The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-11-27
Mayor Hoos Makes Mr..
Bouton's $4,000 Look
Like Thirty Cents.
OPPOSED TO BIG SALARIES
Veto of the Resolution of the
Street and Water Board
Some Extra Digs.

cNNAt&Oi1eAA Sdle1As "a $-soVc pSA
The veto. which, under the rules, will
lay over for one week, is as foliows:-
November q, 1900.
Honorable Board of Street and Water
"Gentlemen-I hereby return to your
Honorable Board, without my approval,
the following resolution passed at your
meeting held November goth, 190:-
9 Resolved, That dating from Decem-
her 1st. prox., the additional duties of
partment of this Board and clerk of its
several committees be and is hereby inn
posed IN Geo. T. Bouton, he to receive
full and offsetting payment therefor,
compensation at the rate of two thou
sand dollars G2.00O per annum, payable
monthly
u have taken this action for the fol-
lowing reasons:-The passing OF a feso-
luton whereby you impose upon your
Clerk the additional arduous duties of
Chief Supervising Clerk of the Water
its several committee" and value such
($2.e00) additional to the three thousand
dollars $1,000 allowed by law is some
thing that my humble Judgment fails to
comprehend. To give to your clerk su-
pervision over the Water Department
would mean that he is to perform the
duties which were placed in the hands of
five Commissioners by the people and for
which the Commissioners are receiving
the sum of two thousand dollars G2,000)
each per annum.
would your Clerk be after the passage of
the resolution in question than he is to-
day2 If you are unable to work needed
reforms in your departm while clothed
with your official powers then a Super
vising Clerk would be as powerless as
the statue which occupies sucn a promi-
nent position in front of the City Hall.
In other words Supervising Clerk would
be something which exists in name only.
Your Clerk has been employed in his
present capacity for many years under
and Dam IL ordc
and as such has never complained, 80 far
as know, of being overworked or under
paid. The work in your Board at the
statutory rate of three thousand dollars
(sS, o00) per year is far from being poor
pay. From A. NJ. to 4 P. NJ, with an
intermission for lunch, less than eight
upon as a days work. By comparison
we find that our neighboring city, New
ark, which has population and territory
considerably larger. an income much
f5r than that of Jersey City, paid the
clerk of the Street and Water Board but
$500 a year up to recently, and last year
Tor the first time in its history paid the
AN extra expense to which your clerk
may have been put have been promptly
paid by the city, and when through sheer
neglect of duty by some under clerk in
his department the minute book had not
been written up for three or four years an
additional clerk was engaged at a salary
n.
cuse made was that under the Republican
administration he was unable to control
the clerks and this work which should
have been done from day to- day was neg
lected Directly under him in your de-
partment there are many clerks and a
steoSrapher and typewriter, notwithstand-
ing which fact many letters have come 10
my office complaining of inattention to
both written and personal complaints and
n order to rectify matters I have been
obliged to place them directly before the
-s-sr1
men and proce conclusively that either
neglect or carelessness have crept into
this office. Such being the case how can
you think of imposing additional duties
upon your clerk and how is he to earn two
thousand dollars additional salary? 1 VEN
ture to say that there is not a member of
your Board who being engaged in business
would put his hand in his pocket and pay
out two thousand dollars extra for SER
vices which should be even now promptly
and we'll performed by your clerk and his
assistants at the salaries fixed by law Is
it right, is it just to make the people OF
our city pay fabulous salaries when thous-
ands of able men are seeking work in the
mercantile world.
while I feel that public official
should be well paid, I do not believe that
all the big ones so-called should be
more than literally compensated for their
services If such services are deemed
worthy of more pay in the open market,
then l believe in offering them to the
highest bidder. Many of the minor office
holders have come to you and to me re-
questing an advance in their salary and,
except in the most justifiable cases,
have positively refused, owing to the
financial condition of our city. In addi-
tion to the Clerk of your Board. you
have under your supervision also a Water
Assessor, at a salary of $1,000 per year.
having under him a large staff of clerks
a Water Registrar, at salary of So 500
per year. and his staff of clerks, appoint
ed to perform certain duties in the Water
Department. Do the heads of these de-
partments need a supervisor? If SO, that
is a duty which devolves upon the Com
missioners and cannot be delegated to
your Clerk. Upon you as Board and
upon no one else rests the responsibility.
The money necessary to pay any addi-
ltional salary would have to come out Of
the Water Account.
This very day many merchants and
aaborers are waiting to have just claims
paid out of this account and many of
them are compelled to sell their warrants
at a loss of from ten to thirty per cent.
due to the fact that the water account is
empty and has no funds pay current
expenses. Not so long ago it was neces-
sary to pay $4,000 interest to the East
Jersey Water Company for this same
reason. and the principal had to be left
unpaid although long since due. Confer
ences have been held to consider the adj
visibility of issuing bonds for the purpose
of securing funds to meet the obligations
of the water department for merely cur
rent expenses | have advised time and
ment with the City Collectors office for
the purpose of cutting down expenses Is
this proper step in that direction? You
know as well as | that the water account
Is running behind and will probably be a
half million in debt before the city gets
its new supply. How then can you con-
scientiously impose any further burdens
lpon this account?
"But in addition to being a sSupervis-
ing Clerk this ingeniousy worde1 reso-
Aufion creates the position of Clerk to
Its several committees. What does this
mean? No doubt your certificates of
section make you Commissioners and by
virtue of that fact for g proper distri-
button of your duties you agree to and
do create certain commi tees. Is not the
clerk of every Board the Clerk to its
several comm tees and called upon to
act when Il committee desires his SER
vices? 1t is a new discovery id placti-
zeal municipal government to look upon
the labors of the committee as devolving
upon the Clerk of the Board extra duties
and emitting him to extra compensation.
Why not be logical gentlemen, and APP
point.--First. "A SUPER rvising Clerk; sec
ond Clerk to the Board,' third, Clerk
to Committee Al fourth, Clerk to Com
rnittee b. and so on, indefinitely? But,
nossibIy ! mistake your meaning. Can
it be that he coming winter when less
work is done outdoors than during the
other seasons OF the year, that you anti
cipate extra committee work
III this resolution were to prevail fair
ness would demand the passing of SINH