The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-07-17
A TOUGH MIXTURE.

A TOUGH MIXTURE.
The disadvantage of mixing politics
with city business has been very clear
" demonstrated in Salt Lake for years.
and never more clearly than in the
present municipal management
Under regime that has ignored the
simples rules of business economy any
criticism of the administration is an
swered by political argument.
Suggest, in all kindness, that the law
provides certain limits of Indebtedness
which the administration is disregard
ing, and the reply is that this admins
tIation is going to spend money wheth-
er it is within the law or not.
Intimate that the departments are
extravagant and wasteful, and the only
answer is that s225 for day labor is
not eXtravagant. Venture to object to
the issuance of warrants Illegally and
you are abused like a pickpocket for
what seems a perfectly legitimate OBJ
lection.
Let it be understood. first of all. that
the weakness of the administration is
in the assumption that it can exceed
the debt limit laws without opposition
The people of Salt Lake want their
streets paved, their sidewalks laid,
sewers and water supply perfected,
and they will stand a good deal Of I'M
necessary expense to get these i'm
prOvements. but they will tolerate no
such violation Of law as is proposed by
those members of the administration
who intend to exceed the debt limit
prescribed by the statutes. That way
lies danger not only to the soIvency of
the city and its credit abroad. but to
the city official who thinks himself
superior to the law.
By act Of legislature ii is a felony
for the city treasurer to pay a war
rant when there are no funds with
which to pay it, or when the warrant
has been issued in excess of the rev.
enue for that fund from taxation dur
ing the year. There is a grave sus-
picion that some payments of war
rants for 1906 would not stand legal
scrutiny; it is certain that any viola
ton of the law this year would be fol-
lowed by prosecution at the hands of
taxpayers.
Apparently the administration and
its defenders intend to defy both the
law and public sentiment, and proceed
with expenditures in excess of the
revenue available from this years
taxes. An individual who would fol-
low this plan would get into trouble;
a city management which adopts the
idea is certainly headed for the deem
waters of tribulation.
It is said in defense Of the mayor
and council that they have not been
extravagant. Haven't they?
What of the release of contractors
from obligation to lay sidewalks. a re-
lease that will cost either the tax
payers directly or the city thousands
of dollars for the higher cost imposed
by the new contracts?
How about the $4,000 or more for
lowering the water pipes or laying new
ones on Second avenue, because Of the
city engineers blunder?
How about the $4,000 donated to Pat
Moran as an extra" for plastering the
inside OF the Big Cottonwood conduit
so the concrete leaks wouldn't show
when the water was turned in?
How about the raises in official SAL
aries and unnecessary additions to the
clerical force il practically every city
department?
How about a city force of employees
at the crematOry which spends a good
part of its time sorting out junk and
selling it for personal profit to the
employees?
The people OF salt Lake are getting
exactly the kind Of a city government
they deserve because they elected the
men who are running things; but that
is no particular reason why the city
administration should assume that il
can go on in it's unbusinessiike meth
DDS, its extravaganza and waste with
out protest.
1t is exhausting the city. treasury; it
will have 70 raise the tax levy ia the