The daily gazette., 1883-02-15
DatluslaiE Gazette
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WILMINGTON. THURSDAY. FEB.
That school Board Money.

taken from a fund raised by sale of bonds
for the benefit Of the Board of Education
aud expended for city purposes, has passed
both houses Of the Legislature and is now
law. Thanks to the determined opposition
OF the GAZETTE, this sum is nGs added to
funded debt OF the city, but is
to be held as floating ohll-
cation, the money to be borrowed from
bank and repaid in two instalments OF
$4,000 each, one on the first day of August
next and the other on the first day of
August, 1884.
This sum of $50, 900 was deliberately and
openly taken by the City Council from tile
School Beard, st time when it was not
needed by that body, and honestly expended
for the legitimate affairs of the city. Its
use was an imperative necessity,
as by reason of increased de-
mands upon the treasury for
public improvements the ordinary revo-
nues were exhausted aud the city depart
ments would have been compelled to come
TO standstill had not this available money
been made use Of The understanding at
the time was that the loan, for such it really
was, should be returned Immediately upon
the reception Of th9 July taxes, and the
present City Council failed in the perform
ance Of Its plain duty in not leyying a tax
rate sufficient for this purpose.
The attempt to add this amount to the
city's fupded debt was violation Of an i'm
piled contract, and if successful would have
Imposed upon the people an obligation
bearing double rate Of interest, and in
strict justice the Council should have been
compelled to provide for the payment of the
entire amount during the current fiscal
year. However, there is very little
material difference in the exist
ing arrangement, which allows two
years for this purpose, and the matter is
thus finally settled 10 a satisfactory manner,
though an application Of the principles OF
fairness ana common sense would have re-
suited in an equally satisfactory arrange
ment without resort TO the Legislature.
This dispute having been equitably ad-
justed there is another matter, involving
the use Of money belonging to the
School Board, which the City Coun-
ell should investigate without delay
1t is of several years. standing, but
as 1t is as much a mystery now as when dis
covered, there is no good reason why IL
should not still be looked into. Like the
more recent instance it was the diversion OF
money raised BY sale of bonds for school
purposes into other channels, but how the
money was taken or for what purpose
1t was used is no known to this
day. True, the Council under whose
administration this defalcation occurred wa;
controlled by Republican majority, while
the Council that openly used school money
for honest purposes with the express inten
ofrepaying it to the last dollar was in Dem
ocratie hands; but this Is no reason why the
first transaction should be kept In tota
darkness, while the last was kept before th'
eyes of the people from its inception to thu
present time.
The money thus mysteriously misappro
priated and as mysteriously spent amounted
to $12,500 and though four years hav
elapsed since the deficiency was discovered
the people do not yet know how or for wha
purpose it was expended. There is a shrewC
suspicion that some of it went to cove
Street Department pay rolls amounting L
81 800 in a single week. but nothing defnit
was ever learned, as the chairman of tn
Finance Committee under whose admins
tration this financial jugglery prevailed
soon after left the city under cloud ant
has never returned.
Gentleman of City Council, you have
plain duty before you. Two misappropria
tions-if you please to term them-of schoo
moneys have occurred within the past hv
years, but while one has been honestly an
honorably accounted for the other, eve
though 1t happened under an immaculat
Republican administration, is still pre-
found secret. You owe it to yourselves, t
your party and, more important than all, t
the people, to probe this matter to the bot
tom, and show beyond shadow of doub
what became of the School Board none
that was taken by the City Council in 1875
- - -s---s-=---
IT WOULD BE much better for those VIII
object to the presence of the ex-Chiefs {
the Water aad Police Departments at Dove
in the interest OF Water and Police Cor
mission bills, to see that the successors {
these men perform the duties of the position
In au equally capable manner. The ne
police force, after term of service extent
ing over but little more than half year hi
completely demonstrated its unfitness an
lack of capacity, while the want of e;
perience in the Water Departmel
as at present managed is already being fe
to q percepdble extent. If the mornir
organ, which seems more troubled ov
these matters than the taxpayers themselye
only knew Of sx-Chief McIntire's real mi
sion at Dover, it weuid not, perhaps, woud
why some Of the best citizens and cleares
headed business men of Wilmington wa
the future affairs Of the Water DEPARTING
administered by competent commissiC
instead Of by the City Council.
-%-s--s-B-a -~@---
IT Is QUESTION whether or not Il
remedy was within the power of the Leg
lature, but it seems reasonably certain th
Mr.. William Dean was not treated wi
exact justice by the Baltimore & Ohio Ra
road Company in the matter Of the right
way through the town Of Newark.
s---s+s----
CINCINNATI IS now practically surround
hv the flood railroad communication wi