The Washington times., 1901-08-05

/ in the Police Department since July l.
| The new plan of reorga niZation went into
| effect then and considerable addition to
/ the forces wa made. Delay in placing the
/ new No. 10 81 ationhouse in the possession
! of the department necessitated the en-
ployment of the new men and officers
| sewhere for the time being. and Major
/ Sylvester and his lieutenants, for once,
! have had enough policemen for all ordi-
nary purposes. The former remarked
! ona day last week that it was new eX-
. perience for him to have so many men
that he did not exactly know what to do
with them. OF course, this condition Will
be removed sometime this week, when
the new stationhouse Is handed over TO
the department. But the installation of
the new officers added to the regular
work at Headquarters has made things
lively.
Chief Dutton, of the Fire Department,
and his office force have been hard at
work since july l getting settled in new
quarters and in looking after the business
OF the department. The installation OF
two new companies. the reorganization of
Engine Company No. 3, and the tempo
rary troubles connected with the derelic-
tion in duty of the Board of surgeons,
and the getting out of the schedule of
estimates have made work at the hre-
mems headquarters.
The Tax Department is always over
run in summer. With the 1st of July
comes the sale of dog licenses. which for
several days drives the clerks in the Col
lector's office frantic with receiving the
fees and recording the descriptions OF the
District dogs. This Is scarcely over be-
fore the rush for paying water rents be-
gins, lasting from July 20 to August 15.
When it is considered that g. c50 dog tags
and 1000 water rents are taken care of
every summer in the hottest period of the
year. the activity of Collector Davis and
his office force can be appreciated. During
this period every man is pushed during
business hours, and all are employed for
hours afterward in posting books and
clearing
day.
Over in the Assessors office the work
is hardly less. Since the installation of the
card system of accounts, Mr. Darneille
and his assistants have had an unusual
amount of work to perform I'm clearing
up old tax cases which call for refund, re-
mission of penalties and interest, ac-
tual cancellation. The time of the depart
ment has been much taken up with this
extra work since last May. Now the ad-
ditional labor of trying to enforce the per-
sonal tax law must be undertaken. Steps
have been begun to assess the personal
property of considerable number of the
richest people in the District. Some OF
these are prominent lawyers. the plan be-
ing to make a test case of the law and to
ascertain its validity by court decision.
This. it is expected. will entail great la
Dor on the Tax Department.
The District Board OF Charities took
hold Of the general public relief work on
July !, and dog days are laborious days
with Secretary Wilson and his office force.
receiving patients at hospitals, and much
other detail work has been undertaken,
and the new office organized on original
lines looking to the concentration OF
charitable work and the elimination of
the old, costly methods.
The Auditors office, like the brook,
goes on forever Accounts are changed
a little from time to time by promotions
new appointments and additions to the
municipal employees. This year. however,
the Auditor has been busy In ways some
what out of the ordinary. The long con-
troyersy over the per diem employees cul-
minated in the heated term. and now the
squall caused by conflicting claimants to
the salary Of the Secretary to the Board
OF Education has disturbed the Auditors
office in dog day heat Such questions
of course, are finally settled by the high
er powers, but In passing they are ground
ed for a time on the desk OF Auditor
Petty
The Property Clerk and the supefintend-
ent Of Property have additional burdens to
bear after the opening o. the fiscal year.
Generally, on the first day of June pro
for the next fiscal year. These proposals
come from hundreds Of firms and bust
ness houses in scores of cities and places
throughout the country. The proposals
are arranged by certain schedules, and
the several items run into thousands, in
Guiding stationery, school books, supplies
for all the public works; in fact, every
thing used in the prosecution of the work
of the municipal government.
whole month is required to examine
the bids received and to award the con-
tracts. The latter sometimes number $50,
and have to be executed with great c1re.
After these preliminaries, the supplies
have to b. purchased. and this is often
done IN july and August. the buying
being completed in these months FOR the
entire year. This year the old appro-
priation was exhausted ana supplies In
all departments ran very low before the
end of the fiscal year. This fact required
prompt work ca the part Of the property
division East month. The two offices
were hardly able To meet the demands
made upon them nom every source.
Though the Superintendent OF Street
Cleaning was on leave last month. the
office WAS very active putting into opera
tion the new machine street swcepers
and organizing the increased work pro-
Vided for in the new appropriation bin.
From year to year the business of the
municipal government rapidly increases
1t must keep pace with the growth Of the
city, and Washington Is expanding in all
directions. There is hardly AN office of
the municipality as properly housed or
as properly manned might bc wished.
The District Building, 90 ca led, is q
structure adapted to present needs some
what I'm the way apartment-house
would be allotted on short notice. More