The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1901-01-04

Pavement Work.
At the meeting of the board of finance
last night the dilemma of the board
of education over the bond issue which
the board asked for and which ma
jority of the members of the board of
finance approved again came up for
discussion A few weeks ago, in re-
sponse to a request the corporation
counsel rendered an opinion In which
he stated that he thought that the
$685. 900 remaining unexpended out of
the proceeds of the sale of $4S0000 worth
of refunding and high school bond is
sue was not city money but board of
education money to be handled as that
board saw fit.
Last night there was before the
finance board another opinion on the
matter from the corporation counsel
rendered in response to request OF
the board of education. The $26O,000
referred to above is now deposited in
the Merchants bank, the city deposit
ory, and drawing 2 per cent interest
while the city is paying 3 IL per cent
interest on the bonds from the sale OF
which the $260.000 is a part of the pro-
ceeds The board of education has re-
ceived offers of 1-2 per cent. interest
for the money from trust company
in New York city and that board re-
uuested an opinion as to its power to
loan the money at that rate until 1t is
needed for the purposes for which the
bond issue was authorized.
In the opinion which was transmitted
to the board of finance last night the
corporation counsel says that he Is OF
the opinion that the board of finance
has power under section 20 of the char
ter to designate a special depository
bank or special depository banks in
which the money referred to may be
placed and that it is the duty OF the
finance board to make such designation.
He is of the opinion that if the board
of finance designates a special deposit
ory for this money it will break the
contract with the Merchants bank and
that that bank will not then be obliged
to pay per cent. interest.
The members of the board of finance
thought that this opinion did not suftl-
GENTLY answer the question propound-
ed. The matter was discussed and the
fact was recalled that in an opinion
few weeks ago the corporation counsel
had stated that this was not city
money and that the board of finance
had nothing to do with it. Section ~
of the charter provides for the desig-
nation by the finance board of de-
pository for city money. Mr.. Curtis
offered a resolution providing that the
corporation counsel be requested to give
his opinion as to whether the board of
finance could legally designate a New
York city trust company as u deposit
ory for the proceeds of the funding and
high school bonds and whether without
such designation the board of education
could legally make such deposit.
Mr.. Dewell offered an amendment to
provide that the opinion should also
state whether this fund, the $3.50 900,
was to be considered as city money un-
der the provisions of section 20 of the
charter. The amendment was accepted
and the resolution as amended was
adopted. In the meantime the city is
losing between SS and SO per day in in
terest money on the $260,000.
Tax Collector Anthony appeared be-
fore the board last night to be heard
his bill for clerk hire, which
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