The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1868-04-03
CITY FINANCES!
Reckless Expenditure Of the
Public Money.
The city IN Debt 100000.
CITY COUNCIL.
Review of its Doings the
Past Year.

The present City Council met for the first
time one year ago on the sth of this mouth.
1t consists Of two Republican aud four De-
mccraiic members, viz: MesSrs. BETTs and
BRu.H, Republican, elected by the First
Ward, and Messrs. OcHs and QUILTER, BoT.
rFuR and KELLER, Democrats, elected by the
Second and Third Wards respectively. The
Democratic msjority has been large enough
to carry any measure that suited them
and they have voted as a unit from the
beginning. They are therefore solely re-
,ponsible for the acls Of the Council.
Although the majority of the Council re-
fuse to authorize an exhibit of the financial
condition of the city 10 be published, con-
fessedly because it will hurt their party at
the Spring election, we have not found it
impossible to make an approximately correct
estimate of the resources expenditures and
present condition of the City Finances, as
will be seen in this article; and we chal-
lenge the Democratic members of the Coun-
Gil, the City Treasurer, or any or all the
Democratic officials of the city to disprove
either our facts or figures. The Annual
Exhibit of the City Treasurer" published
last week in the official paper, =" is entirely
worthless as an exhibit of the receipts and
expenses of the city. 1t merely shows the
amount of orders redeemed by the Tressu.
rer-not the amount issued, by any means.
For instance it states the amount paid for
salaries to be little over 81 O00, when, in
fact, the amount Of orders issued in payment
of salaries has been more than twice that
sum. 1t may cover the amount of orders
given 10 salaried officers that he has redeem
ed, but not all, or half, of the orders issued
to them by the Council. The same is true
as 70 labor, loans, materials, gas, dc, DC.
The attempt to palm off such an exhibit as
anything like a correct or comprehensive
statement of our fuancial affairs, is too ab-
surd a trick to deceive anybody having COM
mon sense.
We hear much complaint by the Democ-
racy Of the heavy Indebtedness contracted
by former Town Councils, Republican in
politics, which this Council has had TO
shoulder. They make it the scape-gOat of
all their own delinqueDcies. What are the
facts 2 The Council previous 10 the present
one was Democratic--Me HAYNES and
DICKINSON controlling it. The Council pre-
ceding that was Republican, HOMER EVER
EFT, we believe, being the President. That
was the Council which purchased the steanl-
er, and ,ohen it ,oem oM Of pO,uer il Ieft a
thousand dollars in The treasury with which
TO pay the first I" steamer bond when it
should fall due. But the next Council,
which was Democratic (HAYNEsD, instead
of payiog the first steamer bond when it
fell due, showed it over 10 the present Coun-
cl, and used the thousand dollars for other
Council must not attempt to charge this in
debtedness 10 former Republican Council.
he has his illustrious Democratic predeces-
sors to blame whose example, by the way, he
and his colleagues have not been slow to
follow. During EvERErT's administration
Messrs. HAYNES and RENDTLER, both Demo-
Gratis, received permission to build a side
walk on State stree, expecting to receive
their pay from the property holders, and
agreeing to wait for it until it was collected
from them Their charge was about 500,
with interest. They sued the property
holders, but lest the suit, the Court deciding
that the city had no right, at that lime, to
build sidewalks on State ground. They
then sued the city, got Judgment, (partly
owing to the slackness of the City Solicitor
and collected their modest little claim. This
makes sl7OO of Indebtedness chargdbls to
he Democrats alone, which BoTEFUR's Coun-
Gil has had TO shoulder. There remains to
be added on this score about $500, being
the amount of Judgment and costs collect
ing old orders) 10 favor of G. G. GREENr,
ESQ.,, aud $3.50 of old orders redeemed by
the City Treasurer in his last settlement.
Footed up it is as follows;
Steamer bond and interest ,----. Sl,O1l 69
Judgment in fa~or of g. g. Greene, 30O w
Old orders redeemed by Treasuer, 29O 90
HAYNES 4 RendtleI's s Claim. 100 w
S236l So
The present Council began life one year
ago with the above not very frightful amount