San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-03-15
THINK MAYOR
OUGHT TOCUT
ONNEXPENSEs
Has Far Bigger Personal
Force Than Predeces-
sor, Sam Bell.
AN EFFICIENCY EXPERT
Nine Doctors in Health o.
flee Which He Took
to Save Money.

| With the city facing deficit in its
finances of between 100000 and q
half million dollars. officials at the
city hall and among them Tax Com
missioner John L. Pfeiffer, are inuuir-
! ing why the mayor. as the cfty's chief
| executive, does not set an example in
economy which the other members of
the commission might follow. As long
as the mayor spends the city's money
lavishly, they say, by employing men
who are not absolutely essential to the
cit government, there is not much in
centive for the other city officials to
save.
Among the force reductions which
city officials say the mayor could
make without crippling the govern
ment are in the health department, his
own office force and his special inves-
tigators and efficiency expert. Com
missioner Pfeiffer repeatedly has
pointed out that the mayor is spend
ing more than 5000 for clerical help
in his office whereas Sam Bell. his
predecessor, spent only $50. In the
health department, other officials have
pointed out, the former administration
employed only four. men, whereas the
city now has nine. When the health
department was under Commissioner
Ray Lambert he had one city health
officer. DIR. W. 4. King; one assist
ant, DIR. r. i. Dinwiddie; one woman
doctor. Clara Cook. and one bacter-
iologist. 1t was because he urged that
he could operate the health department
cheaper that the mayor insisted on
taking it away from Commissioner
Lambert.
Battery of Physicians.
But there is a regular battery of
physicians on the city staff now. It
includes one city health officer at
salary of $3.50 plus S1J for automobile
upkeep. one assistant at $21j and one
at S12J. mosquito expert at S16j,
bacteriOlogist, a veterinarian. three
clinic doctors, two paid jointly by the
state and city, and one working gratis.
The clinic fund out of which the
clinic doctors are paid comprises $4,000
$4,000 of which was put into the pot by
tire city and $4,000 by the state. Out
of this sum, however. the state drew
5000 for overhead" leaving S540O for
actual expenditures. The mayor also
claims that one of his special investi-
gators is paid from this fund
1t is known that the mayors inves-
tigators were the subject of heated
discussion at the budget conference
last Tuesday. Commissioner Pfeifiar
and Commissioner Lambert insisted
that these men were unnecessary and
that the mayor get rid of them. Com
missioner Pfeiffer also is said to have
insisted that the mayor dispense with
the services of his efficiency expert
whom the tax commissioner has insist
ed all along is non-essential. Com
missioner Pfeiffer intimated Wednes-
day that it may be necessary to have
the mayor submit. his payrolls to the
council Just as Commissioner Rieden
has been instructed to do. in order that
the council may make the desired cuts
in his force.
Couldn't See Big Leaks.
Commissioner Pfeiffer, in discussing
the audit recently made by an audit
ing firm, declared that it looked to
him like the auditors had overlooked
the big leaks in the city's finances
and made recommendations only on
trivial affairs.
1T seems to me-" he said, "that the
auditors would have found where the
mayor had paid Judge ]. Z. Sluder
$500 without the formality Of having
an ordinance passed appropriating this
money. From what / can find out,
the money was paid out merely on the
verbal sanction Of the mayor and two
other commissioners. The auditors
also might have inquired into the ne
cessity for the mayors large clerical
force, his special investigators, eff
cheney expert and his army of doctors
in the health department"