Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-09-18

FIRST REPORT UNDER NEW LAW
Mayor and City Marshal Are criti-
cised in the Statement of the Exam
iner for Manner in Which Duties Of
Magistrate Were sed-Mar-
shalItown Report About Ready.
Special TO Tlmes-Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines. Sept 1S.-That the city
of Creston has far exceeded its legal
limit of Indebtedness; that the city
F~treasurer is paying warrants drawn by
the mayor and city clerk without any
authority from the city council; that
the mayor and city marshal are in
partnership handling the tining OF
council has created the office of city
electrician at salary of $40 a month,
whose sole duty is to inspect the work
he does as a private citizen, are among
the disclosures made by the first in
spection under the new law. The law
requires an inspection of the accounts
and transactions of all cities with pop
ulation of over 5000 by an employe
of the state auditor, which inspector
shall report the financial condition,
with any recommendations and COM
ments on the affairs of the city deem
ed necessary.
After showing in exhaustive detail
the financial condition of the city OF
Creston the report says:
The city treasurer has. during all
these years, paid out the money of
the bond funds without any action
of the council or the issuance of any
warrant paying the interest semi-an
nually, and the principal of bond
each year and holding the bonds or
coupons as his voucher. Section $50
of the code provides that he shall dis
burse the same only on warrants
drawn and signed by the proper Off
GERS and sealed with the city seal.
The mayor seems to have entered
into partnership with the city mar
shall in the discharge of his duties as
magistrate. In fact no attention has
been paid to the ordinary and pre-
scribed rules governing the duties of
a magistrate. About all the mayors
docket shows is the name of a defend
ant, and in the margin at the bottom
of the page the figures representing
the amount collected; in not one case
in ten does the docket show an ar
raignment, the imposing of any fine
or any other detail, nor is the docket
in very many instances signed, and
more than ALL whatever has been done
in almost every case has been done
by the marshal. and not by the mayor,
who (the marshal) has made the ar
rests. collected what he could from
the culprits and at the end of each
month turned the proceeds over to
the mayor who then made his report
to the council. method Of procedure
not contemplated by the law makers.
"The city is indebted in an amount
far in excess of the legal limitation.
and halt ought to be called on further
expenditures, except those Of actual
necessity; their fixed expenditures are
all the burdens they are able TO carry
One item of expense, while in and OF
itself not large enough to call for mem
ton. feel like bringing to your atten-
ton. During the past year the city
council has added to their corps of ofA
ficers a 'city electrician" at a salary
of $40 a month The city owns no
plant, and the sole duty of this officer
is to inspect all new wiring to see that
it is put in in proper manner; but as
the only man in >Creston who does
this class of work is this same officer
his sole duty as an officer is to inspect
the work he does in his individual ca
pacity. Such an inspection would
seem to me to be of no value"
The city of Creston is the first to be
inspected under the new law. Mar
shalltown has also been inspected and
the report is expected to be filed in
few days. The city of Atlantic has
asked for an inspection. Under the
~ ~; 1f 1of} ton, ,f
5000 or over must be inspected at least
once in every two years There are
about twenty-five cities of such size.
Atlantic is a little less than 5000.
The provision Of the law is that cities
of less than 5000 may have the in
spectiop if the mayor, city council or
a percentage of the people ask for it.
Atlantic is the first to ask. The dis
closures in the case of Creston may
have an effect in bringing in many re-
quests The work of inspecting the
twenty-five cities of more than 5000
population will be pushed by the state
auditor.
In the financial statement Of the city
of Creston it is shown by the inspec-
ton that the taxable property of the
city amounts to N46,SSS. The legal
limit of Indebtedness for cities is per
cent of the taxable value of the prop
erty which. in the case of Creston.
would amount to s37,344.40 But the
Indebtedness of the city of Creston is
shown to be s57.39527 In 1902 the tax
levy of the city was % mills: the next
year the same; in 1904, q mills; and
in 1905, 81 mills.
1t is shown by the report that So
04232 has been paid out by the city
treasurer on warrants drawn by the
mayor and clerk without authority of
the city council. In 1902, according 20
the report, the city of Creston issued
building fund bonds TO the amount Of
s4s447s for the purpose of erecting