Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1922-08-18
TO THE TAXPAYERS OF NORTH
WILDWOOD

The purpose for which the Civic I'm
provement Association of North Wild
wood was formed November, 1921
was ito promote by education and act
i've cooperation a higher public spirit
and a better social and political or
der"
To make a beginning toward the ac-
complishment of such a purpose, "a
of it's members petitioned Judge Black
to order an investigation for waste
and mismanagement" in the running
of the city's affairs, and for an audit
ing of the city's books by a state
auditor.
They believed in order to find out
what was being done with the money
paid into the treasury by the taxpay-
ers without any apparent results
therefrom in the way of improvements,
etc, that such step was the only
sane and proper procedure to take.
The city officials have tried to i'm
press upon the public that since there
was no actual criminality found, the
victory lay with them. This the pc
titioners deny, firstly, because the in
vestigation was not for criminality,
and secondly, because, on the strength
of the Investigators report Judge
Black ordered the city to pay S4OO for
the services of the Investigators which
he would not have done had the pc
titioners failed in their search.
In his charge the Judge told the
Grand Jury that there had been found
"a loose method of bookkeeping,
loose method of doing business, many
things reprehensible from the stand
point of good citizenship and that
the government (of the city, should
be restored to the people where it
properly belongs.
1t is rumored that the petitioners
are grieved because they found no
criminality. How can they grieve over
a thing not sought?
No one official was more the cause
of the investigation than was any
other.
One official claims that he and his
fellow officials have been striving to
serve the people with honesty of pur-
pose We leave it to the public to
decide after they read the following
excerpts from the report:
1. The Mayor was found to be a
silent partner of McGrory in the gar
bage contract. A stool pigeon was
employed to swing the contract Nc
Groryward the second bids for the
same were not properly advertised.
2. Estimates amounting to over $500
were not properly advertised. In one
case two bills for the same job, aggre-
eating over $500, were sent in to avoid
to the law.
8. The law for collecting mercantile
taxes had not been enforced for sew
eral years.
4. Salaries of the officials had not
been passed by ordinance, and none
who handled money was bonded with
the exception of the tax collector, who
carried his bond in his own safe.
5. When moneys were due the Sink
ing Fund from the city it was the
custom of the city to borrow from the
uuu Ou OIllCi SOllSy hOIOo ShAN
amount due and then issue check to
the Sinking Fund for said amount.
Re the auditing of the citys books
by the state auditor.
The method of bookkeeping in vogue
at the time of the audit was found to
be so loose that Trenton Immediately
ordered the officials to procure an en-
tire new set of books. 1t took several
months on the part of the state auditor
to straighten out the old books and to
give instructions in the proper usage
of the new. The bill presented to the
city by the Commissioner of Munich
pal Accounts for the work amounted
to over $1,000.
Another victory for the petitioners.
The public is informed that liens
against delinquent taxpayers are be-
ing enforced as speedily as possible
This may be so, but we would like to
further explain that the present law
covering such was passed at least a
couple of years before this association
was formed and before any effort to