New Britain herald., 1916-04-29

is at present under consideration but
as yet no solution has been reached
and about the only positive thing
known is that the Beckley sewer beds
are a white elephant" and have
proved a failure When will a salts
factory change be made?
Following the last council meeting
City Comptroller H. L. Curtis has
seen fit to criticise a statement made
by his namesake, Councilman O. F.
Curtis, that went unchallenged at the
meeting. The final meeting of the
1915-1916 council was held on March
% when all bills were ordered paid
and the balance prepared. At the re-
cent meeting the finance committee
reported the payment Of March bills
of $4,000 and the April balance of
$34, 900 Councilman Curtis declared
the city should not have as large a
balance as it would appear. He said
the bills were for March, hence were
carried over from the previous year
and should have been taken from
last years appropriations rather than
this years. BY his figures, the bal
ance should have been but $4,000.
City Comptroller Curtis claims this
statement should not stand and the
' balance report was correct 1t is
necessary that the city always be a
month behind in it's bills and pay
ments made by the council on March
% were the twelfth Of the year and
closed the business. The bills uues-
toned were not presented at that
time and in fact did not come UP for
payment until the April meeting.
Though they were contracted in
March the old council could not pass
them as they did not exist at the
time. 1t would be foolish to expect
the city to turn to it's last years &C
counts, reopen them and deduct the
bill, and contrary to business prac-
tice and precedent. Hence, the comp
troller declares, Councilman Curtis
rect.
With the decision of the New
Haven road to prohibit the loading
or unloading of freight at places
ether than the Whiting street freight
yards goes the undisputabe fact that
there will necessarily be greatly
increased amount of switching at
be used for sorting and distributing
cars, but the Whiting street yards
will be used exclusively for receipt
and delivery. 1t is obvious that this
will increase the switching done
about these yards. Always the rail-
road has arrogantly insisted upon
using the Whiting street crossing as
a part Of their freight yards with
the result that on this street traffic
is subject to long and needless de-
lays. AS the switching increases, so
also will be tie-ups at the crossing.
II will be rememb ered that last sum-
ner former Councilman Emil J.
Danberg introduced a. resolution in
the common council demanding that
the amount of switching across this
street be reduced. It was referred
to the railroad committee and at a
later date the matter was taken up
with railroad officials, who promised
to improve conditions. But con-
ditions have not improved and in
dications are that the contrary will
now be true.
And it Is not as though no easy
remedy existed for there does. While
the general public may not be aware
Of it, every bit of switching at the
Whiting street yards could be done
from the south end of the yards at
the Willow bridge, which spans Ellis
street. The freight yards we're so
constructed that every track switches
into the main line tracks either just
north or just south of the bridge,
even Is they switch into the main
line just north of the Whiting street
crossing. But the company finds it
easier to ignore these southerly inlet
tracks and to utilize the thorough
fares as a part Of their yards. Ad-
mittedly, it would not be quite as
handy for the company to use the
south end inlet is there is a slight
grade there which would mean the
use Of a little more steam and
longer distance to the freight house,
but that is not the question: Cities
are not run for the benefit of rail-
roads Theoretically railroads are
run for the benefit Of cities There
fore, who should be expected to
stand the trouble, the railroad or the
people? Obviously it is UP to the
railroad to make the concessions and
when such a concession can be made
with practically no difficulty as can
this one, it seems that the city should
demand that the Whiting street cross
ing Be not continually blocked by
switching, but that traffic be given a
chance as at other crossings and the
road use the cut-in at the southern
end of the yards where neither the
putting of the locomotives nor the
tedious cutting out of cars would
annoy anyone.
Tt is to be hoped that when tho
safety board meets with the civil
service commission next Tuesday |
evening final and definite civil SER |