The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1902-12-13

His sole idea was to have them published
exclusively in paper which knows how
to appreciate a skinned milk official.
Clerk Harrison dropped in later to
make out The corrected bills for the pur-
pose of filing them with the City Col
lector early the following morning so that
the work of collecting taxes would not
be delayed.
To his great surprise he was unable
to find them. He smelled rat when
he noticed that THE key to the drawer in
| the safe was missing. He got as mad
as a hornet because Weastell had made
it impossible for him to do his work. He
also felt his position keenly when he was
obliged TO confess to a reporter of 1.-THE
News that he could not give out the
reductions for publication because he did
not have them.
Aren't you custodian of the Board OF
Appeals public record?'' asked the re-
porter.
Il am.''
Where are the records of the reduc-
tions?"
''The President had them last
Did he carry them home with him"
Il think not. 1t is my impression that
they are in that drawer (pointing to the
open safe) the key is missing
NO RECORD OF THEM.
The reporter called up the skinned
milk statesmen on the phone yesterday
morning and this dialogue took place.
is this Mr.. Weastell?"
Yes, sir.
did your board make any reductions
yesterday
.They did,
What did you do with them? The
clerk says that he hasn't any record of
| them"
Il came away early" said Mr. Weast-
ell, and l left the papers with the
board"
| Then the reporter called up Clerk H,ar-
rison and this dialogue took place.
Mr. Harrison, Mr.. Weastell says that
1 he left the papers with the board. Have
you seen them?''
Il won't lie for anybody" was the
response. Il haven't seen them. Weast-
ell had no business to lock them up and
carry off the key He has put me be-
hind in my work Our board is public
body / believe in treating all newspa-
pers alike. The public is entitled to
know what we are doing If | had the
record you could most certainly have the
reductions just the same as anybody
else
A solemn assurance was given by an
other person later in the day that the
Journal would not publish the reduc-
! tions until they were filed with the City
! Collector.
The Journal, however, printed list
of 81 decisions which the milk man pur-
posely kept away from the other papers
aud Mr.. Weastelrs smile was expan-
sive.
The other Commissioners were indig-
nant. They openly expressed their dis
gust over the action of one man in put
ting a public board on record as depriying
the public of knowing what the Board
was doing They declared that they did
not believe in favoring any one paper
and refused absolutely to stand for their
presidents high-handed trick
Commissioner Knox said that he saw
Mr.. Weastell put the tax bills in the
safe after the Journal man had taken
memorandum of the reductions. He
! said he Gid not notice him lock the
drawer or remove the key.
Mr. Harrison said he got the key at
1:50 o'clock yesterday afternoon. 1t was
turned over to him by the President of
| the Board.
Commissioner Connolly was very out
spoken against the Presidents action.
He said that lie was greatly surprised
that he should do such thing.
'sThere's no use Of talking" he said.
''the public, Democrats and Republicans
alike, have a right to know what's going
on here 1t isn't right to make flesh of
one and fish of the other. I'm not going
to hide anything"
Mr. Weastell coolly denied that he had
purposely kept the decisions from the
Democratic papers. He said that the
JOuEud1 1usln Sol tutlh ycSleiusis dltet- :
noon. He repeated his telephone declara-
ton that he "left the papers with the
board He did not add that they were
inside the safe.
Mayor Fagan was greatly annoyed
when he heard that one of his star Off
cials had produced more trouble for the
administration by acting as a press agent
fer the administration organ. He will
probably have a heart to heart talk with
/ the offieious milk man in the near future.
The city officials today generally roast
ed Weastell for his idiotic action.
Clerk Harrison was compelled to spend
the greater part of yesterday afternoon
while the Board was in session fixing up
the revised bills for presentation to the
City Collector today.
weastell left the Board room with
Knox at s o'clock last night, one hour
before the meeting was supposed to be
over, to attend meeting Of the Republi-
can County Committee. The official ad-
vertisement set forth that the Board
would be in session from to P. NJ.
They left Commissioner Connolly and
| Clerk Harrison to receive the taxpayers
who wanted to file appeals. During the