USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Weymouth > Town annual report of Weymouth 1919 > Part 12
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763
539
4500
3277
Number of women voters, 538.
By Precincts
Precinct 1
67
2
66
3
216
4
27
5
73
6
89
538
Respectfully submitted,
BENJAMIN F. SMITH, Chairman, CLAYTON B. MERCHANT, Clerk,
MARSHALL P. SPRAGUE, PATRICK E. CORRIDAN,
Registrars of Voters.
Voters
156
REPORT OF THE CHIEF OF POLICE
To the Honorable Board of Selectmen of the Town of Weymouth.
Gentlemen :- I herewith submit the annual report of the work performed by the Police Department of the Town of Wey- mouth for the year ending December 31, 1919.
During the year 396 arrests have been made as follows:
Drunkenness:
Fines imposed $460.00. Total 87.
Assault and Battery :
Fines imposed $236.00. Total 33.
Assault with Dangerous Weapon: 1 placed under bonds.
Larceny :
Fines imposed $65.00. 3 committed to House of Correction.
2 held for Grand Jury. Total 22.
Breaking and Entering:
I committed to Waverly School. 3 committed to House of Correction. 7 held for Grand Jury. Total 17.
Adultery : 2 held for Grand Jury. Total 6.
Violation of Probation: 1 fined $5.00.
Stubborn Child:
1 committed to Shirley School. Total 3.
Insane: 1 escaped from Taunton. 2 committed to Taunton. 1 committed to Bridgewater. Total 5.
Default: Fines imposed $90.00. Total 8.
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Disturbing the Peace: Fines imposed $105.00. 1 committed to House of Correction. Total 7.
Bastardy : Total 3.
Desertion : Total 3.
Idle and Disorderly : 1 committed to State Farm. Total 2.
Indecent Exposure : 1 placed on file.
Manslaughter: 2 discharged.
Neglected Children : 4 committed to State Board. 5 committed to Home of Destitute Catholic Children. Total 9.
Non-Support: Fines imposed $200.00. Total 11.
Rape : 1 held for Grand Jury. 1 discharged. Total 3.
Railer and Brawler: Total 2.
Robbery: 2 held for Grand Jury.
Neglect of Family: 1 discharged.
Violation of Parole: Total 4.
Threats : Total 7.
Trespass :
Fines imposed $10.00.
Total 2.
Unnatural Act: 1 held for Grand Jury.
Violation of Weights and Measures: Fines imposed $165.20. Total 14.
Violation of School Law: 1 fined $20.00.
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Truants :
2 committed to Union School. 2 placed on probation. Total 4.
Runaway Child: Total 1.
Enforcement of Dog Law: Fines imposed $8.00. Total 3.
Ringing False Fire Alarms: Fines imposed $25.00. 1 placed on Probation.
Gaming on the Lord's Day: Fines imposed $450.00. 5 placed on Probation. Total 14.
Being present at Gaming on the Lord's Day : Fines imposed $25.00. Total 16.
Violation of Game Laws: 1 fined $10.00.
Motor Vehicle Laws: Fines imposed $881.60. 3 committed to House of Correction. Total 34.
Violation of Masher Law: 1 committed to State Farm.
Illegal Sale of Cigarettes: 1 fined $5.00.
Given Night's Lodging: Total 4.
Illegally Keeping and Exposing Liquors: 1 fined $50.00.
MISCELLANEOUS REPORT
66 arrests for out of town officers.
2 raids for intoxicating liquors. 4 search warrants for stolen property.
Stolen property recovered $3,093.61. 113 complaints investigated. Amount of fines in lower courts $1,585.52.
I wish to thank the Police Officers for the able manner in which they have performed their duties during the past year, as there was an unusual amount of police work. In conclusion I wish to convey my thanks to your Honor- able Board for the assistance and co-operation I have received during the past year.
Respectfully submitted, ARTHUR H. PRATT, Chief of Police.
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REPORT OF SELECTMEN
To the Inhabitants of Weymouth:
The present year has had its variety of conditions brought about by after the war duties, as we all know that the men and women of the town who enlisted in the service of the country had to be returned to civil life and this was a problem that interested all.
