San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1886-07-13
THE FINANCE COMMITTEE
MAKE THEIR REPORT BEFORE YES
TERDAY's COUNCIL.
New School Board Elected-Memorial
From the Labor Organizations About
Street Work-Garbage Cremation.

| lhc election OF u sCnOOl BOARD Tor the ensuing
year, the report Of the finance committee and
the report Of the city engineer on the garbage
cremation question, transacted little business
| of interest.
BenitO Lopez, Mexican cripple, petitioned
| for privilege of selling or peddling vegetables
| without license. II has been the custom,
though not provided for under the city Ordi.
nances to collect annual licenses Of $50.
| Petition granted. Mrs. &. Walsh asked per
mission TO erect a fence about the grave Of
| her son, buried in the city cemetery. Re
| ferred TO committee. L. Walter wanted a
meat stall on ConchO street. Referred TO
market committee. Citizens asked for and
we're granted more gas lamps on Mill and Lee
| streets. Fire companies wanted old fire bell
placed at corner Acequia and Camden streets
Granted A. Reinhardt, for meat stall, mar
of $50 of his fine for drunkenness. Although
Louis is an old offender In recorders court, the
petition was granted as he pleaded sickness
Caroline Schelper to have pound fees remit
| ted, police committee. Henry Mechlin wanted
to know IL city lots I'm range 3, district g. were
for sale, school committee. Mrs. Kaufman,
to build awning; public improvement commit
tee. Henry Wilkic, to erect iron clad shed in
first fire limits; hrC committee. otto Schmit.
TO withdraw petition to rent city property
Granted. Knights of Labor and labor unions.
asking that city improvements be under the
charge of the street commissioner instead Of
by contract; public improvement committee
Reports Of Oftcers-City weigher, market
master, city jailOr, marshal, pound
master, ditch commissioners, east and west
SIDE, parks keeper, Tor June were referred to
committees. Street commissioner reported It
would take $50 10 repair Navarro street
bridge hOOriDg; granted. Also to erect Simp-
son street BRIDGE at Il cost of So; granted.
He was also ordered to open a new street TO
connect South Presa with South Flores street.
All right of way. except through land of Capt.
Fred Cooke had been given. Common said the
street had been needed for half a century.
The sewer from SOledad street To the river
will be repaired Jointly with the county au-
thOritiCs.
City Engineer Matlack made a very lengthy
report us TO the establishment of three crema-
tory furnaces at cost of $500, recommend
ing the establishment of one as an expert,
ment. The council got tired hearing ii read
and referred IL TO the board of health.
Mrs. Eli Cole wanted 10 lay drain pipe
from her residence on Pecan street to the
river, across st. Mary's street. Some Alder
men kicked but Lockwood got up and said
that rs lOEg as this city did not bulld sewers
for our citizens he could see no objection to
private citizens trying 10 drain their own
residences. Granted.
Mayor pro TEN schrelner then an.
nounced the election OF school
year. Gallagher was chosen for Ward No. /;
Belknap resigned for Ward No. on account
OF a pressure of business for the next year,
necessitating his absence u great deal. Schrci-
ncr was chosen. HambletOn was reelected for
the Third ward, as was Smye for the Fourth.
The report Of the finance committee was pre-
scented rs follows:
Belknap reported that the monthly reports
of the attorney, weighcr, treasurer and cOllec-
tor had been examined and found correct
Ordered filed.
Belknap, for the finance committee, also
submitted the following report on a resOlu-
ton introduced by Gallagher, which was
adopted:
Your committee, to whom was referred the
resolution of Alderman Gallagher respecting
the method Of disbursing the mOnees of the
city, would respectfully report:
The committee find nothing in the city char
ter that places any restriction on the city
council In the adoption of its own methods OF
disbuTsing the monies of the city-all that the
city charter requi -es is, that all monies shall
be paid out upon orders of the mayor attested
by the city clerk. (See city charter, sections
l06, LIZ, III But in no section Is IL required
that a seperate and distinct warrant shall be
drawn in favor of each and every individual
who has "A claim against the city.
The present system of paying the employees
of the city lin each Department. on one pay
roll, has been in vogue for a long time, and
was, undoubtedly, adopted owing to its sim
plicity, in order that the labOrers and me
chanics, etc, having claims against the city
should not ho compelled to seek the treasurer,
where they would frequently have to be iden-
tiied when paid, and which would frequently
entail the loss to them of at least halt day
of their working time, and in order to prevent
possibility of those men who could neither
read nor write from being wrongcd or i'm
posed upon.
At the present there are eight pay rolls used
for the different departments, viz: Health,
streets, police, schools, engineers, bitches,
fire, general officers of the city On the eight
rolls we end 204 names, and IL has been the
custom to make eight warrants. the amounts
being disbursed by the city clerk among these
24 different city officers and their men, who
are on tn ,se rolls at salary fixed by this
council. annually, and to be paid as per your
general appropriations. The pay rolls come
to the mayor and city clerk from each of the
heads of these different departments, made
out by them and certified to under oath as TO
their correctness.
II your officers in charge of these separate
| departments are honest in their certificates
and oaths rs to the individual, and the amount
of labor performed by him, then we cannot
see any particular harm or injury to result to
this city by its paying its regular forces,
| whose wages are already fixed and the appro-
| priation made, in the simplest manner to
them.
II your officers are not honest, II would be
| difficult to make them so simply on a ques-
ton of mode or manner of payment, as the
wrong to the city would have been committed
before the pay roll comes to the mayor and
| city clerk. by and through the perjury of an
officer In certifying under oath TO a conc ition
of things that did not exist:
Your finance committee has always kept a
| check on these different pay rolls; they are
familiar with the appropriations allotted to
each department, and the salaries fixed an
nually. These are divided into monthly
amounts and the rolls checked up accord
ingly. Should the amounts at any one
time exceed the monthly average, due inyes
tigation is made, and the excess accounted
Your committee cannot pass this subject
| without pointing out how difficult IL IL for a
/
with suitable offices for all Its officers, where
| they might under the one roof, with safes and
| proper strOnghOlds for Its monies and secIri-
ties. and each department and its officer in
easy access to the other, to conduct its bust
ness as is usual where these conveniences are
| furnished.
We further believe that this question rests
with the council to regulate uf they see that II
l is necessary.
Tue committee, of themselves. would recon.
mend that one day In each month be desig.
1 mated by his honor the mayor as pay day:
that duplicate pay rolls be kept, one for city
clerk and one for city treasurer, and the
mayor having signed the warrants, that the
j wiling be on hand on the day appointed with
| the money for the warrants in the mayors
| Office, and pay the men in person, taking their
| receipts for same. This will make the pay.
| ments by the city treasurer i'm person, and
/ still secure to the employees the simplest mode
i OF obtaining their money.
Respectfully submitted,
A. BKLKNAP, Chm Fin. Com.
A. l. LOCKWOOD,
J. II. SMYE.
| The report on the $4,000 worth Of new work
| as agreed on by the committee of the whole
and recently published, was adopted.
Belknap also submitted the following state
ments I'm regard to the special improvement
| funds.
1856, on account street improvements:
| 10 per cent
| on account
| Amount. Paid, retained.
Ward No. "a l3,2lI % silica 81 sl,9sl q
ward No. g.. Ic'ioS s. S,si IS 1. 81 3
Ward No. a.. lO,T2l "A 9,ll3 % l,oOS 2
sss,ns 90 ss2654 80 sS7e2 s
| On account OF county and city hospital d