaret Bux, a telephone operator of Belleville, was dining on goose at her home last night when she felt a pain in her throat. i 1 She coughed so violently ihat her mother, | Airs. William Jenks, sent a hurry call for | a doctor.* Before the physician arrived, ! however, Miss Bux had succeeded in ! taking from her throat the cause of irri | tatlon, a large needle. How the needle came to be in the goose, • Mrs. Jenks, who cooked the fowl, cun nut understand. The needle’must have hern ■ in the bird’s thigh while it was living, she believes. LEAP YEAR FALLS SHORT ON MARRIAGE LICENSES DALTON, GA., Dec. 31.—Leap year has proved a severe disappointment to t'upiil in Whitfield counts , for the sale of marriage licenses shows fewer is sued during the past twelve months than for any other similar period in seven years. Just 176 marriage licenses were issued here, as compared to 186 in 1911, 199 in 1910. 187 in 1909, 189 in 190.8, and 209 in 1907. WOMAN KILLED IN FUN; GLASS PIERCES NECK LOS ANGELES, Dec. 31. —Falling on the ragged edges of a glass door broken in a playful bout with a guest over a box of cigarettes, Mrs. Ortance Koetsch, a wid ow, was almost instantly killed in her home in West Sixteenth street, when one of the long slivers of glass pierced her neck. So unusual and dramatic was her sudden death that several of her women guests became hysterical and fainted. FIND GRAIN SPECULATOR DEAD IN ROOM FROM GAS CHICAGO, Dee. 31.—Charles Thrope, I a grain speculator, was found asphyx iated In a rooming house at 661 Dear born avenue. His death is believed to have been accidental. TWO SURVEYORS DIE WHEN MINE EXPLODES VINCENNES, IND., Dee. 31.—A gas explosion in a mine at Bicknell killed Frank Stewart, county surveyor-elect, and fatally injured A. J. Frey. The men were surveying the mine. Both of Stewart’s hands were burned off. TWO BILLIONS U.S. EXPORTS FOR PAST ELEVEN MONTHS WASHINGTON. Dec. 31.—The value of the total Imports into the United States for eleven months, ending with November, 1912, aggregate 18,664,270,806, according to a bulletin issued by the bureau of for eign and domestic commerce and labor. I The value of exports from this country to all parts of the world for the same period | amounted to $2,148,617,686 EXPERT SANDS ON HOW TO MAKE CITY STREET DEPARTMENT EFFECTIVE By Herbert R. Sands Efficient administration of the office of chief of construction demands that it be filled by a high-grade business executive se lected solely on merit. It would be better were he to have a technical engineering training also, but this is not essential. When men such as this position needs can be persuaded to serve the people in such an office the position must usually come to them by appointment without the strife, and often taint, of politi cal contest. The head of the department chargd with building and maintaining the city's streets should be bound by no cam paign obligations and have no political fences to tend. And yet this is an elective office in Atlanta. Such work can not be mixed with politics without just such a result as Atlanta has experienced. It is logically to be expect ed. The chief of construction should be appointive and the best man available in Atlanta or anywhere else in the United States should be eligible for appointment. Bolstering Up an Illogical Structure The two main functions of the department comprise the con struction and repair of streets, and the construction and repair of sewers and operation of sewage disposal plants. A recent or dinance intended as a basis for reorganization of the department provided for an assistant chief of construction, an engineer in charge of streets and another in charge of sewers. The latter two positions are necessary, but assuming the head of the depart ment to be efficient it does not seem that as a matter of organi zation an assistant chief of construction is necessary. Such inter nal reorganization can at best but bolster up an illogical struc ture. As indicated above changes are basic. The men at the head of the bureau of streets and the bu reau of sewers should be men of experience and recognized standing in street and sewer construction respectively. If they are also graduate engineers so much the better, but the prime ■ requisite should be experience. They might he designated re spectively as superintendent of streets and superintendent of sew ers. (The present position of superintendent of streets should be abolished.) Salaries should be provided for these positions ade quate to attract competent men, and they should be continued in office under civil service regulations. The former would have supervision of all street work, both new work and repairing and including sidewalks and curbs. The latter would have supervision of all construction and repair of sewers. Other construction and repair work such as sewage disposal plants, 'crematory, ete., might be