We might well consider the town's part in the great war and include the effort made by those who gave services that we might live in peace and enjoy the liberty that was intended by the constitution under which we have created a nation such as ours, one that today the whole world respects and which is unstained and has been upheld by the men of our town and has taught the struggling nations of the world that we are ready and willing to extend a helping hand when needed.
The spirit shown during the war by the men of the town was that of which we may well be proud, the number of men and women who served totals approximately 750, and thanks be to God the number of deaths and casualties were not excessive and the men have returned to us better physically and otherwise and have carried themselves well.
We believe that we owe to those who have made the supreme sacrifice a great honor and we sincerely hope that the history that they have made will always remain fresh in our minds so that on occasions of memorials they will not be overlooked, let us inscribe their deeds and names deep in our minds ever to remain for all times.
We also ought to say that the women who have interested themselves in the various organizations pertaining to making the necessary articles as used by the men of the town while in the service have rendered a wonderful service and also their efforts in trying to keep up that good spirit of manhood by catering to their many wants not only while doing their duty but as they have returned to us again these same women have worked un- tiringly to tide them over the rough places until they were able to secure some kind of employment, and in a good many cases they have turned their efforts to the families, which has been a great help under the circumstances.
SELECTMEN AS ENGINEERS
The Board of Selectmen feel that as they have assumed the position of Fire Engineers the people should know why they did so and what the results have been. In the first instance we wish to say that we have always had at heart the best interests of the town, we have no doubt caused a good many to think that we were interfering in a service that did not interest us, but such is not the case; we have introduced a number of good features in the department and we know that the town will realize a great deal from the same; this Board assumed the position of Fire En- gineers without pay, and have put in a lot of time endeavoring to bolster up an efficient department. It is true that we have met with some difficulties but we have contended that as we had the interest of all the people at heart we acted in accord- ance with our best judgment and have put the effort where it
e
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was most needed. We have had a few changes amongst the permanent men on the department, but we have been fortunate to secure good men to fill the vacancies, and we feel safe to say that if the present system is carried on the department will profit and the interests of the town will be protected.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT
The town having accepted the provisions of Chapter 293 of the Acts of 1916 at the special town meeting held November the Se- lectmen in December established certain rules for the regulation of "jitneys" and the same are now in force.
As to the statement of expenditures under the different appropriations, we refer to the report of the Town Accountant.
SUITS AT LAW
The action of Joanna Burke against the town to recover $10,000 for personal injuries sustained by reason of an alleged defect in Neck Street, has been settled during the year by payment of $300.
The suit of Herbert A. Billings against the town for damages claimed to have been caused by blasting on Front Street is still pending in the District Court at Quincy.
Under date of March 1, 1919, Simon Delorey brought suit against the town, alleging $300 damages claimed to have been caused to his hay crop in a meadow on Neck Street, in consequence of the condition of a street drain whereby the land was flooded. Suit is pending at the District Court in Quincy.
An action to recover damages for personal injuries has been brought in the Superior Court by one Clarence A. Wright, who, while riding through Jackson Square on May 18, 1918 (Red Cross Parade day) in a motorcycle, came in collision with a rope suspended across Pleasant Street from the band stand to a pole on the sidewalk. Pending at Dedham.
In the Supreme Judicial Court, in April, 1919, a petition was brought by John F. Dwyer for a writ of mandamus against the Board of Selectmen to restrain the Board from counting the ballots for selectmen cast at the annual town meeting on March 10, 1919. After hearing, the petition was granted.
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STREET RAILWAY SITUATION
At the beginning of the year the Receiver of the Bay State Street Railway Company had discontinued the service on Pleasant Street between Jackson Square and Columbian Square, and had given notice that he proposed to discontinue service on the Main-Front Street line between Lincoln Square and Columbian Square.
As a result of proceedings in the Federal Court, service on this latter line was not discontinued, and contributions being made by certain citizens of the town towards defraying a part of the cost of operation, service on the Pleasant Street route was resumed.
The Bay State Company has been re-organized as the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway Company and on June 1, its operation passed into the hands of five trustees, appointed by the Governor and representing the public.
