The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-05-28
CITY'S RE VENUES.
w orcester is Taking
in All Kinds of
Money.
IN ALL KINDS OF WAYS,
Even the City Scavenger
Scrapes Up $500
a Year.
IN ALL KINDS OF WAYS,

Every one is aware of the fact that
city like Worcester is under a tremend-
Gus expense, but aside from vague
idea that taxes and money received
from liquor license fees, revert to the
city, comparatively few people stop to
consider where the several millions OF
dollars necessary to keep the munict-
pal machinery of so large a city in
operation come from.
Aside from its regular receipts, the
city has many and varied sources of re-
venue. The heads of various depart
ments are constantly on the alert to
take advantage of every opportunity
that presents itself to form source OF
revenue, and thousands Of dollars are
in this way applied annually to the
credit of the city.
From the adjustment of its mer-
chants scales and measures, sale OF
material that has outlived it's useful
ness, care of the sick and needy, and a
hundred and one different accounts,
nearly every municipal department has
its source of income
First in Importance, perhaps, is the
fee received for liquor licenses. This
amounts alone, according to this years
figures, in the neighborhood of $4,000.
From the document which admits of
two hearts beating as one down to the
less pretentious paper which giyesa dog
the right to exist, there Is a never end
ing yield. Most fees of this sort come
through the city clerk S office, and the
number and variety is a revelation to
the initiated. In 1898 the amount taxi
en- in for licenses of various kinds, in
Guiding the city's share of the dog tax,
amounted to $S,98220. This included
the fees charged for licensed auction-
GERS, amusements, billiard halls, slaugh-
terers of cattle, sale of fireworks hacks
and job wagons, intelligence offices,
junk dealers, old rag gatherers, pawn
brokers, petroleum dealers, shooting
galleries, steamboats, and office
fees. This includes the neat sum
of $2,23S.20 charged for record
ing documents of different kinds,
marriage licenses and papers of a like
nature.
The city hospital, which expends a
considerable sum of money each year,
has a considerable source of income.
Last year receipts from board of pa
tients alone amounted to $15 1857,
which, in addition to $16,69259, received
from the commissioners Of the JaqueS
fund, and various other income, makes
quite a showing toward offsetting the
EXPENSES OF the luStlLullOIl-
Without giving the matter thought IL
would be difficult to determine how
there could be a source of income from
the fire department, but the auditors
report for last year shows that the sum
of $1552.72 was received from that
source. The revenue was derived from
care of police signal service boxes,
fines, sale of horses. hose couplings,
manure, materials sold and labor, and
sale Of old reels.
The matter of granting licenses is not
confined to the city clerk and license
commissioners alone. The health de-
partment takes a hand in this branch
of the administration, and with the
fees taken in from this and other
sources, received $11S2.59. This in
cluded the fees charged for plumbers,
swill and tallow licenses, board of pa
TENTS at isolation hospital, expense Of
contagious diseases received from the
commonwealth of Massachusetts, steril-
izing furniture, etc. oI
The receipts of the department of i'm
spection and construction Of public
building in 1898 amounted to S506662,
including rent of armory from thestate,
rent of the central district court room,
from the county, sale of the city hall
building and furniture, expense OF
lighting, and elevator boy during the
school exhibition and incidentals.2 2esg
Last year, the poor department re-
ceived $5S94.54 from the commonwealth
and other cities and towns for support,
transportation and burial of paupefs
and dependent persons other than resi-
dents of Worcester. 0o
The home farm which comes under
the jurisdiction of this board, furnishes
another source of revenue, amounting
to $9527.4 received from board of In
mates and employees, sale of farm pro-
duce and other sources. aar
The scavenger department brings IN
upward of $500 for the sale Of pigs,
bones, swill, pork and blacksmithing
The parks commission, too paid in
one item in 1898 of S119.50 for the rental
of North Park.
The police department manages to
turn in revenue amounting to $6477.72.
That is, this was the amount last year,
divided in this way: For cloth, he'll
NETS, ETC., $509.75; fines and costs from
central district court, s33947S; keep
ing prisoners, $22; special service OF Of
6cers. S2491. 10: telephone service,
s2S.7O; refuse material s24.5O; station
cry and postage. $5.26; storage, 81.
The free public library received
$5919 II from the dog fund, s727.69 In
fines and for sale of catalogues $40 for
rental of swimming tank, and S67S7s
for books transferred, Green library
The same thing is applicable in all
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. sewer, street,
city engineers, street lighting, wa
ter, sales of material labor,
in fact. everything that tends toward
revenue. is taken advantage of by the
city as much as private Individual
with the result that there is a consider
able offset to the expense under which
the city labors. -