assigned to either of these two bureaus, according to the judgment of the chief of const ruction, or retained under his per sonal direction. Should Be Strictly Accountable The superintendents of streets and sewers should he held strictly accountable for results, and they ought, therefore, to be allowed to nominate their subordinates, appointments being made by the head of the department after a test' of qualifications. Pending establishment of a civil service commission such tests might be conducted under temporary civil service regulations. The city, through this department, is following a policy of changing many si reel grades. Before approving plans for fur ther changes of this character it would be wise to await the de velopment of the plans of the newly created Atlanta city planning commission. No grades should bv changed hereafter without the approval of that commission, because only in that way can all public projects co-ordinate in the development and beautification of the city. The obi adage a "stitch in time" is particularly apt when applied to street pavements. A rut or hole in a pavement, if re paired when it first appeal’s, takes but little lime, and may be done ala iiiinimum cost: if such holes are allowed to remain, however, vehicles continually drop into them, and not only en large the hole each daj. but rebounding, strike the pavement beyond with such impact as to start a second depression, and thus a series of depressions result which become very expensive to repair. Good economy, therefore, demands that a sufficient appropriation be made available each year to repair breaks in pavement at once they appeal-. i is COSMOPOLITAN LIFE TO BE REORGANIZED FOR BUSINESS FEB. 1 Reorganization of tiie Cosmopolitan Life Insurance Company will he effected us soon as the necessary details, including a decrease of the $1,000,000 capital sthek, and an addition of a substantial sum to the surplus, are arranged. Heretofore known officially as the “Cos mopolitan Life Insurance Company," the rehabilitated concern will be called "The Cosmopolitan Ul'e Insurance Company,” with an addition of the article as tiie only change of title. The step toward a change of organiza tion was made as a result of the litiga tion into which tiie affairs of tiie com pany have been plunged. Every indica tion as regi'i'ls tiie volume and extent of business ‘lone is flittering, tiie stockhold ers announced at a meeting held yester day With $2,500.006 insurance written before the receivership suit was filed last fall, with business in sight to swell the volume to $4,000,000, and with a new lease on life which the reorganization will give, the company will prosper, the stockhold ers believe. Tiie newly organized con cern will be ready for business Febru ary 1. The decision to reorganize, with other details connected with tiie proposition, was made at Monday’s meeting of the stockholders. HUNDREDS OF CATTLE BURN IN PRAIRIE FIRE CENTER. N. D. Dec. 31.—Prairie fires are unusual in North Dakota at this season, but one burned a strip from one to three miles in width from Sanger, this county, to the Missouri river. There was a heavy wind and tiie flames jumped over all the ordinary “fire breaks." Thousands of tons of hay were burn ed and several hundred head of cattle perished. The ranch of Thomas Hall recently elected secretary of state, was in the path of tiie tiie, and he lost heavily. 1 QUAKER OATS CO. IS PROBED BY U. S. IN SEARCH FOR TRUST CHICAGO. Dec. 31.—A Federal grand jury investigation of the Quaker Oats Company, regarding certain transac tions which the government believes were violations of the Sherman anti trust law, Is under way here today. 'rie- purchase of the Great Western 1 < 'ereal < ’ompany about a year ago by the oats company is the point under examination. It is the belief of tho district attorney that the transaction virtually made the Quaker Oats Com pany a -ereal trust. SAILOR~IN U. S. NAVY NOW WORTH $250,000 WEST HAMPTON, N. Y„ Dec. 31. - Knight Wheeler, son of the late Fred erick M. Wheeler, and worth about $250,000. has for the last five years been an enlisted man in the United States navy. His duties have been so well performed that his friends are ex pecting any day to hear of his winning: a commission as ensign. He is visiting his mother and sisters at the magnifi cent Wheeler estate. He rose through the various grades until now he la chief machinist on the Albatross. BONITA MAKES HIT WITH BIG COMEDY DURING THIS WEEK The Bonita, 3- Peachtree street, scored another big success on Mon day when the initial performance of “The Demented Wife” was presented to standing room only, and th® lobby packed to the sidewalk. ■ This is truly one of the best comedies seen in Atlanta this season. On Thursday the bill will change to a rattling coon comedy entitled "Razor ' Jim." Beautiful new motion pictures as usual. (Advt.) 5