The globe-independent. (Hagerstown, Md.) 1943-19??, 1949-09-01
Around Town With
The Editor

1t certainly was a blow when DR..
John Richard Craft, director of the
Washington County Museum of Fine
Arts, told me on Tuesday morning
that he was resigning as director
of the Museum, effective December
81, and sincerely trust that he can
be made to change his mind.
Doctor Craft told me that he had
no plans for the future, as right
now his whole heart and soul was in
getting the new wings to the museum
opened to the public. If Doctor
Craft should resign, it will be real
loss to the community, not only
from the point of view of art, but
also as citizen who has always been
in the forefront of everything per-
tanning to the, city's welfare and
prosperity.
l have enjoyed the friendship of
DOC" Craft ever since l came to
Hagerstown, and 1 sure hate to think
of him leaving.
1t seems that in last weeks issue
/ gave our good Chief of Police, J.
B. Brown, a swift "demotion," when
in the story of the new patrolman
being added to the force referred
to Chief Brown as Acting Ser
geant."
My apologies, Chief, but my bad
error has again proven that the
paper is well read, for l have been
kidded numerically about it.
In announcing that special cleo
ton would be held on October for
the purpose of voting on million
and half dollar bond issue, Mayor
H. l.. Mills released to the press a
statement setting forth some of the
reasons why the bond issue was
necessary. In that statement the
Mayor laid the blame for the need
of the bond issue squarely on the
shoulders of the Sweeney admins
tration, stating that in 1947 the city
spent about 100000 more than it
took in, and that in the year 1913
the city spent $350,OO0 more than it
took in.
The Mayor, in his release, further
stated that the previous admins
tration's budget set UP for this year
called for the spending of ST, 100000,
and the Mayor states that this is
more than the city will take in in
revenue during 1949.
Unfortunately, however, the May
or did not release the detailed fin
ancial statement for the first six
months of 1949 which he stated
would be available, and until such
time as that statement is available
and can be studied, clear picture
of the city's finances cannot be OBJ
tanned. The administration has new
er released, for instance, detailed
statement regarding the improve
ment and modernization of the light
plant All we know about it is the
Mayors statement in his release of
Monday night, in which he said that
the million and half dollar bond
issue, which he asks the voters to
approve, is just about the cost of
the light expansion program.
Secondly, the voters have not
been presented with a detailed
statement of how much money has
been spent in the first six months
of the year, nor have they been
given a detailed statement of the
revenue received by the city for the
same period.
1t would also be interesting to
know how much the present admin
istration has spent, or authorized to
be spent, since they took office at
the end of March.
am not in any position to deny
the Mayors statement that 1t IS
necessary to float the $1,500,000 bond
issue this year, or as an alternative
increase the tax rate to several
times what it is now, but I do feel
that if the voters of the city are
to approach this matter in a bust
ness-like way, they should be pre-
sented with straightforward, de-
tailed financial statement of the ex-
penses for the first six months of
1949, together with a detailed state
ment of the present administrators
expenditures and obligations since
they took office, and finally, state
ment of the expected revenues for
the final six months of 1949.
Sales Tax Yields
$13.03 Per Person