The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-06-24
TWO YEAR SYSTEM TURNED DOWNED BY
 BEDDING ELECTORS
Poor Officials Sadly Tire Then You Speedily Should
 Fire" Is New Ditty.
Special to The Farmer:)

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 Bedding, June 24.-As farm work Is now driving, only about 30 citizens found time last Saturday afternoon to attend the special town meeting held 1 ta decide whether town officers now 1 elected annually should in future have 1 two year terms. Selectman Barnes and Attorney IS. c. Shaw were the principal speakers for the biennial 1 plan while D. s. Sanford, Charles Fla vereau and Frank Ferry urged reten- ton of the present system. When the plea of economy was advanced by the 1 biennial advocates as strong argu- nlent for their cause some one inquired the cost of the last October election. The figure was SIS and Mir. Sanford thought this not too much to pay for kthe advantage derivable from the free Interchange of views regarding policies and details of local admins tration which the business session permitted He regarded this free for all conference a highly valuable l feature of the town election and be- heved a two year interval between ] these conferences too long, The op-. posing side dwelt On the old idea that even a year tenure was too much for a dishonest or incapable official But such an official can be got rid of by an appeal to the courts, some one replied. And how much will such a proceeding cost?'' was the retort. The other couldn't say, but admitted, that it might be considerable 'I thought so,'' this triumphantly, @fbet- ter keep things as they are.'' While the financial side of the question was being discussed MT. FaVereau pro pounded this query: tIf one official can cause a shortage of 8, 300 in seven months how much tOl the bad could the town be put in two years?'' No one undertook to answer. A motion to table the resolution for two year terms was finally carried, thus defeating the measure. It will probably not be made the subject for further action at the next October election, natural re- suit of the change, if then voted, would be the holding of local and ] state elections te same year whereas the bienniaIists wish to have them all 1 ternate. The supporters of the pro posed change were not little sur prised by the strength of the opposi- l ton developed at Saturdays meeting. The adoption of bylaws and a. de cision to incorporate formed the prin- cipa1 business transacted by the fire department at it's second meeting held on Monday evening. Chairman Barnes said that one advantage of. incorpors- 1 ton was that it legally qualified the department to accept beQuests and in stanced the case of the RidgefeId vol unteer department which lost a be quest of, 900 by reason of not being incorporated. Attorney Shaw had
 
 were at once signed and incorporation will have been effected before the next regular meeting to be held July 6. The bylaws provide for a president, vice president secretary and treasurer. 3 board of five directors. a chief and three assistant chiefs. There are to be I active and associate members, eh 6 for mer paying dues of ten cents a month and the latter $2 a year. A committee l of five was appointed to submit a list of officers for election. at the next meeting. An early effort will be made to raise funds for the purchase of one and perhaps two more engines to be | located in the Center section.
 Formal notice, which means an invi- tation to make good, has been given by the se1ectmen to the American Sur ety Go. of the shortage in the towns, tax accounts. The dehciehcy so far revealed is about $1 ,900 having been increased about $1O0 since the recent audit by the production of payment vouchers by parties not credited with payments on the books. These pay ments were made in 1912 and the sure l Hty company'S bond for Collector Dun. can covers that well as the subse- kquent period. For the previous year the sureties were J. Arthur Sherwood and George s. Banks who will suffer no loss as the situation now appears. It is expected that the surety com pany will soon send a representative here to verify the showing which the selectInen are ready to make of taxes paid and not accounted for. The American company has renewed it's bond to apply to MT. Muen1lich, the present collector.
 l A week ago last Sunday the run about auto of Arthur Hargraves, for merly living here and now working in Bridgeport, was wrecked by collision with the car of w. B. Claf1in in front of the 1atter's country place on the west side. HargraVes, his wife and child were all thrown from the car,