The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-04-22
BEDDING

Redding, April 22-The towns out | lay of $1, 1900 for removing snow from { the roads during the past winter is l responsible for one mill of the Is 1-2 | mills tax rate which was voted by l the adjourned town meeting last Sat | urday afternoon. The appropriations of s26,052 made last fall allotted only ] $100 for snow tossing, leaving S1,- 700 deficiency to be provided for and this deficiency was met by the direct expedient of increasing the tax rate required under the original estimates. Another way of meeting the defiency had been suggested this being the re- scinding of the $2,000 appropriation voted for improving the cross road between the hometown section ana the Putnam Park road. That plan, however, had no advocates at the meeting although the improvement project was rather left in the air early
 in the winter by the absence of any bids for the contract solicited In ac-
 cordance with the specifications and price limit. The problem thus creat- ed was met at Saturdays meeting by adoption of a resolution authorizing the se1ectnen to use any or all of the $2, 900 in carrying out the roads bet ternent by whatever methods they 1 may deam advisable. With the money at their disposal they will probably find it difficult if not impossible to get the job done as planned by the civil engineer who made the survey and consequently may either modify by the present plans to lessen the 1 cost of their execution or attempt | only their partial execution. While adhering to the road project 1 the meeting showed itself less friendly l to the proposition for providing a fT~ai in aH tn n cal welfare of the children attending the public schools. The town school committee had registered it's approval of the project and although none of them spoke in it's support on Satur- day the benefits to be derived from the proposed service were interestingly and specifically set forth by School Supervisor Sylvester and Miss Steven son, the latter one of the nurses un- der engagement by the State Board
 of Education It was announced that the yearly cost would be from $200 to $500. After a discussion which was practically all in favor of the propo- sition some one offered a resolution expressing endorsement and giving 1 the school committee power to act in 1 the matter. When a. motion made by ] W. A. Lounsbury to table prevailed, | thereby causing postponement of | further action until the annual town | meeting next fall The reasons for l the adverse vote were doubtless finan- l cial. The fact that the state board 1 has suggested to the town school I committee the advisability of a 50 l per cent. increase in the pay of local l teachers may have been a contribut- | ing cause. The tax rate fixed will produce a revenue of $28,316 from 1 the present grand list. s. c. Shaw
 was chairman of the meeting.
 An even dozen of fine Holstein cows
 in milk were sold a few days ago by Albert Williams of hometown to a Stepney man at an average price of
 about $50. MT. Williams parted with them because of the scarcity and high cost of farm help. He retains some 9 COWS, most of them miTkers, and
 about 20 head of young stock and
 feels that these, along with the other
 work connected with running a farm of more than 300 acres, is about all that he and his single helper can han dle. For several weeks last winter he could get no assistance and during this period did alone the milking ot 1 35 cows besides looking after the feed- ing of as many more cattle in addi- tion to the care of horses, pigs and poultry. Throughout the town there is a tendency to @ curtai2ment of planting and sowing this season ow- ing to the labor problem and the. same
 condition exists far beyond this sec
 ton. The correspondence from a sim
 gle town up north in a, recent issue of
 the Newtown Bee contained six para
 graphs, all telling of the leaving of as
 many farms by renters for whom
 there appears to be no present suc-
 cessors. Numerous advertisements l announcing closing out sales of live
 stock and farm implements were an
 other indication of the tendency re
 ferred to. All this means decreased
 food production and being only the
 small part of a nationwide condition
 affords no ground for hopefu1ness ot
 an early reduction in living costs 1T
 their relation to prices for food pro
 ducts.
 The early erection of the nev
 building planned some time ago fo
 Putnam Park seems to be assured b,
 the tender of a. bid from H. c. Nc
 CoIIam to perform the contract at
 figure within the sum now available
 The last legislature appropriated $10,
 900 for the work but the bids receiv
 ed by the Park Commission last sum
 | mer were considerably above thi
 amount. Subsequently the Stat e Board made an additional allowanc - of $2,000 for the project and as MI .- McCoIIam's bid is less than $11,00 }. the commission voted to award hir e the contract upon condition of it's ap d provaI by the State Comptroller. Tha l. official has not yet been heard from IS but it is assumed that the decisio " will be favorable and in that ever '' the building will be erected this sum q mer.
 e Before the Mems club at thei q meeting with D. S. Sanford las :" Thursday evening MT. TampelI, cleo d trica1 engineer, gave an interestin It account of the building of the Ste1 r. enson dam by means of which tn ss waters of the Housatonic river ar " harnessed to furnish a vast suppl ir of energy for power and lighting pun
 poses. While some of this power " to pass near the northern boundar n. of Bedding the speaker said that thel m was small prospect of it's diversio