Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-12-11
ANOTHER BOLD SCHEME.

The Fire Commissioners Win Be
 Enjoined From Disorganizing the
 Department-The City at the
 Mercy of Four Men.
 The action of the board of fire com missioners in appointing committee to disband the three oldest fire companies in the department, is the talk of the town to-day. The commissioners are backed in their action by the city attor- ney, who claims that under the provis- ions of the charter the commissioners can employ as many firemen as they wish, so long as the expenses do not ex- ceed the amount of the appropriation. Whatever powers the commissioners may have in regard to employing men, we fail to find any section of the charter or any city ordinance giving them pow | CT to disband any company, or to dis charge a single man belonging to the department. Section 5 of an ordinance passed by the court of common council says; "E. 1 and control of the fire department, sub l ject to the rules and directions of said | board. He may suspend any, member of the department until said board de- eide whether such member shall be re- | stored to his place or discharged from | the department"
 This is the only section we find either in the charter or city ordinances bearing upon the matter of dismissals from the department. The fire commissioners | have no power to suspend or discharge a | single member.
 On the other hand under Section 24 of l the charter the court of common | council IS authorized to protect tho city from fire; to organize, maintain and regulate fire department and fire ap- paratus. It was clearly the intention of the charter to give absolute control of the department to the court of com mon council, whose orders should be enforced through the fire commissioners. Under the provisions of the charter the commissioners may be given power to employ "call' men, as the city attor- ney has decided, but even upon this point there is some doubt. One clause of Section 8 of the charter reads: The board shall submit to the court of com mon council, on or before the first day of October in each year, estimates of the amount of money required for the en- suing municipal year, specifying the purpose for which each and every part is required. Under this provision | it would seem as though the 1 board were obliged to specify in their estimate of expenses submitted to 1 the common council, tho amount to be | used to maintain the "calf' system if that system is adopted. This they did | not do, but instead asked for an addit- l ional appr priation of $2 ,OOO which was refused. In the face of this they claim they will introduce the system whether their action is approved by the common council or not. The scheme Is to disband Phoenix Fire Company probably re-elect | Commissioner Connolly to succeed him. self, and, then elect Samuel c. Snagg chief of the fire department, at an in- creased salary.
 1 The meeting of the commissioners Fri day night will be awaited with interest.
 It is to be hoped that wise counsel will pre-
 vail but if the board insist that they have power to disorganize the department an [ injunction will be served and the ques-
 tion will be settled by the courts. And
 no court in the world will decide that a city the size of Waterbury shall be held at the mercy of four men.
 l Leaving the rights of the commission CTS aside and coming down to the actual expense of the system they are | endeavOring to introduce into
 the department, and what do we find.
 In Bridgeport the ''call' men receive S25O each year, representing an annual
 expenditure of $15 1000 for the sixty men l eIHplOyeu Dy the uepaTUmenC. l ne "ateT-
 bury commissioners recommend paying the men $50 year. That sum would probably be satisfactory for the first year, but about the second year they
 would ask for an increase and it would
 be granted, and instead of the depart
 ment costing S12,OOO year it could
 hardly be maintained for double that amount.
 Things have come to a pretty pass when the city's interests are to be sacri- feed to satisfy personal grudge or to further a selfish ambition.