The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-01-17


 faore necessary than it is now
 After having completed our investi | gat1ons this subcommittee was chorget with the additional duty of inyesti.
 satine the sinking fund maintained by | the city for the discharge of the pond. ed indebtedness when it reaches ma l turity.
 It has seemed unnecessary to adopt the suggestion to employ a speoia
 accountant to verify the figures giver us by President Ward as shown by the comptroller's books for this fund, s,nce we have not employed an accountant
 to verify the official statements from
 the books for other funds and depart | raents of the city government. | Accepting the statement furnished us as true, therefore. the sinking fund was s10, 662.02 on January l, 190i, and | had accumulated on September 5J, 191 1, | to $267, ,I69S0 about S131, 900 of which
 was acquired during the last fiscal year of that period. The law requires one-half of all the present income from | taxes on real and personal property 1 10 be applied first to interest OH out standing bonds and then to a sinking fund for their redemption. And there- fore just as the property taxes increase, the sinking fund increases in propor- | ticn. For sometime after 1899 when she sinking fund began by law, the interest on the bonds was more than the half of the property taxes required ta be set apart for it, so that there was sinking fund at all until 1905 when the taxes first became enough Co provide one.
 Exactly how the sinking fund should Q invested, causes some trouble, aow- ever Our recommendation would be to use any portion of it not held for im- mediate redemption in the purchase of the city bonds outstanding. Respectful ly submitted, Henry Upson Sims. chair man; James Bowron, L. Sevier, II. A. fslkourie, M. D., w. F. Perryman, w. H. Kettig, R. F. Walker. G. C Ellis, A. F. Hillei<e, P. G. Shook.
 On Health and Sanitation
 Excerpts from the detailed reports are given below Dr. H. A EllSourie, who investigated health and sanitation, except street cleaning and sprinkling. said:
 T have endeavored to investigate thor oughly both the sanitary and health de- partments of the city. Bearing in mind the present financial condition of the city, I determined to find place in these de- partments where I could for the benefit of the city recommend a reduction in ex- pendltures, and thereby save the city some funds; but I am forced by over whelming evidences to recommend the diametrically opposite to what I believed I would do in the beginning, viz: An in- creased force and thus an increased ex penditure in both of the departments have herein alluded to-"
 James BowrOn's Report
 James Bowron, who investigated high ways and street cleaning and sprinkling, said:
 q found that the city of Birmingham has approximately 400 miles of streets in use and 200 miles of alleys, besides 250 mil he .f 1o1i fo1 cf,. ,ot in general use; 300 miles of sanitary sew CTS, and 215 miles of storm sewers. The streets in use would reach in a straight line from Chattanooga to Mobile and yet the 600 miles of streets and alleys and 800 miles of sewers have only 150 men to look after them'
 Contemplating, therefore, this necessity, which may take the shape of trunk sewer involving perhaps larger expense than may be deemed entirely proper to be borne by abutting property, and considering also the necessity which have previously pointed out, for the construction of cul- |, vcrts or storm sewers to handle creek ard gully storm washes, some part of W which may from the nature of the sur property, be assumed by the city, | it seems to me impossible that any ma terlal reduction can be made in the cost l of the street and sewer department, and that, on the contrary, to give satisfac- i, ton to the citizens larger force ought l to be employed, and larger expenditure undertaken. In this connection 1t seems | entirely proper to point out that a sum | of mills upon the entire assessed value of the city of Birmingham is collected by | J Jefferson county for roads and bridges, l and am informed that this amounted in | the year just past to $169,S74 .59. of which | only $21,574.19 was contributed as a re- | fund from the county to the city. If, by | proper legislation. either in the direction | of constituting the city of Birmingham m | itself separate county, or a separate | taxing district with a right to expend | within it's own area the taxes collected | this money could be retained, it would | be possible greatly to relieve the citizens | by the steady improvement of the street | and sewer department, and at the same time to relieve the city treasury, for a | force could then be employed and paid | out of the tax thus collected which | would be adequate to build all the new paved streets which are required for the | development of traffic, and for the pre- | vention of erosion, which works, so far as | equitable, would be paid for, as at pres ent by the abutting property, and as a. | l respectfully report to you | that this seems to me the proper action | Tor our committee to recommend to the l general committee of 100.
 kettig on Police
 w. H. Kettig, who investigated the mo- lice department, said:
 Il have investigated and carefully looked over the pay roll and find that the | oIllcers and patrolmen of the police de- partment are not over paid and I do not | recommend any reduction in their Salaries.
 It appears that the number of po- icemen is very small compared to the vast area they are expected to cover I 1 could not recommend a single reduction, out, on the other hand, if the city could | lnord 1t, the police department should be l considerably increased.
 Tt appears that the appropriation mado in the city of Birmingham for the police | department Is very much below that of | other leading cities. Take the city of | Atlanta for instance: The cost per capita l 'or the police department is 1.s4 ana tae number of acres in Atlanta is 16S47. The cost in Birmingham per capita is 1.o1. while the area in acres is 3O,912. You can l lee from this that patrolman in Bir- | ningham Is expected to do double the | work of one in Atlanta at about 60 per | 'ent less cost.
 Arrests
 ''The total number of arrests made in | he city of Birmingham for the year nding September 30, 1914, was the enor- nous total of 21,667. Of this grand total, |! here was delivered to the sheriff of Jeff | erson county. federal authorities, juve- ile court, etc., 2603 cases. For making | hese arrests, the city of Birmingham re- | cived absolutely nothing although the