Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1905-11-02
SOME MUNICIPAL MISTAKES
Less Taxes
Village Methods Are Not
You Go, for Permanent

When a business corporation is about
to make "A ch N e in Its management, il
is customary To ubmt a report showing
the status f he comp and the gains
or losses du,iug the preceding period
and 1t occur, to the HERALD that this
course mjght protitahIy be followed by
municipal corpUrauuus. y city is organ
lied for purely business reasons. Its
organzation is primarily intended to
secure the greatest degree of safety for
life and property at as low cost ss pos ST
BILE. The taxpayers OF city stand in
the same relation to the municipality
that a stakeholder does to business
corporation, and has the same right to
dem nj the most careful expenditure OF
the capital contributed by him and dis.
bursea ~ he officials as trustees.
N"u at the city elections are APP
proar o. 1t viii be wise for the stock
holdt; = the 'orpO alton OF Aberdeen
to l"'N over the b. ks, note what mis-
takes, aty, have been made, not in a
spirit of caiplng criticism, but with the
businessl.ke intention of profiting by
such exI Ie.ience, aud the avoidance OF
such errors in the future. In this spirit
we shall briefly direct attention to some
OF the mistakes in management that
have proven very expensive to the tax.
payers of the city.
THE WATER SYSTEM.
1t is source OF no inconsiderable
amount OF pride 10 the people Of Der
deeu tha fhe city owns ANA operates its
own water works. albeit, the rate is as
high as any private company would dare
ATTEMPT, This water system. which
woulc b. Welding handsome dividends if
operarei ny private corporation, is,
throu-A gross misnanage ment. proving
a verltahle white elephant on the hands
OF the people paying the bills, and, as
now managed, skins the public coming
and going. With the high minimum
rate of Sl5 a year, producing nearly
$4,000 gross revenue annually, we find,
by the tax levy made by the city council
last night, that out Of a total tax levy OF
$500 for the current year. $l3, ,219.92 is
to meet obligations of this water system,
making its cost for the year, adding the
revenue and direct taxes together, the
exorbtant sum of S53 ,2l9,92.
These are the facts that confront the
taxpayers OF Aberdeen, and their SUBJ
mission here is done in complete knowl.
edge that it is much easier to criticise
the acts Of others than for one to do bet
ter himself. We are simply calling at
tention to the facts as they exist, and of
the presence Of which we will find indis-
putable evidence upon scrutinizing our
tax receipts.
When facing such situation, it is
natural to seek the causes that have pro-
duced it. The condition OF affairs in this
water business may be accounted for in
very few words-lack Of business in its
management, not just recently, not just
within the past year, although its finan-
cial entangements may be said to have
been the result of injudicious han Hing
in the past two years. Let us look at
the record.
During the past two years the system
has been so much improved as to have
been practically rebuilt, at cost of over
$111 900. Rebuilt for the accommoda-
ton OF those who will come here later,
yet every dollar is dragged from the
pockets of people already overwhelmed
with the losses of the great fires, and
many OF them in actual commercial dis.
tress. This is not the worst of it. This
vast sum Of money was expended piece.
meal upon an Improvement here and an
improvement there, with no definite
plan to 60 by. No contracts were let
(barring that across the Chehalis river
which appears to have been costly, or
apparently any caution used to safeguard
the city's interests, such as any member
of the council OF business man would
use in his private affairs, and nobody
knows today whether we have received
so or 100 cents in value on the dollar for
this vast expenditure. Here is the
itemized statement of the expenditures
on the system IN the past two years:
Trying to pump watertO South
Aberdeen ..... 49,. >. $ 81 ,G53.oo
Creech judgment for extra
work .,.. ........ 10000
Other extensions,n 1905 only. $4,000
at pumping