In November, the trustees gave notice that there was such a deficit in the revenue from the operation of the Pleasant Street line between Jackson and Columbian Squares that they would not be justified, under the law requiring them to operate the road on a service at cost basis, to continue its operation unless some contribu- tion was made to help meet this deficit. The trustees estimated that if the sum of $2400 was contributed, service could be continued until November 1, 1920.
At a special town meeting held November it was voted to appro- priate $400 to keep the line running until January 1, 1920 and service is now being continued by the trustees until the town has its annual meeting when it may be determined whether a further sum, if then found necessary, shall be voted to keep the service on until November 1, 1920.
On March 4, 1919, the Selectmen granted a permit to the Massa- chusetts Highway Service Company for the erection of poles, wires and other necessary structures to operate a trolley motor trackless system of transportation through that part of Main and Pond Streets between the South Weymouth Railroad station and the Abington town line; and on June 19, 1919, the Selectmen granted to the same company a similar permission as to that part of Pleasant Street between said railroad station and Columbian Square. These permits were afterwards somewhat modified by the Selectmen at the request of the said Highway Service Company, and on August 8, 1919, both permits, in a form amended to conform to the company's suggestions, were delivered to the company. These permits contained the pro- vision that they should be submitted to the Public Service Commission for approval on or before August 15, 1919, but up to date have not been so submitted and the Selectmen have heard nothing from the company as to its intentions.
BRADFORD HAWES, JOSEPH A. FERN, GEORGE L. NEWTON, JOHN F. DWYER, ALFRED W. HASTINGS.
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REPORT OF THE TUFTS FUNDS.
By the terms of the will of the late Quincy Tufts, the amounts named in the following bequests are deposited in the Massachusetts Hospital Life Insurance Company.
Ten thousand dollars, the income from which shall be devoted as follows : One-half in procuring free public lectures upon useful knowledge; one-fourth for the maintenance of a public reading room and one-fourth for the purchase of books for the public library.
Two thousand dollars, the income to provide for the construction of a sidewalk on Commercial and Church Streets, from Washington Square to the Old North Church, and for planting out shade trees upon the same. If at any time the income from this fund is not needed for the purpose named, it may be used for sidewalks upon other streets.
The will provides that the above named incomes shall be expended under the direction of the Selectmen of the town for the time being.
Five hundred dollars; the income from which is to be expended for the care and preservation of the Tufts family tomb in the North Weymouth Cemetery. The income from the last named fund is paid to the Trustees of the cemetery for the purpose named.
The income devoted to free public lectures has been allowed to ac- cumulate until it now amounts to $1,961.93. This amount will provide for resuming the lectures the coming winter and continuing them uninterruptedly for several years. Also, the income from the side- walk and shade tree fund has been allowed to accumulate to the amount of $500.14. A gravel sidewalk only has heretofore been main- tained upon the streets named. The amount now on hand should provide for making a creditable beginning, the coming season, upon a sidewalk of permanent construction.
The income from these funds is not received until about the tenth of January of the year following that for which it accrues.
It has heretofore been the practice to report the receipts and ex- penditures under these funds as of the year preceding that in which the transactions are really made. To conform with the practice of the Town Treasurer of closing all accounts on December 31, this re- port will make no statement of the transactions which come within the year 1920, but they will appear in the report for that year. This will leave the principal amounts of the funds as hereinbefore stated.
BRADFORD HAWES, Chairman of Selectmen.
REPORT OF THE FIRE ENGINEERS.
To the Inhabitants of the Town of Weymouth:
The Fire Engineers respectfully submit the following report for year ending December 31, 1919; this present Board assumed control on May 1, 1919, and organized as follows: To serve as engineers without pay, Bradford Hawes, chairman; Joseph A. Fern, clerk; Al- fred W. Hastings, John F. Dwyer and George H. Newton, and Walter W. Pratt, as chief.
Houses and Apparatus.
The houses are in good condition, considering the age of same, but we believe they should be given some consideration inside as well as
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out, during this year, such as removal of the hose towers, on one or two of the houses, as same are in poor condition, and not being used. It would seem inadvisable to make repairs, as money could be used to better advantage.
Fire Losses.
Value of buildings where fire occurred $35,050.00
Damage to building where fire occurred 12,060.10
Value of contents 8,400.00
Damage to contents 4,280.00
The Board has had to contend with the usual complaint of false alarms, and we deemed it advisable to cause a conviction if possible, for any such offender, so a reward of $100 was offered for the arrest and conviction of any such person, and this seems to have had its effect.
