Committee Staggered by Size of the Bills

     A very unpleasant surprise was in store for the members of the city council and of the citizens’ executive committee, when they met Thursday evening and opened the bills, which have been presented for decoration, refreshments and entertainment furnished during the funeral services last week. Some of the bills, presented by local merchants are said to be ridiculously exorbitant. On the other hand some of the charges are very moderate and quite in keeping with the circumstances under which the bills were contracted.
     A member of the council who is highly indignant over the magnitude of some of the claims presented, said to a reporter Friday that it looked very much to him as though some of Canton’s citizen [sic] were trying to take advantage of the death of the president to add to their bank accounts. “You would be surprised,” said he, “if you could look over the list of bills which we have on hand. The money now in fund will be wholly inadequate to defray the expenses. There is, however, no disposition upon the part of any member of the council or of the committee to repudiate any of the bills returned but, at the same time, in a great many of the cases, we feel that it is a clear case of hold up.”