The New York herald., 1921-02-04
WOMEN GET A VIEW
OF ESTIMATE BOARD
Members in Fine Form, Except
Mayor Hylan and Gayel,
at Town Hall.

| The absence OF Mayor Hylan and his
the picture of Board OF Estimate
meeting which its members gave in
Town Hall last nieht when they re-
viewed their stewardship before the
League OF Women Voters.
Henry H. Curran. President of the
Borough OF Manhattan. laid any failure
of his housing tax exemption plan at
the door OF Providence and an equally
inscrutible Comptroller" Comptroller
Charles L. Craig blamed slow pay of
teachers on the Board of Education,
charged an excess sl2,ooo,oOo in this
years budget against the Mayors APP
of Street Cleaning and Plant Structures,
and condemned Mr.. Curran's plan to
borrow to meet the school deficit. +,
III. La Guardia, President OF the Board
of Aldermen, unloaded about everything
he could think of on the Comptroller and
expressed keen regret that 1.-The erring
financial official did not remain to lis
ten Edward Riegelmann Borough
President of Brooklyn, regaled his
hearers with droll stories of his bor-
oughs efficiency and projected improve
ments for sConey Island.
After reviewing the numerous finan-
cial difficulties which he said the rest
of the Board OF Estimate got the city
into by failure to follow his advice. the
Comptroller outlined several counter
measures he proposes. Two OF them
are bills which will go to Albany next
weei,. One will ask that the date for
paying taxes for the second half OF the
year be changed from November l to
July /. That, he said, will obviate the
borrowing of 500, 100000 on July 1,
which would make s66, ,000, 600 more bor-
rowings this year than last on account
of the big budget.
Mr. Currans idea OF borrowing the
school deficit money. he declared, would
make the situation the more horrible by
about s25,000,000. What's more, If the
Legislature does not pass his BILL the
Comptroller isn't sure he can borrow the
s1o0. .000, 900 next July anyway. and even
II he does he wouldn't be surprised at
$50, 900, 900 long term bond sale burden
ing whole generation with 51a per
cent, or more of interest, what with
tight money and everything the way it is
Mr. Craig will send along another bill
to oust the City Chamberlain. which the
Mayor prevented wheh he tried 1t last
year, thereby. the Comptroller pointed
out. setting the city back 100000, be-
cause Chamberlain Berolzhelmer instead
OF Mr.. Craig selected the places of de-
pcsit of city funds. Then there was
that heretofore unrevealed S12.0c0,000
excess appropriation in the Mayors de-
partments.
Mr. Craig departed when Mr.. La
Guardia began. First off Mr.. La Guar
dia wanted 10 know about that $4,000,
900, and dumped it right back on the
Comptroller. who. he said. could have
saved it by voting Republican instead
of Tammany in tho Board of Estimate
Then there was the Comptroler's
100000 court house that ran Up to
$4,000 without a roof, and finally
wound mp with nothing except founda-
ton, which now must have a bulkhead
to keep out 100000 gallons of the At
lantic Ocean a day.
Mr.. La Guardia next remembered that
the schools are bad, because the Comp
troller blocks everything the Board of
Educa ton wants to do, and that made
him think OF four school contracts the
Comptroller held up four months. which
in turn reminded him of the pending
mandamus suit to compel the Comp
troller TO pay certain teachers SICK re-
funds alleged to be overdue since 1918.
All of which led the Aldermanic Presi-
dent to give this advice to the women
voters:
"You can't let the politicians run this
city much lonegr. You simply can't
afford It."