Chapter 260 – Heated Council Meeting (long)

Tuesday ended up being much the same as Monday. People were busy trying to get things done and move forward. It was trying to find a routine for everyone. Elizabeth got up and got ready for school. Even though he wasn't heading in for a few hours, Jack got up and got ready as well. They had breakfast with Doug and Dee, before Dee and Elizabeth left. Doug cleaned up the kitchen and Jack rested. They both knew that they would be busy when they headed into town.

It had been decided that JD would be fined. So after sitting in a cell overnight, he was let go after he signed the paperwork, saying he would pay the fine within two weeks. He also got a very stern talking to from both Joe and Jack. They made it perfectly clear that next time, he would go before a judge. JD had been met by Andy, who took him to the office and immediately had a conversation with him. Andy let him know that there would be a bit of change. He would continue to get things ready for Hope Valley mine to open, but as soon as the other superintendent got there, he would switch over to working at Silverton. Andy also let him know that his family would be moving into a row house and wouldn't be living over the office. The other change was that once he had miners to start at Silverton, JD would be living in the tents up at Silverton and only be in Hope Valley on his days off. If there were continued problems that he would be fired and have thirty days to vacate company housing. Andy also let JD know that he had twenty-four hours to apologize to Mrs Stanton and if not everything else was a moot point because he would be on a stagecoach back to Union City and he could explain to his wife why he was fired.

… … … …

Abigail was up early getting things ready for the day. She wasn't surprised when Ann came in just over twenty-five minutes after she got the stove going. She was however surprised that Patty and Elizabeth Rose weren't that far behind. She tried to argue, but they wouldn't hear it and just immediately went to help. Patty also informed Ann and Abigail that she would stay and help until Abigail returned from Union City. Abigail just looked at her and then Elizabeth Rose. Elizabeth Rose let them know that once she boarded the stagecoach to head back to Union City, Patty's job was done, so she was free to do what she wanted. Abigail then insisted that Patty come over and stay at the cafe so she could be up early and not worry. Patty resisted, but finally relented when Abigail agreed to not pay her.

After the breakfast rush, Patty and Elizabeth Rose told Abigail to go to the other office for a bit, since they knew she had the town council meeting at five. Abigail reluctantly went over to the mayor's office, but said she would be back to help with lunch. She took the books and supply list with her. While Abigail was gone, Patty and Ann came up with a plan for the weekend and despite her husband being back in Hope Valley, Ann said she would come help. Elizabeth Rose said she would talk to Clara about helping as well, but not to tell Abigail as she was stressing about the trip already.

… … … …

Elizabeth had a good day at school and was able to get through everything and not send much homework home. She knew that she wanted to do a few more projects, but she wasn't sure how she was going to do them with that many students. She was also able to put off the children's continued questions about the baby. She let them know that she had given them all the information that she was going to give them and if they had additional questions about babies, they needed to ask their parents. She also promised to bring the baby in for them all to see when she was able after the baby was born. They were happy with that and Elizabeth was grateful.

The other thing that Elizabeth was able to do during the day was to start to work on the final tests that the students would all take, as well as the tests that Becky, James and James would need to take to test out of school. It would be the first that she would be doing, as Dottie Ramsey had taken Bradley to Benson Hills to take the test from a teacher she knew there. Elizabeth had written and gotten the information that she needed about the test and was happy that they had included a copy of the actual test that was used at that school. She changed some of it, but only to make it so her students would understand it. She also saw what scores the boys would need to get a certificate of completion. She was afraid they might not score high enough and she knew that she wouldn't be able to convince them to stay. She wasn't worried about Becky. The last thing that Elizabeth was able to get ready was the homework that Becky and Cody were going to miss. She wrote a note to Abigail to let her know what she was sending home. She also asked her to test Becky and Cody on their spelling words and just give it to her when they got back. She added the new words the children would need. She planned on sending the packet home the following day and they would have all weekend to finish it and she would collect it on Monday.

… … … …

Abigail, Wynn and Dee were all sitting at the table when the other members of the council started to arrive. The men nodded and took a seat. Of course, Florence and Christine came in at the last moment and were not happy to see Wynn and Dee sitting there. Neither said anything, but glared at both. Abigail didn't miss the glares, but she also didn't say anything. She knew it was going to be a busy meeting. Once everyone was seated, Dee nodded to Abigail, she stood up and knocked on the table.

