Waterbury Democrat., 1901-02-21
CITY SENDING BILLS.
Because Citizens Are Not Credited for
 What They Paid,

What They Paid.
 It looks as if the question of settling
 up sewer assessments mat have peen laid but not credited on the conptrui- Ter $ DOORS IS auout 10 be lahen uu4u of Iii earnest, and Ine city Co1upeileu to cnargc OH Sucn accoGuts Ill cases WncIe peopie can SHOW receIptS. Dur Ing Ine past Iew weeks uui,e few persons caneu upon oompuoiler Rus sell and WauLeu to know Why tne clty kept sending tnem Dliis TOT tnlnss that they hau pald Tor years ago. One caller, Klcnard j. AsnWurtn, superln- tenuent or the Waterbury AanulacJur- ing company, palu sewer assessnent on q house on ROCK street i'll 1o3t and
 some time later he was nOuneu to
 come in and pay agaln. He dropped i ill. showed hls receipt ana got the lien
 that had been paced OH ms property
 released. Naturally, he thought that
 was the last of it. and when he sold the property some time ago he had no hesitation in stating that there were no incun branceS on it uLu he knew nothing to the contrary until last week, when ne received noIlce that the bill
 was still due. A visit to the comp S the money had not been credited there
 and then MT Ashworth decided to take
 steps to put a stop 10 this way of dc ing business and has forwarded to the
 city clerk q duplicate of his receipt,
 sworn to before a notary public and stating that he wants the matter
 srraightened out This is but one of several such cases that have come up l ,J, seems that the time was ripe to have
 an understanding about them. X
 whole lot of people allege that they
 paid. hut lost or mislaid their receipts
 and would like to have their cases con
 sidcred too. but it is very doubtful
 that those who cannot plank down re-
 ccints will ever be able to settle it ill any other way except by paying again.
 The people who have received receipts
 are all right. but they don't like the 1 idea of having accounts open against them with the city that ought to have 1 been closed long since.
 This is an old story and while some | folks never gave it much attention. still it is an important matter and II would seem that Some one competent to act ill the premises should make ;l 1 thorough inquiry into the situation and report to the aldermen and then l let some plan of settlement be agreed ! upon. People who went to the cltyS | agent and paid street or sewer assess mentS, but received no credit for the same, are entitled to better treatment | than to he kept running from one place 1 to another asking this one and that one how they can get out of this Snarl. i 1 he IniNup was brought about on ac- count of the fire ill the Platt block, when Colonel RurDee'S books, who was city attorney at the time, went up in smoke, and so far nothing has been done to settle disputed cases. One peculiar phase of the situation is that most of those who show up with r"- ceiptS succeeded in getting the liens
 which were placed on their property l' ucWcd- No other class of debtors can do that. Other peoples liens will not be cancelled until they produce docn- mentary evidence from some one in authority that the bill fo~ which tn" lien was filed has been paid. It is l easy enough to see how the comptr0i- | ler'S books do not show returns for
 certain receipts. but it IS not so clear
 as 10 getting releases or liens wiii" | those bills are still due. so far as tli"
 comptroller's accounts show.
 T want that bill crossed off the 1 Dooks,' demanded Nicholas Burns of
 the comptroller the other day. as he l handed the comptroller receipts for
 the principal. with interest paid for 1 q sewer assessment on Baldwin street. 1 The comptroller said he couldn't do | it. because he had nothing 10 show i that the city had received the money, ! and there the matter rested.