, 1880-02-29

:o,rv t,at appropriations be made fer the fol-
| lowing purposes:-
Extra for sewers 510oH ~
For bridgeport pumps toy'VW 1890
For hre- DOAt. 1a0 IN
For vinducts 1V'ooe
Total. $*'so'"o'
Asno tax can be levied for these purposes
without exceeding the legal limit, t. Is. pro
posed by some members Of the Finance Com
mittee to appropriate SS45, 600 OF the surplus
money now in the Treasury for these special
PURPOSES This Committee at the last regu-
lar meeting made a written report, in which
they stated tie case very clearly as follows: !:
WHEREAs, The City Charter requires that i, tho b
appropriations for corporate purposes ghal aIr b9
Maae nesr %hile % she Rcyenac laws o. the State
der it impossible to collect the money mus Up,
proprlated until tho next year Thereafter; ama
WHEREAS. Under the operation OF tnese laws
tho City Government is OF necessity leftWlthouo
funds Ia hand with which to meet current eS-
penses and is OBLIGED TO resort m to one OF Inc aoi.
E reas',4 issngs fana sS5P inrSus the q
ard the anana 1ea1sng 81 6e eaRen
''9vi1 WaEnxas. Has We are prohibited By the Charter
from borrowing money and increasing our debt
beyond its present Hmlt ana 1 neev9 aS KY wonot o2
Ill
plbyes of the city are forced to uccept Is an IN
Justice to them, and that 1t is bad economy for
II say:d that we declare it to be the policy Of
this Council to do away ut the earliest practtca~
bic moment, With the necessity Of issuing scrip,
and that we believe the only feasible why OF do
inK this is by the gradual accumulation Of a
fund in the City Treasury which shall be held
sacred for that purpose, and to that end it is
not not including trust funds now in the City Treas
ury which have been collected from Iniscel.
laneous sources or collected FROM taxes levied
hereafter bn collected On account Of said lcvtes.
shall he disposed of by the City Controller sls
follows: q, Restore the sinking fund to the full
pended pended balances remaining from former
appropriations for, school purposes to DC
p1nced to the credit Of the Board of Educa-
tion US the law tcquiros, and as this Council has
heretofore ordered. fD ANY appropriation here
toforc mA6lo for tire or police stations and yet
nexpeuded to s9ntinae IN forEe ~ cde no 5de
ing scrip outstanding, on account OF work done,
materials furnished, or contracts yet uncom-
Relsa Let M II nP q @ th appaeR1e
Of 1878 and previous years, together with tho
sum Of $.50,000 from miscellaneous sources,
ommendei by the Finance Committee to be used
for corporate purposes during 1660, to be SO ap~
piled tG) All tho balances then remaining from
whatever source to be covered into the genera!
fund ::
In the meantime, the Council hus been con-
sidering the annual appropriation ordinance,
section by section, and has already increased
It, without reference to these special items.
far in excess Of the possible ordinary reye-
nue. Of the city for the year. This action ill-
dicates the purpose Of a majority OF the
Council to so increase the total apprOprla-
tioils as to exhaust every ddliar: in the Treas
ury, and thus compel the city to resort again
to the disreptuable, costly, and illegal prac-
tice Of issuing scrip,-of running the City
Government on credit. During nearly four
years the City Government has been endeav-
oring to accumulate cash fund, the result
of strict economy and saving, in order. to es-
cape the costly and hazardous makeshift of
issuing illegal scrip, and now 1t Is evidently
the purpose Of 4 majority Of the Coun-
cil-the Communistic majority-to seize
this fund, and to expond it wastefnl-
ly and extrayagantly, scandalously and,
1t may be added, dishonesty, The
taxes levied to meet the appropriations
for 1880 cannot be collected before January
to July, 1881. By acchnu1ating cash fund
in the Treasury, and the incoming taxes for
1879, the city maybe able to pay its expenses
Ill Eitou INV VIC NO14IFIAANA " 40oAV UAh u
small amount Of scrip. Adding the savings
possible in 1850 and 1851 the city may be able
in 1889 to pay all its expenses from one year
to the other i'll cash at O saving OF nearly 10
per cent from the expenditures for the same
purposes on scrip basis. Last year the
Council added per cent to most of the sala-
ries because they were to be paid i'll scrip.
This year the per cent is continued because
the salaries were to be paid in cash; butnow,
rs the purpose is to expend all the cash avail:
able in addition to the ordinary appropria-
tions, the Council should signalize the scan-
dalous return to the scrip business by another
addition to the salaries. The Mayor and the
Controller have, to their great tcredit, strenu-
ously defended this accumulated cash
fund. They hare opposed any appro-
priation Of it. A majority of the
Finance Committee have sustained the
Mayor and Council If the majority Of
the Council were true to their trust. and
faithful to the interests Of the city, this
whole fund would remain intact, and strik-
ing evidence be furnished Of what an honest
City Council can do to rescue city from
financial etnbarrassments. The Mayor, Con-
a minority of the Council stand be-
tween this fund and the Communistic
tendencies Of the controlling party in the
Council. Whether the Mayor and his sup
porters can maintain their position success
fully, and win the approval OF the great mass
OF the people Of all parties, remains to be
tested. It will be a public calamity should
they be overwhelmed and this accumulation
of honest and economic government be
squandered in the creation Of new and use
less offices and increase of salaries.
HOW TO SECURE CLEAN STREETS.
The streets of this city are in disgraceful
condition. They always are in an open
winter or "soft" weather at any season.
They always will be so long as there shall be
m rnou1nr crcfn1,, rf imrrovhn,pr+c 1,tif on1v