"I call this meeting to order." Abigail said. "We have a lot that we need to cover. I have asked Constable Delaney here to take notes and Deputy Commissioner Delaney here because Constable Thornton wasn't up to the meeting."

"Why weren't we told about this latest audit?" Florence interrupted. "What about the new superintendent spending the night in jail?"

Abigail knocked on the table again.

"I know in the past we have been a little loose with the rules." Abigail said. "But no more. You will not interrupt other people nor will you speak without being recognized by me to speak. If you have a problem with the way that I am going to be running these meetings from now on, you can leave and we will have multiple seats open in the special election. If you continue to cause problems in the future, I will have you removed. I will not continue to be disrespected."

Abigail looked around the table and no one spoke, so she took that as acceptance of the new change.

"So the first order of business." Abigail said. "A special election to fill the empty seat I left when I was named mayor. We have to announce a date by the end of next month and have it be no more than three months from then. I was looking at August eighth. That would be a couple weeks before school started up again and it would give anyone running plenty of time. Can I get a motion to set the special election for August eighth?"

Lee raised his hand and Abigail nodded.

"I have a question before I put a formal motion in place." Lee said.

Abigail nodded.

"Will this be open to everyone to vote?" Lee asked.

"According to the bylaws of the town charter." Abigail said. "All adults over the age of sixteen who have lived in town for at least thirty days will be allowed to vote. So please get me a list of all your employees that will be here by July first. I will add them to the voting rolls. I need to go through that and make sure that all the people who have left have been removed and the new ones added. Any additional questions?"

Norman raised his hand and Abigail nodded.

"Who would be allowed to run?" Norman asked.

"Anyone who is eligible to vote over the age of eighteen." Abigail said.

"I will make a motion to have the special election in August." Lee said.

"I second that motion." Adam said.

"All those in favor of the special election being in August, please raise your hand." Abigail said.

All the hands went up and Dee made a note.

"Thank you." Abigail said. "I will get the announcement in the next edition of the paper which will be published on Thursday. It will run each edition for the rest of the month and then again all of July until the election. There will also be notices put up at the mercantile and saloon. If you know someone who wants to run, they can get a form from me, fill it out and return it, so I can make sure they are on the ballot."

Abigail gave Dee a moment to catch up in his writing, while she looked at her notes.

"The next item we need to talk about is two proposals from Andy Yeager." Abigail said. "His mother has a fund to provide a library for towns where he has a business. After talking to him and taking things into consideration, it was decided that the building next to Coulter Enterprises would be used. It is one of the larger ones and it is also close to the schoolhouse. Additionally, it is owned by the town, which makes things easier. There are two different proposals and we need to decide which one we want."

Abigail went through each proposal and answered the questions as best as she could. She looked to Wynn and Dee as well, since they had been in on the conversation about the library when it was brought up. There were still a few questions that Dee wrote out that needed to be brought to Andy Yeager, but in the end, the council decided to accept the proposal with a librarian and meeting room. They would set the salary and rates later, as well as the hours. Abigail knew it would be a lot of work, but they set a tentative date of having the library open by the time school started. She was going to ask people to volunteer to help get the building ready. Lee let everyone know that he would ask some of his men to build the shelves and asked if maybe some of the older children could help as they had been a great help when building the schoolhouse. Abigail said she would ask. Wynn volunteered the cadets as they would be there through the coming weekend. Lee said he would put them to work.

Abigail next touched on the new laundry and how it was just formally combining and relocating the business that the women already ran out of their houses. She let the council know about the new newspaper owner as well as the new mine superintendent. She also let the council know that she had received a request about a full-time tailor coming to town, but it was still the early stages with the person and when she had a formal proposal, she would have more to share with them. When asked what the hold up was, Abigail let them know that the tailor wanted to buy the building, but it was owned by William Bolt of Benson Hills and the apartment above had been rented to a young family. He would need to negotiate the building with William Bolt and he would be responsible for honoring the rental contract or paying to move them into new housing accommodations. Abigail let them know that the man wasn't happy with the conditions. When asked about the current tailor that came once a week. Abigail let them know that he was willing to give up his space to the man and focus on his businesses in Benson Hills and Buxton.

Abigail knew that she was going to have to address the audit, but she wasn't sure how. Wynn caught her hesitation and raised his hand to speak. Abigail breathed a sigh of relief when she nodded for Wynn to speak.

