The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-05-04
BEDDING TOWN
 MAY NEVER GET
 MISSING $I4,OOO
Liability Juggled Back and Forth Between Messrs. Hill and
 GOrham
Looks as Though Bedding is Selected to be "The Coat
 Financially

and accordant actions of Town Trea- surer w. Henry Hill and ex-Tax Col lector Everett I. Gorham are to pre- vail the town will be out altogether that 1400 shortage in tax receipts which the selectmen discovered more than a year ago. This shortage was. made apparent by the figures on MT. Gorham's books, the figures represent ing discrepancy between receipts and the sums which found their way into the town treasury. It at first appear ed that the deficiency was up to MT. Gorham as he could produce from the treasurer no. credits covering it. Sub- sequently he brought out two checks for a total of $1,141 which he had giv
 en the treasurer These the latter had realized upon and there were ap
 parently no corresponding credits on the books of either official. With this seemingly convincing evidence against him MT. Hill turned over to the town,
 in May of last year, the amount of the checks.
 When Expert Accountant Soule re- ported on the situation last October he found a probability that the checks
 although not credited on either set of
 books as checks were included in oth-
 CT credits set down as cash. MT.
 Soule expressly stated, however, that
 this conclusion which he had arrived
 at was a probability and not dem
 onstrated fact Obviously if this con-
 clusion were correct he did not owe
 the money he had turned over and
 MT. Gorham did owe it. Acting on
 that assumption MT. Hill made for
 mal demand on the selectmen for a
 return of the money. They had previ-
 Ously made formal demand on him
 for a shortage of $746 found against
 him by Accountant Soule, shortage
 entirely apart from the s1400 matter.
 The $746 shortage MT. Hill admitted
 and offered to deduct it from the
 $1141 and to accept the balance by
 way of final adjustment and settle
 ment
 By advice of Attorney s. C. Shaw
 the selectmen turned down this pro-
 position. MT. Shaw took the ground
 that the dispute was really between
 MT. Hill and MT. Gorham and that
 until they brought the controversy to
 a decisive issue, the town should re- tain the money which was admittedly it's due. Instead of rushing to a clash at this suggestion. however, MT. Hill and MT. Gorham held aloof from each other and the situation continued un- changed until a few days ago when MT. Hill sent to First Selectman San ford a written notice that unless the town, by April 29, paid the $395.49 he had demanded he should collect by the simple expedient of transferring to himself as an individual this sum from the towns bank account.
 At Saturdays meeting of the select men he asked that he be given an or der for the, amount in question. This request being refused he said that he was in a position to obtain the money without the formality of an order and should resort to that alternative. In the communication giving notice. of such an intention he referred to the opinion of Attorney Shaw above men, tioned and said it was directly con- troverted by an opinion he had Ob- tained from Attorney Hurlburt of Norwalk. The latter advised him that he should look to the town and not to MT. Gorham for reimbursement and that anyone was entitled to recover money which they had paid through mistake MT. Hurlburt's opinion is quoted, however, did not go so far as to say that the circumstances in this case warranted the recovery of the money in the unceremonious manner proposed by the treasurer. But MT. Hill argued that being the authoriz- ed custodian of the towns funds he had as much right to recoup himself for money he mistakably added to such funds as would the trustee of private fund.
 that light and looked upon MT. HilRs action or proposed action as highly presumptuous to say the least. Their session was marked by still another incident developing from last years investigation and disclosures. Along with the demand which the board made last fall upon MT. Hill was an- other upon ex-Collector Gorham melt ing him to make good an alleged bal ance of s178 due from him to the town The first response to this came a few weeks ago when MT Gorham invited the selectmen to family conclaVe which conclave- endeared to convince the officials that MT. Soule. in making out the former collector debtor to the town had drawn wrong conclu- | sion from the figures. The session left the selectmen uncony1nced. On Satur- day a written statement was received l from MT. Gorham which revised the accountants showing and made It ap. pear that the town was debtor of | tbe former collector to the amount of l s50. In arriving at this result there | was a charge of $20O for two years 1 unpaid salary. No action was taken upon the Gorfamt communication. men in the Hill matter will be they do not themselves know until they have taken further legal advice. The was made that 1t might be we'll to turn over the whole prob lem to a town meeting. This will prob- ably not be done as the fact is gen. orally recognized that the case is one for the courts and not for the hap hazard disposition which a town meet ing might make of it perhaps to the towns serious financial loss. It IS pointed out that had MT. Soule's fa- vorah1a inference or conclusion in re- spect to MT. Hill been intended to clear up all doubt he would logically nave charged up the entire s1, 400 short age to Mr. Gorham instead of fixing 1pon SITS as a certainty and leaving anything beyond that open to doubt Expressing merely his offhand private 1ninion upon the situation First Se- ectman Sanford says it looks to him i IS if the proper course were for the own to sue MT. Hill and Mir. Gorham