St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-01-08


was guess. If the taxes came in, they
got them; if not, they did not receive
them. For instance, last November the
police did not draw single cent, from
the chief down, and the fire department
was obliged to accept a reduction OF Is
per cent. But all the other city officials
aud their help received their pay in full.
That immaculate Bell charter, so en-
Enthusiastically adored by Comptroller
McCardy, was responsible for this state
of affairs. Nothing appears to have
given the saturnine city comptroller
greater delight than to say to poor
copper: 1.-THE police fund is exhausted,
1 cannot pay you this time"
But even the Bell charter can be
circumvented. AssemblYman Park er
circumvented it last evening, and his
colleagues in the assembly and in the
board of aldermen voted with him.
Hereafter, if there is deficiency, all
city officials Will stand it, and the men
who protect the city of st. Paul from
| fire and thieves and other criminals
will not be obliged to stand the entire
deficiency.
MIR. Parker's resolution allows the po
lice department and the fire departing mt
each $50, 900 absolutely out of the gen.
eral fund. instead of $4,000 each, leav-
ing, in the case of the fire department,
| S1SO,000 to be raised by taxes, and in
the case of the police department $780,
600. On the other hand, the item
of city officers salaries in the tax eSti>
mate was so changed that Instead Of
providing for the entire $40. 7S0 being
trken from the general fund, only
| 50, 7SO will come out of the general fund,
while the remaining $4,000 shall be
raised by taxation. This scheme does
not increase the total tax estimate by
one cent. 1t simply changes the appli-
cation of the total amount of money
raised under this plan if sufficient taxes
are not collected to realize the total
fund fol each city department, the de-
| fciency will
BE Borne by All.
| In other words, the police and fire
departments receive $4,000 more from
the general fund, while $4,000 or the
1850 necessary to pay the salaries of
the other city departments is to be
raised by direct taxation. In advocat-
ing this resolution, Mr.. Parker said to
the assembly:
| cit is a well-known fact that the fire
and police departments have for
month in each year for the last two
| years been short in their pay. Now,
the idea is to prevent this shortage from
falling upon these two departments alb
solutely."
Mr.. Parker then quoted the law gov
| erning the makeup of the tax estimate.
which requires the maximum amounts
to be stated for the three departments
police, fire and city officials.
Il notice." continued Mr.. Parker, "in
Mr.. McCardy's esLlmate that the city
officers salary fnnd is taken care of by
the general fund, which supplies the
entire sum required. whereas only per
cent Of the general fund is devoted to
the fire and police departments. 1t is
also wellknOWn fact that not a single
member of the police department re-
ceived salary for last November, and
80 per cent of the salaries for Novem-
Der, 1898, have never been paid. Again,
the firemen received only 81 per cent
of their November salaries.
These two departments are short be-
| cause all the taxes have not been col
lected, whereas the city officers salary
fund has been provided for by taking
the entire fund out of the general
fund. Our policemen and firemen are
working for pretty small salaries.
Most of them have large families, and
the loss of one months salary makes a
serious inroad upon their condition.
know personally of policemen who have
been obliged to pawn their watches to
get money with which to keep their
families.
Now | maintain that if the other city
officials were made to share the weight
caused by unpaid taxes, it would not be
as great hardship on tine fremen and
policemen.
sit is true that the salaries of the
head officials are provided for by legis-
lative enactment, and they can sue the
city for the amount due them. But they
can also wait. There is Chief of Police
Clark, for instance, who has not re-
eeived cent of his November pay. He
has consented to walt, though his salary
Is fixed by law, and he might sue and
collect every cent due him. Yet ne has
preferred to wait. Why can't other of
hcers do the same? They should all be
put on the same basis Can you tell
us, Mr.. McCardy."
McCardY's MonOIonOus TWang.