1897 - Meeting Turns Wild at the Dundas Town Hall

 Dundas Town Council - 1897

                             Photo by Brian Henley ca 1979


“Fought in the Chamber : Exciting Scene at the Dundas Town Council Meeting”

Hamilton Times. May 19, 1897 Image 936.

(Special correspondence of the Times)

“Dundas, May 19 – The Town Council met again last night. Tame and quiet as the beginning of business was, the wind up was a scene of excitement and consternation.

“A motion to adjourn had been moved and seconded, when Councillor Fisher called the Council’s attention to the fact that, as he had mentioned at the last meeting.

“Contractor Fielding was going on with work at the Head street bridge, although he (Councillor Fisher) had notified him verbally not to do so. Reeve Knowles advocated asking for new tenders for the work, as Contractor Fielding had not carried out his agreement  to have the work done by a certain time; and, further, the work he had done on the bridge had not turned out satisfactory.

“A motion to hear Contractor Fielding was carried, and in explaining matters from his standpoint, he referred to Reeve Knowles statements as ‘pettifogging’ arguments. That raised the ire of the Reeve, who demanded that Fielding should be put out, and on Fielding demanding to know who would do the job., the Reeve said he would do it himself, and, leaving his desk, he was about to carry out his purpose, but seeing Deputy-Reeve Wilson and Councillor Fisher about to prevent him, he called on Policeman Hyde to remove the offender, and on the Mayor to be protected from insults. Constable Hyde, thinking that the Mayor had ordered Fielding’s removal, proceeded with great energy to carry out the order.

“But Fielding had decided objections to being so summarily dealt with, and the result was that he and the constable clinched, and in an instant were struggling with each other.

“The scene was an exiting one. Chief Twiss, who was near at hand, entered the room, and was about to take a hand in the struggle, when the Mayor called for a cessation of the combat. He asked Mr. Fielding to apologize for using the language he had, which Mr. Fielding did; Mr. Knowles accepted the apology, and business oved on again. The only damage done was to some of the recent improvements made to the council room.

Deputy-Reeve Wilson moved that Mr. Fielding confer with the Streets and Sidewalks Committee, and Councillor Hickey, to see if a satisfactory solution of the matter could not be arrived at, the committee to report to a special meeting of the Council.

“Thus ended one of the most exciting incidents that ever took place in the Dundas Council Chamber.”

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