Waterbury evening Democrat., 1893-10-10
ANNUAL TOWN MEETING.
\ Committee Appointed [" Recommend
 Appropriations.

Appropriations.
 The adjourned annual town meeting was called to order in the district court , room at < o'clock last evening witt John L. SaNe in the chair. Fully one thousand people were present and an adjournment was taken to the hall proper
 After the formal opening Clerk Madden read a resolution which had been pre- sentcd fixing the annual town tax at five mills. Sclectman PinneY was the first to receive recognition from the chairman. After looking over the books this after mood, he said, we cane to the conclu- sion that We can get along on a four mill tax. I wish to make an amendment to that effect.
 Many in th,. audience smiled at the ut terancr of the first selectman. He may have been perfectly honest in intention. but il looked like n pr"-arranEed plan to catch the house
 The moderator was about 10 put the question to a vote. when Mayor-Elrct Xii duff rose and said: Just moment, Mr 1 Chairman. I make an amendment that ! the rate be two mills. h offering this amendment want to say that it is the crudest form of government for the select men to recommend q tax without giving us estimates on which to form a basis. We go about It blindly. There is sum of $50 OOu raised on liquor licenses. This ! with a two mill tax on a grand list of SlO.- i WN, ,OuO would make SSO GOO. Gentlemen | tell you two mills k enough At present | We are paving city, town and school tax | of thirty nine mills. That k too high. ! We have no more town roads to care for 1 now than fifteen wears ago. Then We re- ! cciVrd about S15 900 from liquor licenses; HOW We receive $50 tN0. \ two mill tax iS 1 enough.
 John O'Neill said: Il am of the opinion ! that two-mill tax will answer all needed | purposes. At the same time am not sure about that There is statute law in Con- necticut which provides that towns ill town meetings may appropriate any amount they need for lawful purposes. Another section provides that selectmcn are liable to fine and imprisonment for one year if they eN- cecd the amount appropriated. In sub stance. the only duty of town k to care for it's poor and the highways. l had thought it would be wise for this meeting to appoint committee to map out just how much money We shall eNpend during the year and for what purposes. For myself l think wr should use macadam and make permanent improvements on highways But We should limit the Selectmen in what they eNpend. We voted tn eNpend SGO OOO for new almShouse but the select men have expended more than that amount for the purpose. Under the statutes they are criminally liable. I think a twn-mill tax will be sufficient. move. therefore. that we lay this tax matter on the table un- til We know how much We ought to eNprnd and for what purpose
 w. F.. Quigley wanted to know what roads should be macadamized.
 All of the roads. replied Mir. ONeill, beginning with the main thoroughfares. would like a committee appointed to set
 
 the past ten years. As it k now. the st. lectmen just before election begin [" rr- pair roads and -"
 Before Mir. O'Neill could finish his sen tence John F. Kellogg rose to a point of or der on the ground that motion to lie oi the table Was not debatable. The motion to table wns then put and carried without q dissenting vote.
 On motion of Miles F. Connolly a com. mittee consisting of Mayor D. F. Webster F.. G. Kilduff. F. A. Smith. John O'Neill Moritz Grelle and John Fitzpatrick was appointed to report on appropriations fnI the coming year. Some one wanted [, know if the committee would be under pay or whether they would do the work gratis Chairman SlXc said that outside nf the Sr lectmen's office work of this kind was usually done without cost. The motion was carried
 There was an unnecessarily long drhat' as Ia when the committee wnul report. The janitor said that City hall was engaged for fairs for four weeks from next Monday There was a tilt between Attorneys O'Neil and T. F. Kellogg to whether call for a town meeting to be held "n Saturday night. signed and posted by the selectmen w"uld be legal. the statute requiring five days notice of town meeting. Nh O'Nrill had the best nf the argument and finally a call for q meeting on Saturday night WAS prepared hy him and signed hy , the srlectmen. and the committee was in structed to report at that time. Ii was also voted tn refer the matter of fixing the compensation of assessors to the same committee. after which the meeting ad