Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1911-04-01
About City Business

WITHIN the last Tour years the city
council has had more than one hun
dred meetings, the greater part of
them in the last two years All these
meetings have been held at the same
place. Every meeting has been pub
lie, held with open doors, and gener-
ally citizens have had notice of all
regular meetings. All council pro-
ceedings have been fully recorded,
read and approved. Every ordinance
passed has been published in both
city papers.
Within the last four years, the
council has handled about fifty thous-
and dollars of city funds and every
cent of it has been fully and openly
accounted for. Not single claim
against the city which has not been
examined by the finance committee
claim has been allowed except upon
verified voucher, receipted and item
lied account, or upon contract backed
by an adequate bond. Every vouch-
er or claim presented in the last four
years is now on file and may be exam
1ned by anyone who cares to see them,
which is more than can be said for
any other year in the history of the
city. Every voucher is numbered,
marked and filed in consecutive or
der, aud can be found if need be, and
every dollar of income or expenditure
has been published in both city pa
pers.
In the last four years no citizen
has come before the council who was
not given respectful hearing and an
abundant opportunity to present his
plea. No petition has ever been pre-
sented to the council which was not
courteously received, carefully con-
sidered and respectfully filed for fu-
ture reference, should occasion ever
require it. All liars to the contrary,
Notwithstanding.
The city light plant has 95 patrons
and the water works 125. The city
keeps a ledger account with every
one of these 22O patrons, showing
every item charged to them and ev-
cry penny paid by every customer.
About one thousand water and light
statements have been mailed to these
y
copy of every statement sent out is
on file in bound books: also the stub
of every statement paid. About
eight hundred warrants have been is
sued in the last four years. Every
warrant paid is on file; also the stub
of every warrant issued. The city
bond interest is paid to date and the
cancelled coupons are on file. The
city keeps ledger accounts with con-
tractors and supply houses, showing
service performed or supplies furnish
ed and every cent paid for the same.
The city has on file an itemized in
voice of every bill of materials pur-
chased. These records answer every
question of who, why, what, when,
and how much, with regard to every
financial transaction the city has had
in the last four years. All these rec
ords are open for inspection six days
in every week and almost as many
evenings. They are open for the in
spection of any citizen who cares to
take the trouble to look at them; also
open to the inspection of those who
prefer to stand around on the street
and v1llify their neighborS.
The books of the city will bear
comparison with the financial records
of any business institution in the
town, or any other town. In fact,
they are considered good enough to
be copied in other towns. Hardly a
week passes that Wa-Keeney officials
do not receive requests for copies of
forms in use here, for copies of ordl-
nances and inquiries for various
items of information. This city has
done more city business in the last
four years than in all its previous
history and it was absolutely neces-
sary that some system should be
evolved to take care of that business.
That is not all: This city has made
more real progress as good place to
live in the last four years than in all
previous years. Finally, the question
to be answered next Monday is: Do
our people appreciate these things,
or will majority of them prove to
be base ingrates? There is no middle
ground: Every citizen by his vote
will place himself in one class or the
other.
Railroad Water Account