Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-09-11
RESEARCH BUREAU
ST|RS FIRE BOARD
Betrayal of Confidence, Charged
at Charter Changes Com
mittee Meeting.
INDIGNANT OVER REPORT
Members of City Government
Hold That Contract for Sur
vey Has Been Violated.

Charges that the New York Bureau
OF Municipal Research. which recently
completed survey of the Richmond
city government had been guilty of
betrayal of confidence and a violation
of It's triparty contract. under whose
terms the survey was made. were made
last night at the meeting of the Coun-
Gil Committee on Charter Changes
when that body learned. through a
subcommittee, that the bureau in vio-
lation Of its working agreement had
filed report with the Fire Depart
ment. in which the abolition of the
Board of Fire Commissioners was rec
oinm nded.
This board. to which the rough draft
of the bureaus survey had been
handed, was in session last night and
returned the report to the director in
charge of the survey with the rebnke
that, since IL was not transmitted
through the proper channels. and in
view of "the absence of Il spirit of CO.
operation and your failure TO observe
the ethics in transmitting the draft,
we are instructing the secretary to
return the report to you withou COM
ment from U.S.
Several members of the Committee
on Charter Changes told of current re-
ports that the Fire Departments sur
vey had been completed and a copy
sent TO Richmond. After considerable
discussion, the committee voted to re-
quest the New York Bureau of Mu-
nicipal Research to advise 1t OF the
progress being made on the survey.
" 10 n
expected. and II the published state
ments said to have been contained in
the bureaus report were authorized
by il.
SUBCOMMITTI;E VISITS FIRE
BOARD FOR IMPORTATION
Following this action. Alderman
William w. Workman. of Madison
Ward. moved that a subcommittee be
appointed to visit the Board of Fire
Commissioners, which was in session
on the floor above in the City Hall.
and learn whether or not the report
had been flied. An IMMEDIATE recess
was taken. and the subcommittee Wis
tied the Fire Board.
Members of the board readily told
the subcommittee that the report had
been sent to Fire Chief w. II. Joynes.
with the request that after he had
finished reading ii. that the paper be
transmitted TO Secretary l.. 5. Jones.
who was to present ii informally to
members of the Fire Board The OBJ
ject of this. according to a letter from
G. j. Driscol who made the survey of
the Fire Department, was. in event
that they discover any inaccuracies 8
or Measurements" they could dictate
the corrections" to him and he would
examine his working papers and max e
,he necessary corrections"
From such action Councilman Nor
gan r. Mills declared that the bureau
had reported to the Fire Department
telling it that the bureau had con-
Quoted the survey, but for the Fire
Board to make whatever recommends
tions 1t desired and that would be
what the survey would contain. IN
reality" he said. the various city de-
partments have been called upon to
make their own reports. and those
profiting most from the survey Is not
the city OF Richmond. but the research
bureau.
In the triparty contract entered into
between the city of Richmond, the
New York Bureau of Municipal Re-
search strict provision is made that
the Nbureau shall cooperate in every
possible way with the Committee on
Charter Changes. which is a joint
body from the Common Council and
the Board of Aldermen, appointed to
consider and recommend any action for
the betterment OF the municipal gov
ernment.
SERIOUS BREACHES ARE
ALLEGED BY Committeeman
In addition. it is specifically provided
that no report shall be made to any
one before the complete survey is
filed with the city clerk, and that no
reports shall be made to any city de-
partments. The statement was also
made in the committee that the direc-
tor in charge of the survey made OF
the Police Department had read a
rough draft of his work to Mayor
Ainslie and Chief of Police Werner.
This was also considered a report. and
members of the committee declared
them to be serious breaches of the
contract.
Mr.. Workman said 1t was evident
that the contract had been violated,
and that it was too bad the city was
not paying the bill for the survey. r.
Lee Peters, president of tho Common
Council, and member OF the COM
mittee. declared that II the city aad
had "a real survey made, it would
have a real report"
The committee laid all other resolu- :
tions. providing for radical changes in
the city government. the reduction and
the abolition of the Administrative
Board, the Board of Fire Commis-
sioners and the consolidation of sew
eral departments. which were filed
with 1t some time ago. on the table,
pending information from the bureau
as to when It's survey would be made