"Yes." Wynn said. "There was a full audit of the town books going back to nineteen oh three. You weren't informed about it because it was part of an ongoing investigation by the Mounties. Both sets of books – the ones maintained by the mayor as well as the ones maintained by the bank were compared. Recommendations were made and the Mounties will see that those are carried out, but no additional information will be released because there are other people involved in the investigation and I need to protect the investigation. Anyone caught talking or gossiping about this will face consequences."

Wynn looked right at Florence and Christine when he spoke, before sweeping the rest of the people sitting at the table.

"The only other thing I will say." Wynn continued. "The town shouldn't have another audit, except the regular ones they are subject to every three to five years by the government. The bank might face other recommendations, but that is out of my hands since the auditors that came out will file their findings and make their recommendations to the government. I think everyone can understand that the whole Henry Gowen and Pacific Northwest mess is far from over. Gowen might be dead, but many of the people that he was in business with are still facing charges and we must do everything that we can to hold those people accountable, justly and fairly. That includes not speaking about ongoing investigations any more than needed. We have done everything we could to make things right for this town and the people within it. There are still things that need to happen. Land and property that needs to be dealt with and that will happen as things move forward. You may or may not be informed of these actions when they happen. It will just depend on what happens to the buildings and other property. Even with those things still pending, I can very confidently say that Henry Gowen and Pacific Northwest no longer have a foothold in this town. It will be up to you as citizens of this town to make sure another company doesn't come in and try the same things. The Mounties will be here to help as we can. Any questions?"

"Norman." Abigail said.

"Will the results of the audit be published like in the past?" Norman asked.

"When the final results of the ongoing investigation are published." Wynn said. "So it could be a year or two down the road, but the auditors have filed their reports with the appropriate people and their recommendations will have an immediate effect."

Norman and Adam nodded knowing what Wynn meant. Florence didn't look happy, but didn't voice anything. Abigail took a deep breath and continued.

"Moving on, I would like the council's approval for me to extend at least a temporary contract to Deb Swift." Abigail said. "She is a friend of Elizabeth's who has offered to help and cover while Elizabeth is out with the baby. Deb and her husband will be offered the teacherage now that it has been moved over by the school and is livable. Any questions?"

Abigail nodded to Christine.

"How long would the contract be?" She asked.

"Based on my conversations with Elizabeth." Abigail said. "It would be from the start of school, which they are looking at Monday, August twenty first. So from the Thursday before to the release for Christmas break, which should be either December twenty first or second. Elizabeth plans to return to the classroom after the break. I would also like to add that I will be monitoring the situation as school starts and determining if a second teacher is needed and will bring that to the council at that time. A lot will depend on how many new families arrive. As well as when Elizabeth has her baby and if there are problems. We have a lot of time between then and now. What I need is to be able to formally offer the job to Ms Swift so they can make arrangements to get here. Any questions?"

Abigail nodded to Adam.

"There was talk of bringing the school under our authority and not with you as head of the mothers group." He said.

"Yes." Abigail said. "I have tabled that for now. There are so many other changes happening, that I thought giving us a year to establish a better routine would be better. I know I said I wanted it before the new school year, but when I started looking at how much needs to be done and what I have to deal with, I realized that is something that can be put off and dealt with later. It came down to a matter of priorities and other things have been more pressing. I am asking the council for approval as a courtesy, technically I don't need it as the head of the mothers group. I also have a second proposal to set up a fee schedule for all families."

"What is the fee schedule?" Florence demanded without being recognized.

That earned a sharp glare from both Abigail and Wynn.

"It will be a minimum of fifty cents a month per child with a max of two fifty a month per family." Abigail said. "Families would have to apply for the waiver and show how it would be a hardship to not pay the regular amount. The regular amounts for a single income family would be a dollar a month per child with a maximum of five dollars a month per family. For families with two incomes it would be two dollars a month per child with a maximum of ten dollars per month per family."

Suddenly there was grumbling among several members. Abigail knocked on the table to get everyone's attention, but it was Wynn who spoke.

"Those are more than fair." Wynn said. "Furthermore, they are very much in line with the region, even if on the low end of things. There needs to be a set fee so Abigail can budget things into the town budget for when the council and town take over the school. With new people coming in and things expanding, there needs to be more formality about things. I know that isn't how Hope Valley has done things in the past, but a lot is changing and Abigail is trying to get ahead of potential problems after being advised by two lawyers and seeking the advice of others. She has a lot to juggle and better she can plan for things. She is well within her rights to do this and frankly it needs to happen, especially with more families coming in.

