The Waterbury Democrat., 1935-10-05

to give you Is that our welfare Department did little or nothing to relieve privation during the last six years. They have shout ed from the housetops that the expenses of the Welfare Depart nent have increased. They have increased from $189,440 in 1890 to $460,415.04 for the first nine months of 1895. Why should they not have increased in view of the increased demands made on the department and met by that department?
 I don't want to try your pa tiencc with 9 lot of figures but you should know some of the facts.
 Take the case loadat that Is the number of families receiving aid from the city, for example.
 In 1894 there were $40 fam flies receiving weekly aid from the Welfare Department.
 In 1895 the number of fam flies receiving weekly aid from the city was eighteen hundred and ninety-two.
 All these families have re- ceived food, fuel, hospital and clinical service, medical atten- ton, care in tubercular and men, tai institutions, rent and cloth ing.
 And we are accused of having done little or nothing in this all important department of well fare.
 Criticism
 Of course, we have been crit iclzed. It isn't possible to es- cape criticism especially in this matter of relief. But 1t iS inter- esting to know that one of the bitterest fault finders, a man who seizes every chance to attack us publicly, has received six hun dred and eighty-nine dollars from our Welfare Department in rent and food. 1 could name numberless individuals of the same stripe, but 1 have no desire to do 50. Critics like these are invariably the persons who have received the most help and the greatest consideration from the Welfare Department.
 Not long ago was asked by a number of large taxpayers to publish a list of those who have and are now receiving city aid as a deterrent to chiselers. The publication of such q list is made in many towns and cities.
 I refused and shall continue to refuse.
 In order to catch a few chis- elers I do not propose to add to the embarrassment of those who are less fortunate than myself and who through no fault of their own have been brought to distress.
 Aid Given
 I say right now that If the price of my reelection is to pub lish the news to the world that some unhappy, unfortunate soul has sought aid from the city when all else failed--AND GOT THAT AID-I say If I have to do that in order to get elected, Mir. Savino or MT. Rowland, or both of them, can have the control lers job tomorrow. know when 1 made that declaration that every man and woman in Waterbury, who has a spark of human feeling, will approve of 1t.
 I have not time to reply nor do I need to reply to all the oth- CT groundless accusations which have been made against the ad- rninistration. A lot of emphasis has been laid on the bald un- truth that the expenses of every department in the city have in- creased during our term of office. The falsity of that charge is proved by the fact that the city's income From taxes is over q mil lion and g. half dollars less than 1t was in 1890.
 The expense of the controllers office and the expense of the tax collectors office have increased. And I'll tell you why. Because an altogether new system of ac- counting more elaborate and ln- tricate has been installed. It was installed by the account ants of the charter commission which consisted of three Re- publicans and two Democrats. We made no protest against the change. We were, and are, will ing and eager to do anything inh lG 70 taxpayers.
 Excellent System
 But the change of system meant a treble increase in the amount of work.
 It centered additional activities in the controllers office, 1t cen- tralized all financial operations in the same office. It added to the former work of the control Ter the purchase of all city sup- plies much of which was former ly done in the separate depart- mcnts.
 It added the auditing of all de- partmental accounts 10 the rou- tine work of the controller. It added the job of paying the city's payroll by check instead of in cash. It is an excellent system and whoever is elected to the controllers office next Tuesday will hnd it necessary to contin- ue 1t.
 What Is true of the control- 1ar'a offfce ia trua of the tax col. lector's office. The system of that office was completely revamped in accordance with the recom- mendation of the same charter commission and the state com missioner of taxation. There has been added expense in these de- partments as the result Of fol-