OCR Text |
Show the Mayor's veto in reference to salaries and the granting of assistants assist-ants to officers elected to perform their duties. The city auditor is an estimable young lady, but that fact should not outweigh the fact that Ogden is in need of economy and the city administration cannot afford to grant all that is asked for by the different departments. There must be a check on these demands de-mands and as strict an accounting must be exacted as though the councilmen and mayor were transacting their own private business. A little extravagance or undue liberality too often leads to a disregard disre-gard of all promptings of economy. The money being poured out from the city treasury is the wealth of the property owners, often drawn from the taxpayers when they are not really able to make the sacrifice. That thought should be constantly before those trusted with the city expenditures. MORE CITY EXPENSES. No matter which way wc turn, increased salaries and more a3-flstants a3-flstants are asked for. For the first time in the history of Ogden, the city auditor has asked for a $5 per day assistant and she is modest enough to say that she vant3 an assistant to check up the waterworks department, the city recorder's office and the city treasurer's office. When we consider the very competent persons engaged in the auditor's office, we wonder why none of the departments depart-ments has been checked up. Only a few years ago Mrs. Harriet Em-merson Em-merson was city auditor and did all the work without assistance whatever. Following her was Mrs. Hattie Brown and for several years she hald no assistance whatever, but during the last year of her term in office the city allowed her to appoint an assistant at $40 "er month who worked one hour or two hours in the evening after upper. The present auditor succeeded Mrs. Hattie Brown and she las received an assistant who gets $100 per month, who alone should )e able to perform all the duties of the city auditor. But here we ind the auditor asking for an assistant at the rate of $5 per day. The Mayor has promptly vetoed the measure, and in his veto has mggested that if an assistant is really necessary, the Mayor would ike the honor of appointing that assistant in order to discover why he present auditor's force cannot perform the full duties of the of-lce. of-lce. To this the auditor seriously objects, claiming that she alone Is responsible for her assistants. The council has allowed the $5 per lay, and the end is not yet. There arc three able persons in charge of the recorder's office ith an assistant for the license department. There are two persons n the treasurer's office, and there are two persons in the auditor's office. Now is added the $5 per clay assistant. There are practically nine persons engaged to keep the records and books of Ogden City. Wc do not believe that any mercantile establishment, with the same work to perform, would have over four or five persons doing the ivork. It is remarkable, however, that the former auditor could get along with one or two hours' work in the evening with an assistant at $40 per month, and now the. present auditor has an assistant at $100 per month and cannot keep up with the work. There is something wrong and the city council has made a serious ser-ious mistake in giving the auditor a $5 per day assistant. It is an tntering wedge for future appeals in the same line. Tho little auditing and book-keeping to be performed by the city auditor, and the checking up of the accounts of the various departments, de-partments, is an easy and pleasant duty and there is no reason why wo competent persons could not do that and have time to spare. We repeat that the city council is too liberal in turning down |