The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1881-04-28
The City Expenditures.

We have received a communication
which critcises, in no unfriendly spirit
however, the recently published state
ment of the annual disbursements of the
city Of Belfast. The writer puts certain
queries concerning the highway eXpendi-
lures, which can only be answered by the
surveyors. The document criticised is
simply, as stated in Mayor Swans intro
ductory remarks, San annual statement
of the disbursements of the City of Bel
fast, as appears from the monthly roll OF
accounts, approved by the City Council
End paid upon the Mayors order" II
has nothing to do with the labor put or
the highways, and which amounts t.
about two thirds Of the total expenditures
for that purpose. 1t should also be I'M
derstood that the statement put forth by
Mayor Swan was merely an experiment
intended to test the public interest il
this direction, and that it does not pro
teSS to cover the whole ground of the
city's financial condition. We uuott
again from the introductory "a more
extended knowledge of municipal dis
Dursements may aid in greater economy
without injury to the public interest, anC
make the burden of taxation more tOler-
able as the necessity Of the disbursements
are more fully understood. Should this
plan meet the approval of our citizens i
more comprehensive report may be made
in future. embodying the treasurers re-
port, and published in pamphlet form tol
distribution
This suggestion Of Mayor Swans is en-
dorsed by our correspondent, who says
IAN itemized schedule OF expenditures OF
every cent disbursed should be printed
annually and distributed among the tax
payers, that they may know whether ol
not they get value received for theil
taxes y step in this direction has al
ready been taken and it remains for the
taxpayers themselves to say whether
they desire a detailed statement annually
OF the city expenditures. 1t was Mayor
Swans hope that they would ask tor sucl
a statement, and the present city officials
we are sure, will cheerfully respond t.
the request. 1t is certainly proper one
to make. our citizens are heavily taxed
and it is only right that they should know
how their money is expended. Our city
officials are men of integrity and have N
motive for cOnCealing anything. Bu1
when the taxes are high the Taxpayer
will exercise his privilege Of growing anC
there will always be some to suspect thai
money is improperly expended or divert
ed from its rightful direction. An annu-
al statement such as proposed, showing
every cent expended and how expended
would enlighten the taxpayer and re-
leve the city officials from unjust anC
groundless suspicion.
Our correspondent says he would like
to know how much our highways cost us
last year, and how much of the ''labol
and uneXpended, S5,9l6.5O," which bal
ances the appropriation Of $4,000, is labor
and how much uneXpended. 1t is also
suggested that our highway surveyors
'should have a fixed salary like other
municipal officers, and be required t,
make a satisfactory account" These We
take to be matters within the control OF
the taxpayers, and if they want tC
change the present system it ought not
to be difficult for them to do so. We will
simply say here, however, that the com
penSatl0n of the surveyors is far from be-
ing so eXtravagant in amount as some sup
pose it to be. 1t would no doubt be a
change for the better if the highway tax
was made cash tax and the money was
appropriated and expended as in Other
departments Of the city government. But
such an innovation would naturally meet
with good deal of opposition. What we
all want is to secure reduction of taxa
ton if possible, without detriment to the
public interest, and to that end all should
direct their efforts