Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-07-16
CITY WANTS MONEY
Request That Commiiie on Re. vIsiou oi Taxation Be Named.

oohCOOu1 pHouiu 6Ct uieci hoaOi
 Thoms and the president of the
 board of aldermen with sharp stick
 and see that they appoint that com
 mittee on revision of taxation in Wa
 terbury. The aldermen authorized
 the appointment of such commit
 tee in response to a suggestion along
 that line in the mayors inaugural
 address and referred the matter to
 the mayor and the president of the
 board of aldermen early in the pres
 ent year. Why don't they act? It
 would be quite proper for some al
 derman to ask the reason for their
 painfully slow movements. Some
 thing will have to be done to raise
 more money for public improve
 ments. At the present time over
 $200,000 worth of work ordered by
 the aldermen is on the waiting list
 and not dollar to do it with. The
 total appropriation for new work this
 year in the inside and outside dis
 tricts was $60.000. This would not
 go here or there on finishing work
 lief. over since last season, to say
 nothing of what has been ordered
 since the first of last January. While
 this state of affairs exists there will
 be nothing but utter confusion ali
 around It would be pleasant to act on the city boards if every .reasona-
 ble request made by citizens could
 be compiled with, but this is not so and as a consequence one might just as we'll be a ''scheming politician" as a man of good intentions so far as his chances of pleasing people go
 Such a thing is out of the question
 Complaint is made from time to time that the men on city work do not work hard enough and that bet ter results would be obtained by let ting everything out by contract. Per haps this is true. but there is some doubt about it. It is hard to see how the public could be benefited by giv- ing all the labor of the city to people who belong in other towns. especially in a dull season when more of our own citizens are seeking work than can be accommodated. If times were good and help scarce things would be different, but everybody who is at all familiar with local conditions isI aware that we are passing through the dullest period in the history of the town. and while this is so it doesn't seem fair to rail about day work in the dieffrent city depart ments. There may be a little grain of truth in the charge of favoritism in the employment of help. but so far every allegation of that character in- vest;gated proved to be without any foundation. It is difficult for one man to know his neighbours needs and 1t is safe to say that any man who hustles with pick and shovel in this kind of weather is doing it because he has to and not for love of the job The fact that there Is a scramble for places on the street department is the best evidence that could be of- fered in support of the statement that l times are really hard, and because all cannot be taken on at the same time Is very poor argument against em- ploying anybody1at all. Isn't 1t a fair statement that were 1t not for | the large number employed by the city since spring opened the situation | locally would have been worse. And | fl some got more than others 1t is probable that such things were un- avoidable. for 1t would be we'll nigh the impossible to fix it SO that every man would come out even.
 IL Is easy enough to talk fiippantly about these things. but you want to be confronted daily by men who have wives and children, parents, sick brothers and sisters looking to them for bread, and hear there sad tales to fully appreciate the kind of times we are passing through. It is bad enough to be obliged to listen to their story of yant, but 1t Is far worse to be obliged to tell them that they will have to wait until others equally needy and deserving get in a few weeks. A man may be abused because somebody who is not a tax- payer Is working where he is idle. but 1t would take a Solomon to see the right side of most of these cases A tenant with a big family and no money ahead is in as tight a box as any house owner possibly could be. except he happens to be- long to the smart set, and intends To beat right and left How do you classify the tenant anyway? Isn't he a taxpayer and entitled to a show provided he is an honest man and applies what he earns to the main laIuanrz oF hEo fa..ft..q