The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-01-19

The last straw that has broken the
faith of the estimates committee OF
councils in their ability to fix up some
kind of a satisfactory appropria-
tion ordinance for the fiscal year OF
1898, came In the form of an estimate
for the street department.. The esti-
mate is in the hands of the city con-
troller and will not come before the
committee until tomorrow night and
possibly a week later, but it's contents
are known to the committee and were
received with considerable misgivng.
A bothersome feature Is that none of
Street Commissioner Dunning's de-
mands are without reason. If he esti-
mated 800 900 above the amount to be
actually granted him the situation
would not cause any misgivings IL his
extra demands were unwarranted, but
the fact of the matter is that he asks
for S2S15S more than the total of $4S,-
307 granted his department for 1878
and members of the estimates commit
tee know that all of this additional
sum is needed. They don't know where
or how much to whittle.
For the fiscal year ending the first
Monday of the coming April councils
appropriated $2S5.2i125 for general pur-
poses and $5S,54S for sinking fund and
| interest, a total of $343,7S925. Just
about that sum will be available this
year, but when the estimates commit
| tee receives it's budget from the city
| controller it will be found that esti-
mates have been made for about $125,-
| 600 above the amount which the con-
troller will estimate as available for
| general purposes.
OTHER DEPARTMENTS.
The fire and police departments to-
| gether want an increase of about $685.
| 600, the park commissioners an added
| $11 900 and the mayor a handy sum to
| check the ravages of time on the in
| terror of the city hall. For a fire de-
| partment headquarters, new homes for
| Crystal and Century hose companies
| and additional permanent firemen $780,
| 600 extra money is to be asked. Prob
| ably never before has there been SC
| many deficiencies or for such large
sums as will have to be proveded in
the next appropriations, along with
provision for incidentals and judgments
and new electric lights. All these facts
lend added interest to the street COM
missioner's extra demands.
The street department has been
obliged through emergencies to incui
several deficiencies. Two trivial items
will illustrate. The department has
filled it's old set of books and has nc
money to buy new ones, the street COM
missioner having run in debt already
for such trivial things as blanks anC
! permit books. An almost useless roller
and crusher has been in service. al.
| though it would cost $500 to repair it
| The crusher has been i'm use so Ions
that it would not be economy to repair
it, and a new one would cost 81, 200.
For repairs to bridges and culvert.
the amount of money required has in
creased each year. There was large
drain this year from the fact thai
many bridges had to be entirely re-
planked. One end of the East Marke
street bridge will have to be raised tive
or three feet or it will be only a ques
tion of time before the torrents o
water which pour down the hill il
rainy weather will damage the abut
ment and result in an expenditur,
much greater than is now involved
There are similar contingencies OF
some of the other score or more of city
bridges.
FOR CLEANING STREETS.
The insignificant sum of $11. 900 ap
propriated for cleaning pavements las
year was $4,000 less than in 1896 anC
with more pave to clean. For 1898 Mr.
Dunning asks an increase of but S., ,75
over 1896 and those conversant with the
expense know that the total sum o
$lS,75O is far too small for good results
| For cleaning sewers and drains So, 50
was provided in 1896 and $4.5OO in 1897
For 1898 $4,000 is asked. Each yea
there has been a deficiency in thes
items. If so small a sum as 81, 500 wa
appropriated annually for the mex
three years for cleaning sewers anC
drains it would be only a question o
a few years before $4,000 would hardl,
cover the cost of repairs. As it is, Mr.
Dunning asks for $4,000 for repair
alone this year.
Day after day there are heard pro
tests against the condition of tn,