The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-02-10
CRITICISM OF METHODS IN LOCAL CHARITIES BY
 COMPTROLLER'S OFFICE
State Aid Department Sent Out Letter RefIecting on Local
 Management.


 Caustic criticism of Bridgeport's Department of Charities under the Proficiency regime of the present ao- lnlfnistration and Superintendent Fred R. Johnson and high praise of the work of Alexander F. Morrissey as in- lyestigator despite these handtcaps is given, not by President F " Ben ress or other charity zcommIss1oners who might be charged with playing politics but, by the State Aid d1Vlslon
 of State Comptroller Daniel F. Dunn.s office A letter from the comptroi-s ler's office arraigns the system that has been in vogue here during the past two years. Iaxity in filling out reports with no satisfaction received Ifollowfng a complaint excepting yelled threat is one allegation made. tHampering both the work of the state department and of MT. Morrissey is another allegation
 The criticism advanced by President Behrens to the effect that the theoref- icaI supervision by Supt- Johnson and importing a trained man to be the
 head of the department has not been of financial gain to the city Is borne out by the letter 1t says in. one place 1 eff MT Morrfssey had not kindly as sisted us in the removal of undesfr- lab1es from the State, your hospital bills would have been hundreds and probably thousands of dollars larger than they have, that is patients who
 had been sent to hospital. finding them comfortable, remained indefI- nitely or until our own officer, who is always busy, might have time to han
 dle the cases
 What the state department thinks of Investigator Morrissey prac- tical charity executive, not out side s'trained'' man but knowing from acquaintanceship with local condi- tions and long experience, is shown in another clause of the letter received by President Behrens. It says, fol- lowing a reference to letter receiv- ed from .Superfntendent Johnson some time before.
 .sI have paid no attention to said
 letter of September 8 from which ! quote above but do so now for the reason that in the press" of late have noticed that the superintendent is to leave for another field. I as- sume, therefore a new superintend-
 ent will be appointed and it occurs to me that your present investigator, MT. Morrissey, who has, from time
 to time, acted as superintendent dur ing the absence of the superintendent carried on the affairs so far as State cases are concerned in a most able manner, would be an excellent choice Mfr Morrissey's long connection with the Charity Department has made him converSant with pauper laws and dare say would be able to save the city and State an amount worth while considering, if his appointment as Su- perintendent could be brought about In closing the letter continues: ssIn the matter of histories, I know MT. Morrissey to have gotten them in a very complete form but in copying on to the application mailed to this of flee in the case of State paupers much of the information I should have has been omitted.
 Pardon me for having taken this | liberty but I feel the city and State would be far better off financially if it might be the pleasure of your Com
 mission to appoint MT. Morrissey su- perintendent.'
 Bridgeport's method of ssefficientIy,' conducting the department has been different than in other places, accord l ing to the letter and the emergency hospital with the red tape and rec ords added within the past two years receives an arraignment. In refer ence to this the letter says:
 ssA condition has existed in Bridge port during the past two years differ ent than any other town or city in the
 State. Cases which so far as I could see on the application could within a few moments be treated at your ener-
 gency hospital have been turned over
 to one of the general public hospitals
 and the next day discharged. Trans portation charges amount to a large item and believe could be avoided. | It would seem here as if all a vagrant had to do was to walk into the Char fity office in Bridgeport, ask for trans ] portation into some other town or