The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-07-21

Alderman Walker, who criticized Dr. Finn at the time of his order for the nurses withdrawal, claimed today that "partiality" was shown
 Text of Statement
 The text of MT. Walkers state ment follows:
 Tn the March 21st issue of local paper an article dealing with the request of Private Buckley for nurses hire contained the follow ing statement by our Mayor and I quote: "The money angle is not of any importance when it comes to taking care of f1remen or police men injured in the city's service"
 The Mayor by his statements at that time led Mrs. Buckley and the general public to believe that the city would pay the necessary expenses to secure the complete recovery of Private Buckley. It was a generous statement and showed the proper spirit, but evidently was not made in sin- cerety.
 At Thursdays meeting of the Board of Finance our Mayor ad- mitted that the City had not paid the nurses and he now is trying to evade his responsibility entirely by claiming 1t Is in the compersa- tion field. Five months after the accident our Mayor, who is also a lawyer, first discovers 1t might be compensation case.
 When appeared before the Fire Board on March 18th, I was under the impression that the Mayor left everything to his boards. At this time Chairman Phalen told me the Fire Boards hands were tied. I hardly believed this statement, but the reluctance of any member of the Fire Board to make any comments at the meeting or any statements about this case at that time or since and the passing of responsibility from board to board to budget director with the final weak de- cision by our Mayor leads me now to feel that board members are figure heads and that chairman Phelan was sincere when he said the boards hands were tied.
 Some of our officials now claim there is no money in the budget for this $3l5 item, but there was no money in the budget for the repair bill of approximately $4,000 for Truck No. l, the $6,000 for the new Engine to replace the engine demolished in the accident, or the travelling expenses in connection with the repairs to Truck No. in Elnira, N. Y. Neither was there money in the budget to pay for private nurses and a private room in the same hospital, at the same time that Private Buckley was there, for another fireman. Maybe Dr. Finn can tell why one fireman is given the best of care, including private nurses and, in cidentally, he very much deserved it, and yet another fireman also injured in the City's service is denied like treatment. There should be no partiality, but there was.
 Our Mayor falls back to the opinion of the department phya- clan that private nurses were not necessary, yet of all the persons that came in contact with this case and this includes the Mayor, doctors, nurses and the many friends of Private Buckley only one has stated that private nurses were unnecessary and that was Dr. Finn, all others that did ex- press an opinion felt as I did at that time and do now that a man in a plaster cast from chest to toes, incapable of feeding himself, should have the benefit of special care.
 To clear up one other point that might be misleading to the public. Dr. Finn is the police and fire doctor, but was not the attending physician in Private Buckley's case. He had nothing to do with the fine recovery Private Buckley has made; this credit belongs to Dr. Jackson.
 BURTON H. WALKER,
 43o Sylvan Ave,
 Member Board of Aldermen.