Fire Trucks.
The Fire Trucks are in good condition, and have served the town well; of course, they are old and are deteriorating all the time, and will need attention more or less as time goes on. The Tractor, that was purchased previous to this Board having assumed control, has been put in commission, and has served well, and ought to serve the town in all cases. The same idea has been adopted in connection with ladder truck at Comb. No. 5, Percy Sargent using his truck, same having been equipped to serve as tractor, instead of having to use horses, which are hard to obtain today to serve the purpose.
Number of Bell and Telephone calls in each ward, from Jan. 1, 1919 to Jan. 1, 1920 :
Combination No. 1. 26 calls.
Combination No. 2. 63 calls.
Combination No. 3. 36 calls.
Combination No. 5. 39 calls.
Total 164 calls.
In concluding the report, we wish to say that we wish to convey to all the officers and men of the department, our sincere wishes for their co-operation in the performance of the work of the department, and we sincerely hope that harmony and efficiency will prevail.
BRADFORD HAWES, JOSEPH A. FERN, GEORGE L. NEWTON, JOHN F. DWYER, ALFRED W. HASTINGS,
Fire Engineers.
REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF STREETS.
For Year Ending Dec. 31, 1919.
To the Honorable Board of Selectmen:
The annual report of the street department for the year ending December 31st, 1919, is respectfully submitted for your consideration. The past year has been a notable one in the history of the de-
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partment in that real progress has been made towards the carrying out of a plan for the permanent construction of streets, a suitable building has been provided for housing the department's equipment, and considerable labor-saving machinery purchased.
The expense of maintaining roads has increased by leaps and bounds all over the country and will continue to increase for some time. It is only by introducing labor-saving devices and building so- called permanent roads that the costs can be kept within reasonable limits.
Permanent Construction.
In my report of last year I advocated a bond issue of $100,000 for the permanent construction of our main streets, the work to extend over a period of five years. This plan was approved in part by the appropriation committee, but they decided that the same results could be accomplished if $20,000 a year was issued each year for five years, instead of the larger sum at one time, and this amount was approved by the voters at the March meeting.
The kind of pavement to be laid was decided upon after visiting several cities and towns and obtaining information from the Massa- chusetts Highway Commission.
The nature and amount of traffic, the cost of construction and the available natural material for road building entered into the prob- lem. After careful consideration it was decided that a two inch asphalt concrete wearing surface on a three inch broken stone base, penetrated with "Tarvia" was the most economical pavement to lay. The character of our broken stone is not ideal for a wearing surface and the expense of block paving was too great, so specifications were prepared for a pavement as outlined above.
The scarcity of labor and lack of a plant for mixing and laying the two inch asphalt wearing surface necessitated contracting this portion of the work. Bids were received ranging in price from $1.50 to $2.25 per square yard, and after looking over work of a similar nature laid by the different contractors, the award was made to Thomas & Murphy, the low bidder.
Washington street from Washington square to Lincoln square on the south side, including the car track, and Broad street from Lin- coln square towards East Weymouth, were designated for this work, they being the most heavily travelled streets in town, in poor con- dition.
The first obstacle that developed was the question of putting in new ties and rails and paving between the tracks on Washington street. Under the law, a street railway is obliged, where a town or city is laying new pavement, to put in the same type of pavement between their tracks and to stand the expense of the same, but in the case of the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway Company, which had just been organized to take over and operate the Bay State Sys- tem, the Trustees were exempt from this law as well as many others. Conference with the Trustees brought out the fact that the town would be obliged to stand the expense of the pavement between the tracks, and that furthermore the town would have to remove the present surface to the ties before they would lay a new track. It was also learned that they had given up using girder rails and would lay only a four inch "T" rail. It was, therefore, obvious that we could not lay a five inch pavement with only a four inch rail, and to insure a pavement standing up, it would be necessary to put in a concrete foundation between and over the ties and then lay our two
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inch wearing surface on top. The only concession the Trustees would make was that they would furnish granite pavements to lay as a header on the inside of the rails to protect the asphalt surface. The matter of laying this concrete foundation and grouting in the granite blocks was contracted to Gore, Inc., who had the contract for relaying the track for the railroad. The cost of this work, including the two inch asphalt surface, amounted to $4,128.50, which we had figured the railroad would pay for, and would have done, except for the special exemption given the Trustees by the legislature.