Right now Elizabeth has thirty-three students everyday. What is going to happen when there will be more next year? Thirty-three is a lot. The most my wife had ever had was twenty-seven and that was in Cape Fullerton. With a set fee schedule, it will be easier to get a second teacher and split the children. I know that there has already been talk about expanding the church because it is getting crowded. How do you think the children feel every day? No decisions have been made about a second teacher or where the second class would be held. There are two many things that need to happen before that discussion.

This is the first step to securing the future of the school. I can say with certainty if this council does nothing and continues with the informal, do what you want approach, that the county school system that is forming will be well within their rights to take over the school here. Then all decisions about fees and who would be the teacher or teachers would be out of your control. Doing this ensures at least in the short term that control over the school remains in the hands of the citizens of Hope Valley. There may come a time when the school will not have a choice and will need to be a part of the county system. You can cross that bridge when it comes. But unless you want it to happen a lot sooner, you need to take steps to formalize things and show that the teacher is being paid and things are being taken care of."

"Thank you Wynn." Abigail said. "He is right. I have been in communication with lawyers and other mayors in the region. If we want to have control as long as possible we need to do these things."

Dee got Abigail's attention and she nodded to him.

"I am sorry." Dee said. "But we have two proposals out there we need action on. The first is extending a contract from August to Christmas to Deb Swift who will be covering for Elizabeth. The second is adopting a formal fee schedule for the school as it has been laid out. Can I get a motion on either?"

"I will make a motion on both." Lee said. "With the caveat that the council has a clear plan for the school before the end of next school year, say May of nineteen twelve."

"Can I get a second on either motion with Lee's caveat?" Abigail asked.

"I will second both with the caveat." Adam said.

"All those in favor of extending the contract, please raise your hand." Abigail asked.

All but Florence's hand went up. Dee made a note and nodded to Abigail.

"All those in favor of adopting the fee schedule for the school, please raise your hand." Abigail asked.

Again everyone but Florence raised her hand. Christine joined her as well that time.

"Both motions have passed and the caveat has been added to the official notes." Dee said. "This will give you time to assess your needs and figure out what is the best way forward for Hope Valley School."

"Thank you, Dee." Abigail said. "I am going to open the floor to additional questions, but please remember to be respectful."

Lee raised his hand and Abigail nodded.

"I just wanted to update people on the building going on." Lee said. "With the men who had come to work as well as the additional men I have hired. We are on pace to have twenty new row houses done this summer. I have also added a fourth head saw at the mill with plans to expand to at least one more before the end of summer. I would like two more, but don't see how at the moment without hiring more workers. So I am working on a proposal to add fifteen additional row houses in the field between the existing and new ones next summer and expand the mill more then.

Additionally, all the cabins, three on the south road and seven on the north road, have been fully restored and the town can rent those as needed and sees fit. I think one on the south road has already been rented by one of my men. I am not fully sure what is still available here in town, but I was able to get a lot done with the men that were here. They were able to get the cabins mostly done, they fixed several apartments, and built two new benches for the schoolhouse. They put the huge storage shed off the infirmary and a smaller one behind the schoolhouse. Not to mention moving both the teacherage and parsonage and fixing both up. I say we got a lot of work for two weeks. That is on top of the nearly four complete houses they got done.

Personally, I think this town owes a huge thank you to whoever it was that sent the men and materials, not to mention paid for it all. I tried to do some research into who was behind it, but the men all told me that they had been hired by a lawyer who was working for a wealthy client and they didn't even know who. When I tried to talk to the lawyer, he had nothing to say. So we should be more grateful, because the work they got done in two weeks, put us a month ahead in the building and got all the settlement families into housing."

"Yes." Abigail said. "Thank you for the update. We are all grateful for whoever sent those men and materials. I am glad they were able to get so much done with your help. Also from my understanding, you hired a few of them. How is the other building going?"

