The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1875-05-25
TuE sALAnns on oIrY opFIoEns,

publication, which IL appended 10 this
article, In regard 10 the reduction
the salaries Of city officers, TnE HER-
AID has no disposition 10 DO any Que
Injustice, aud h always wllllng u
eheerfully correct any errors II may
have fallen into, THE HERALD can
not SEQ that the statement presents any
very startling evidence that the aala-
ries have been reduced, especially when
q few errors aud the supposltlons data
upon which II h based, il inquired in
10, On the contrary, ii confirms and
strengthens tho position taken by TUE
HERALD, that the salaries, with two or
three exceptions, have not been ro-
duced 10 hahla comm enauralo with
the embarrassed condition Of the clly'a
finances,
The point taken by TIM HERALD,
and what waa expected by tho people,
was that the salaries Of tho officers
would be reduced pro rafd aud based
upon M equivalent 10 tho currency
value Of The scrip received by officers
during the paat year-say PRODUCTION
Of hdy per cent, aud payable In green'
backs. This would have been q saving
10 the city OF one-half, while II would
really have Increased the salaries of
the officers, M at no time within the
past year hns city scrip commanded u
market value Of over thidy-llye or
forty-lye cents Oh the dollar This
was the substance Of the report Of the
llnanco committee, but Instead Of IN
adoption the majority Of the city
council saw NJ 10 pass by the report,
and adopt In lieu thereof an ordinance
lxlug the salaries of officers which, IL
not M increase, was certainly no re-
ductlOn, IN u majority OF the offices,
taking the relative value Of scrip and
currency into consideration,
The duties Of tho various officers Of
the city government of Dallas, aside,
possibly, from the secretary, are not no
laborlous or responsible as TO command
that higher order Of talent and ability
which must be remunerated alone for
its erudlton or reputation. There
ARE so no states In this union that pay
but u salary Of one thousand dollars II
year to their chief magistrate, and yet
the office never goes begging for the
want Of competent men to fill II. If
the officers of our city government feel
that they would be doing themselves
injustice to serve the city at so unre-
munerative salaries AZ recommended
by the finance committee, there are
plenty of honorable, competent and
efficient gentlemen In our midst who
would cheeriully serve at the salaries
proposed, If they resigned and the
world would move on AS unconcemed
and careless rs If anything but II great
and inconsolable sorrow or alllletlon
had befallen us.
BY reference to the figures given be-
low, ii will be seen that they are based
upon no data whatever. How can any
man, as the compiler OF the statement
has done, determine what the salary of
he mayor will be for 1875? The per-
quisites allowed him are the same rs
paid Justices of the peace, and amount,
where but one subpoena is issued and
one witness sworn, TO three dollarsand
seventy-iive cents. One has but to re
fer to the record of the mayors court,
daily, TO form some idea of what
these perquisites will amount to in the
course ola year.
In addition to the fact that the per-
quisites of 1876 are based entirely upon
an unreliable hypothesis, THE HERALD
is under the impression that there are
one or two errors in the statement.
For instance, the amount of salary and
perquisites credited to the, city mar
shall are set down at over four thou
sand dollars, when, in reality, the
amount paid him was less than two
thousand dollars. 1t is true, he has
presented n claim against the city for
over two thousand dollars, but, in the
absence of any definite action by the
council, it should hardly be taken for
granted that it has been paid, and
made to cut an important item in the
way Of reduction. If The HERALD is
rightly informed, there was also no
salary paid the deputy marshal last
year, the marshal appointing that
officer and dividing q portion of his
salary and perquisites with him as
compensation for his services.
Below will be found The statement,
and our citizens can form their own
conclusions as to the brilliant COM
mencement the council have made in
their initial steps toward economy, re-
trenchment aud reform /:
Mayor
Salary ....... 500 20 $1,000 90
Fees paid by the eity...,,.., l, i 90
Fees paid by the Defendants 5000 $1,000
Total W 5000 90
Salary ...,............. WOO UUW
Issuing checks...-............. . 3OI w 2oOOO
Attending council meetings a1-
(0S meetings. .,..."...... Sy2OO 25O0
minutes.............. lTN
rli ttr oil art fer ar l