Another item of expense that was necessary on Washington street was for laying of 728 feet of concrete curbing and the re-setting of 660 feet of old granite edge stone. The concrete curbing was con- tracted to Harry Boutell of Hingham for 62 cents a foot, he being the lowest bidder. Excavating the road surface was contracted to Gore, Inc., for the sum of $1,445.19. After the old surface was ex- cavated to the proper grade, three inches of crushed stone was spread and penetrated with one and one-quarter gallons of Tarvia X to the square yard, then covered with pea stone and thoroughly rolled. Be- fore the wearing surface was placed on this base, traffic was allowed to use the road for several weeks, the idea being that any defects in the foundation would have a chance to develop and be corrected be- fore the wearing surface was applied. It was also found necessary to lay about 560 feet of four inch tile drain mid-way between the car tracks and the sidewalk from Broad street to a catch-basin opposite Richmond street, to take care of the underground water.
At Lincoln square the grade was materially changed so that now the surface water is properly taken care of and a section of track that connected the East Weymouth line with the Rockland line was eliminated. Two catch-basins at Lincoln square were rebuilt and three new ones were constructed on Washington street. The south sidewalk on Washington street was raised from six to ten inches and resurfaced with screened gravel and stone dust. The work of the contractors Thomas & Murphy in laying the wearing surface was most satisfactorily done, they doing many things which were not specified in the contract in order to have the Town satisfied. The same is true of Gore, Inc., and Mr. Boutell.
I would advise that a similar appropriation be made next year for this type of construction. That the north side of Washington street be completed and that the work across Broad street towards Central square be extended. The nature of the present foundation on the north side of Washington street and also across Broad is such that except for one or two short stretches the broken stone foundation course could be safely eliminated if the asphalt concrete top was in- creased to two and one-half inches. This would reduce the cost con- siderably and give the same appearance as that laid this year. Had it not been for the unforeseen expense in connection with the railroad track and the cost of laying curbing and sub-drains, the yardage completed (7,485 square yards) would have been much greater. The fact that parts of Summer, Spring, Front, Stetson, Vine, Phillips and' Essex streets resurfaced with the old road surface material . was quite an item as the material removed was especially good in most cases. Crushed stone used on the job was furnished from our plant at the Plymouth Quarries, and delivered by trucks. Reports from the Massachusetts Highway Commission show that the cost of con- structing State roads this past year, cost a little over $30,000 a mile, which shows that even with the extra work connected with this job, the cost was below the state average.
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Bates avenue, South Weymouth, was resurfaced the entire length with six inches of crushed stone, laid in two courses, the top course being penetrated with "Tarvia X." This short street for several years has been impassable in the Spring time and the most econom- ical treatment was to put on broken stone, as good gravel is very hard to procure in South Weymouth and costs as much as stone. It was necessary to remove much of the old surface and change the grade so that the surface water would drain properly. The cost of this work, including laying 110 feet of eight inch drain and resurfac- ing part of the sidewalks, was $1,910.95. 2,010 square yards of tar macadam surface was laid.
The curve on Middle street at the junction of Commercial street was raised about a foot on the outside and a tar macadam surface laid, as it was impossible to maintain this curve with gravel. The last two pieces of work were paid for out of the regular appropria- tion.
Street Oiling.
The policy of using "Tarvia B" for this work was followed again this year, and the results have been exceptionally good. This was the first year that the abuttors have escaped assessment for this work, as it was voted at the March meeting to include the cost of this work in the general tax levy. I believe that this is the most satisfac- tory plan now that so large a portion of the streets are so treated. Over five and one-third miles more of streets were so treated this year than ever before, so that we now have about thirty-five miles of streets that are so covered. In 1918, 139,505 lineal feet of streets were treated at a cost of $16,389.96. This year 184,805 feet were cov- ered at a cost of $16,448.53. 107,000 gallons of tarvia were used this year as compared to 90,390 gallons in 1918.
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