"Yes, I did." Lee said. "I think Sam over at the saloon also hired one. I ended up hiring ten of the men and they are in my bunkhouses. All the apartments in town are done and most are already occupied. I have additional crews coming in to finish Jack and Elizabeth's house and additional buildings on their property. There will also be a crew coming in to build on property that Mr Yeager owns just south of town. From my understanding, he purchased the property from the previous owner, filed all the needed paperwork and permits in Buxton. I am not sure what is going up there, but it is beyond the town proper and near a proposed line I suggested to the railroad if they choose to bring a main line through the valley. I would have to check the plans again, I know it is a house of some sort, but that is all I remember at the moment.

All my workers and temporary crews will be housed near the sawmill unless they rent a place from the town or get a room at the saloon hotel on their own. I have bunkhouse space for thirty-six workers and that is full. I have an additional twenty-five men in tents right now and tents for the others as they come. Since it doesn't appear they will be here beyond summer, I am holding off building an additional bunkhouse. And before anyone asks, I have filed all the appropriate permits and paperwork. Since the mill is not in the town proper, I haven't needed your approval, but this was all part of my larger plan I submitted when I first started building the mill last year.

I also wanted to let you all know that the crew to lay track for the spurline could be showing up next week. The National Railroad should finish laying track from Union City to Buxton this week and then the plan was to do the spurline while they decided what the next move would be for the valley. Mr Yeager also let me know that there will be a spurline to the mine that will join mine just south of the mill. I am not sure where the railroad will house their men, but from my experience, they have their own tent city-like areas."

"Thank you, Lee." Abigail said. "I can say I was approached today by a railroad representative about potentially bringing the mainline to Hope Valley. I don't have additional information and informed him I would need a proper proposal with potential routes for the line as well as the train depot. I also said, he would need to not only present that to the council but the town as a whole.

As far as housing their men, they have asked to rent some land the town currently owns near where they will be laying track. The men will be staying out there as well as being fed out there. If they come into town, they will be on their own. From my understanding the contracts the National Railroad have include housing and meals, especially since these crews travel with the track."

"Yes." Wynn said. "That is typical of what they do. They set up the tents, bring the line a mile or so past that point and then move the tents ahead again. They can move every three to four days. The men are fed by chuck wagons that get resupply regularly. At least that is my experience having patrolled areas where new rail lines were going in."

"Thank you." Abigail said. "Any other questions, comments, concerns or updates?"

Florence didn't wait to be recognized, but she stared at Wynn.

"What happened at the jail?" Florence said in a demanding tone. "Why did the new superintendent spend the night in jail? Is he still going to be superintendent, because I don't want that type of man around my children and no parent should."

Florence glared at Abigail for a moment and then returned her stare to Wynn. Wynn didn't let it bother him, he had dealt with people like Florence most of his life. He looked at Abigail and gave her a reassuring nod.

"Frankly, Mrs Blakely." Wynn said, his tone cold and flat. "What goes on at the jailhouse is none of your business. If it was a matter of public safety, you would be informed. Right now, you are just looking for some gossip and you should be ashamed of yourself. Having said that, I will say this. Mr Walker was arrested after one of the Constables asked him to take the very public discussion he was having inside and Mr Walker swung at my Constable. They were well within their rights. He was put in a cell and told to calm down before he was going to be allowed out. He chose to continue to be belligerent and argue. He ended up spending the night and was released this morning. He was charged and agreed to pay a fine. He has two weeks to pay it.

For the record, I am not telling you the charge or charges, nor will I tell you how much the fine was. He was also warned to behave because the next time it wouldn't end so well for him. As far as his continued employment with Mr Yeager, that is not my concern at the moment. So unless Mr Yeager or Mr Walker say something it is a closed matter. I fully trust the Constables and reading what happened, they acted appropriately. Mr Walker has been warned what will happen if he continues to act like he was. So as far as I am concerned it is a closed matter and it should be that to the rest of you as well."

Wynn finished speaking and glared at Florence to the point, she turned and looked at Abigail. It was a tense few minutes before Abigail spoke again.

"Anything else?" Abigail asked.

People around the table shook their heads.

"Then the next meeting will be June thirteenth." Abigail said. "I am going to set the second Tuesday of each month as our meeting and if I need to call a special meeting, you will be informed as soon as possible. The only time I can see that we won't meet the second Tuesday is in August because that is the day of the special election. We will meet the next night. Have a good night everyone."

People got up to leave. Abigail sat down. Wynn and Dee waited until everyone else left. Wynn wanted to check in with Abigail and Dee was finishing up the notes.