Evening journal., 1911-06-20
COUNCILS ACT
CAUSES TALK
City Treasurer COnferS With
Attorney But No Action
Is Taken
KURTZ DENIES
BEING OUT OF CITY

The action Of City Council yester-
day afternoon in giving the power
OF city auditor to Mayor Spruance and
of city treasurer TO Councilman Rich
ard c. McMullen. of the Twelfth ward
to sign checks to get itself out of a
financial muddle. by taking certain
funds of the recent bond issue of
S395,000 which City Treasurer Ross
had deposited to the credit Of the
city departments for which the money
was intended. has caused much COM
ment today. II was a subject for
general discussion, and future de-
velopments are awaited with interest.
City Treasurer Ross, when seen,
said that he had no record of what
had transpired at the special meeting
of City Council. He said that accord
ing to his books the city has but lit
tie more than $4,000 to the account of
it's current fund. Aside from this
and denying one of the resolutions
passed by Council yesterday, he had
nothing to say. He conferred with
his attorney, Robert H. Richards.
however, but what the outcome Of this
conference was, could not be learned.
The resolution which Mr.. Ross de-
MED was as follows:
Whereas, 1t is necessary that
checks TO the amount of $4,000 for
the redemption of certain water bonds
be issued at once. and
Whereas. The city auditor is abb
sent from the city, and
Whereas, The city treasurer has
refused to countersign said checks;
therefore be it
Resolved, By the Council Of the
Mayor and Council of Wilmington,
that J. Harvey Spruance is hereby
designated to countersign said checks
for said city auditor, and Richard c.
McMullen is hereby designated to
countersign said checks for the city
treasurer"
Didn't Refuse to Sign Checks.
Mr.. Ross denies that he refused TO
countersign checks to the mount Of
$4,000 for the redemption of the
water bonds, for the reason that they
never came to his office.
When City Auditor John D. Kurtz
was seen he denied absolutely that
he was out of the city when City Coun-
Gil held its special meeting at o'clock
in the afternoon, as was set forth in
one Of the resolutions that were adop-
ted He said he had been out of town
but returned before IL o'clock yester-
day. He said he was at his Office
about 1870 o'clock and there were
no papers there from Council for any
sort of action.
There is nothing / can say" he
said, "and / don't know what / will
do until the time arrives"
The City Auditor said it was hardly
likely that he would see any of the
checks signed by Mayor Spruance and
Councilman McMullen until after they
had been paid.
President Sparks, of the Street and
Sewer Commission, said that depart
ment would use none of the money
City Council had given it by a reso-
luton passed yesterday afternoon.
This resolution provided that the sum
of S14.302.50, the amount of the pre-
MUM on s250,000 Street and Sewer
bonds, be turned over to the Street and
Sewer Department. and used as cur
rent funds.
Mr. Spark said that sum, with the
$4,000 Council had voted from cur
rent funds to that body. would have
made $24 ,302.50 on hand He says that
the $4,000 has not yet been received
and as far as the $4,000 is concerned,
IL will be expended only as per the
provisions in section No. 3 Of the ordi-
nance, providing for the bond issue for
that department. This section in part
follows:
NO warrant or order for the pay
ment of money shall be drawn against
said funds except such warrants or
order is for the payment for work
done, or material furnished or imple-
ments used upon or about the improve
ments or improvements provided for in
said act of the General Assembly, or
for curbing, grading, widening, paving
and improving streets"
Mr.. Sparks considers the premium
on the bonds for that department a
part of the special fund for street and
sewer improvements and cannot be
used for current expenses
Bank viii Honor Checks.
That the Union National Bank, the
active bank for the city, will honor the
checks signed by Mayor Spruance and
Councilman McMullen was affirmed TO-
day. John H. Dandy, vice-president of
that institution said that the checks
would be honored
Il can't see any other way out of il,
he said The Mayor and Council had
absolute control of the money and they
drew only what was coming TO them,
that is the money Council advanced to
buy the Ford-Gibson lands and the
money paid out to redeem the water
bonds, which matured May ! and
June /.