The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1910-05-10
TREAS. HILL ADMITS
 S1,30O SHORTAGE Also That it May be $2OO More. Denies Intentional Wrong
 Doing.
The Recent Disclosures May Lead to a Special Town Meet ing Asked to Order a Deep
 and Sweeping Inquiry.


 Bedding, May 1O-Yesterday's spe-
 cial meeting of the selectmen, at which
 former Tax Collector Everett I. Cor
 ham and Town Treasurer William H. Hill were present by appointment did
 not result in fully settling the ques-
 tion whether MT. TIill5s shortage, in
 cured during the three years when
 MT. Gorham was collector was thir-
 teen hundred or fifteen hundred dol lars. MT. Hill owned up to the form CT sum of which $1,141 was represent ed by two checks drawn by MT. Cor ham to MT. Hill in November. 1906, and February 1907, and cashed by the Treasurer close to their dates Pay ment to him of these sums MT. Hill could not do otherwise than acknoWl- edge because the checks bore his en- dorsement alone and the evidence on their face that they had been cashed. MT. Hills own books showed credits to MT. Gorham of $4OO less than did the treasurer's credits on MT. Cor l hams books. leaving only this sum
 open to possible dispute.
 MT. Hill, in. his statement to the con- ference meeting on Thursday, said that he was inclined to think he had given MT. Gorham credit on the lat ter's books for about s2O0 more than
 
 fact that these credits were written at the time when the collector made payments to him whereas the credits by MT. Hill on his own books were sometimes made from memorandum slips several days subsequent to the payments. It was question, there fore, whether MT. Hill or MT. Gorham should make good this $200. The rest of the S1,500 was of course liability on the part of MT. Hill to the town of which he has been treasurer for 1 twenty years.
 As MT. Gorham had showed that no l part of the shortage belonged to him, | demonstrating this by the treasurers S own figures and the two checks, his assent to MT. Hills proposition that | the individual liability for $200 of the amount involved be left open for
 awhile longer struck the selectmen | as striking indication of his accommo- dating disposition. He had for weeks I been in the unpleasant position of be- | ing seemingly about SLIGO short in | his accounts. Once cleared of such | responsibility most men would have | conceded nothing to the party who
 had really placed him in this position
 and lifted not a finger for his excul- | patton. The selectmen were quite as | courteous in the matter as MT. Cor | ham and the conference concluded ! with the existing situation as describ- l ed.
 l What to do next the seIectmen have
 not decided. Their patience is getting
 considerably frayed. Since last fall they have been Investigating and | comparing figures with the object of l closing up the old tax books. They 1 find the lien records sadly askew as to accuracy and then comes discovery of the nominal balance of $1,1OO against | MT. Corham. The ex-collector ad mits the adverse showing but says nothing about the issuance of the two checks which constitute his vindica- | tion. The shortage is mtter between | him and MT. Hill. and yet for men known to be sensitive about their re- putation, both show an exasperating indifference, in regard to clearing up the case. Before formally demanding l from MT. Gorham payment of the | shortage and following this demand | with a lawsuit if necessary they de- eide to examine the treasurer's books. l These show unaccountable discrepin- cieS when comparison is made if om them of what should be identical en- tries in MT. Gorham's books, thus | complicating the situation. Next Mr. Gorham shows up with the two checks
 and MT. Hill, being called upon for l an explanation pleads guilty to re- sponsibility to the $1,500 shortage less
 possible but improbable $200. First Selectman Charles Sanford was aSkoQ Dy your correspondent II, in acknowledging indebtedness, the treasurer said anything about making
 payment to the town. "He offered no promises in this respect replied
 MT. Sanford. Perhaps he thought
 it unnecessary, payment by himself or his bondsman being a logical and fn-
 evitable sequence. No, we haveRt directed our attorney to take charge
 and bring suit if necessary nor have
 we decided to call a special town
 meeting to deal with the whole sub
 ject including the matter of a deeper and more sweeping investigation than
 we have been able to make. I know there are many citizens who would like to have such an investigation net withstanding the summary and en- phatic way in which the same pro- position was squelched last fall fn view of the disclosures recently male people have changed their minds cn the subject They would like to haze the treasurer's accounts gone over for the whole period during which he has held the office. In this connection ek- Collector Henry $. Osborne informs us that he has been over the 1899 and 1900 books and finds MT. Hills credit entries in them to be absolutely cor rect There remain, however, a num- Der of other books which have net been thoroughly examined. No, notI- ing has yet been considered as re- gards possible criminal proceedings fp the case of MT. Hill" :.
 Mir. Gorham explains that his 1oAe silence regarding the existence of the two checks was due to the fact of their being temporarily lost. His hunt for them extended over several weeks and until it was successful he thought he would make no claims which per