The Dickinson press., 1910-03-26
REPORT
ON CITY FINANCES
Report Read and Now Part City Records Tange on Police
Magistrate Fees Discussed City Willing to Grant Amount
Allowed by Law Final Action Deferred Until Expert Re-
Over $4,000 Collected Special Fees in Years

The long expected accountants report
of the city's finances was presented to,
the council on Monday evening. and the
summary. although rather lengthy. Is
given in full in this issue II The PRESS.
The special investigating committee,
Aldermen B. H. Crawford, F. l. Ro-
quette and F. Maser. appointed last
fall, have put in great deal of time
in connection with the accountants
work. for which they get no pay. How
ever. it was duty they owed the city
as its sworn officials, which has been
performed without fear OF favor.
Under the head of Receipts and Dis
bursements. will be found the item
of fines given as $67, 3S4. so. This
includes A,425 from the bawdy house,
$45, 91s. 80 from blind pig sources. for
tie period August, 1900, to August,
1909. From these two sources the city
is credited with $50, 343. 80. The bal
ance of the fines" item is made up
in the usual way. 1t is principally
over the returns Of the bawdy house and
blind pig zines that the difference arises
between the city and John van der Las,
police magistrate. The difference ap-
pears as 81, 351.s5.
Attorney W. F. Burnett appeared for
Mr.. van der Las and stated that as he
understood there had been some sort of
an agreement that the bawdy house pay
q fine of SIS per inmate. per month and
ST. Is costs, the fine to 60 to the city,
and the costs to the police magistrate !:
the dispensers of beer and liquor, until
last fall, paid monthly fine each of
SIS and 81. so costs. 1t had been The
custom to make out the regular papers
and docket as in any offense coming
before the police MAGISTRATE and it had
been the intention to charge the regular
fees as allowed by law. The only criti-
cism of the way in which the docket
had been kept, said MIR. Burnett, was
the fact that cases had been punched
and not itemized. He found places
where Mr., van der Las had not taken
all the fees that were legally his and in
casting up the accounts he said it was
safe to say that the city really owed the
police magistrate $50 or $40 instead of
his owing the difference as reported by
the accountants.
Mr.. van der Las supplemented this by
saying that the former city attorney had
advised him that it was all right to
bunch the cases and docket as he had
He further stated that he had spent a
great deal of time in running after those
who were on the list for special fines
and that there had been many contin-
uances, Is or 20 in some instances, and
he believed that if these were fully
itemized. he could legally show a bal
ance due him of more than a thousand
dollars.
Members of the Investigating COM
mittee stated that the city wanted only
what was right. They had depended
upon Expert Potter and his assistants
for correct knowledge of the law, and
they thought it best to have Mr.. Potter
meet with the council. This was agreed
and short recess was taken. At that
time Mr.. Potter was in Beach but he
was expected back the last of the week.
The bill of Warwick, Mitchell & Co.
for expert work is ST. The firms
report is made part of the city's re-
cords. Following is the report as made
to the council Monday evening:
To The Honorable Council,
City of Dickinson.
Gentlemen:
In accordance with the agreement
entered into on. December 8, 1909, by
your Finance Committee, through MIR.
Crawford, and ourselves, we have
audited the accounts of the city of Dick
inson from August 1. 1900 to November
80. 1909. We now submit our report
: Z
thereon, together with the exhibits and
schedules specified III the appended
index.
The City of Dickinson, in succession
to the Village Of Dickinson, was organ
lied on July 80, 1900. It received from
the Village a cash fund of s26s. 10 and,
through the County Treasurer. taxes to
the amount Of 81. 106. rs. 1t assumed its
warrants to the amount of 81. O46. 50 of
which s2.545.00 was issued for fire
apparatus which came into the possess.
sion of the city. Our instructions were,
to begin our examination al the date Of
the organization of the City, and these
were carried out, as noted above.
The examination divided naturally
into three branches that Of the receipts
and disbursements of the city-that Of
the condition Of its affairs at the end