The age-herald., 1898-12-20
INCREASE PAY
 OR THE NUMBER City Council Will Discuss the Police
 Department. HIGHER SALARY ASKED FOR By the Commissioners At Th0iF Last
 Meeting.
HIGHER SALARY ASKED FOR
MAYOR EVANS WANTS DETECTIVES
Says Sunday Liquor Laws and Other Laws Are Violated-U Uniformed Men Can't Operate Against Them
 Changes in License Schedule.

"The police commission should ask for an appropriation of s1, 300 for the employ
 ment of two detectives. It is we'll
 known fact that there are constant vio-
 iations of the Sunday law in liquor sell
 ing and other crimes against the morals
 of the city. It is alleged that there are
 a number of gambling houses in full op- eration in Birmingham, and it is said by the police that these cannot be de-
 tected by officers in uniform. Two or
 three thoroughly reliable detectives can
 very soon detect them. The police conn.,
 mission ought to take these facts into
 consideration. Upon this point the
 mayor and aldermen have no jurisdic-
 tion whatever, and something ought to
 be done to suppress it."-MAYOR
 EVANS to an Age-Herald reporter.
 These were the words of Mayor Evans when asked his opinion on what the city ton of increasing the funds of the police department.
 This may mean a fight on the open viola ton of the city laws which are known to exist. The mayor had nothing more to say.
 The police department will likely take up a good portion of the city councils time at it's next meeting. The question will be sprung by the presentation of resolution adopted by the police commission some days ago asking for an increase in the pay of policemen. Speaking of the probable &C., ton of the board, the mayor said
 ''If the police commission will present a regular schedule of prices graded as sug- gested at the last meeting of the commis- sion, the policemen to be classified in num- bers i, 2, 8, no doubt the board will take the matter under serious consideration. It would not be within the province Of the board to fix the salary of any individual employe of the police commission, but the board might consider favorably the propo- sition looking to fair compensation for the services of the men on the force.
 ''The board fully recognizes and appre- ciates," he continued, "the valued serv- ices of the men who have long been on the force and who have proven themselves faithful and worthy"
 Several aldermen were asked to suggest some plan to meet the necessity. The first one said:
 q think the police force should be di- vided into four classes with pay as fol- lows: First year, $55 per month; second year, $6O; third year, s65; fourth year, $7O.'
 The present salary is S6O per month, and some men on the force have been working fifteen years.
 Another alderman said: My preference is to increase the force rather than increase salaries"
 Another wants an eight-hour service in- stead of twelve. This alderman proposes to increase the force one-third of it's pres ent strength.
 The opinion of another is that salaries should remain the same, one man should be added and two-thirds of the force required to work all night and one-third in the day. Among citizens the demand Is almost uni versal that the police department be in- creased, and it is probable that the city council will take some action at its next meeting.