USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Lincoln > Town Report on Lincoln 1930-1934 > Part 3
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38
Charles Orrin Sargent
77
6
23
May
20, 1930 John F. Russell
7
5
May
22. 1930 |Symon Lacutis
51
July
25, 1930 Mary Newton
92
10
July
5, 1930 Georgena V. Hoyt
52
11
14
Aug. 9, 1930 Elizabeth Hutton
65
Sept.
12, 1930 Irving Perry Dodge
58
19
Sept. 16, 1930 Francis Edward Macomber
77
11
6
Sept. 22, 1930 Donald MacFarland
6
4
Sept. 13, 1930
William G. Connell
72
3
Oct. 25, 1930
Maurice W. Nelson
71
7
5
Oct.
27, 1930
Ellen Ehlert
87
3 .
Nov.
7, 1930
Hattie E. Nelson
70
5
11
Nov. 14, 1930 Ella Frances Roos
76
6
24
Nov.
25, 1930 Dorotha M. Roach
28
3
10
Dec.
15, 1930 Joe Sheard
52
9
5
52
Licenses
There have been 95 Dog Licenses issued in 1930-69 Males, 17 Females and 9 Spayed Females, for which the County Treasurer has been paid $222.00.
There have been 59 Resident Citizens' Sporting Licenses, 2 Resident Citizens' Trapping Licenses and 7 Minor's Trap- ping Licenses issued, for which the sum of $125.50 has been paid to the Division of Fisheries and Game.
THOMAS L. GILES, Town Clerk.
53
JURY LIST FOR 1930
As prepared by the Selectmen of Lincoln
Name
Address
Occupation
Coburn, Edward S.,
So. Lincoln
Farmer
Codman, Thomas N.,
Lincoln
Retired
Cousins, Harold S.,
Lincoln Farmer
Davis, William H.,
So. Lincoln
Trainer
Dee, Thomas J.,
So. Lincoln
Farmer
De Normandie, William J.,
Lincoln
Builder
Donaldson, Robert D.,
So. Lincoln
Carpenter
Ellms, Charles W.,
So. Lincoln
Farmer
Flint, Edward F.,
Lincoln
Farmer
Hill, Irving S.,
Lincoln
Clerk
Johnson, Walter W.,
Lincoln
Farmer
Lahey, James E.,
So. Lincoln
Carpenter
Lunt, Byron,
Lincoln
Farmer
McHugh, John E.,
Concord, R. F. D.
Farmer
Robus, William C.,
Lincoln
Tel. Repairman ·
Smith, Sumner,
Lincoln
Farmer
Stone, Edward H.,
So. Lincoln Lincoln
Salesman
Tarbell, George G.,
Treasurer
Wheeler, C. Edgar,
So. Lincoln
Farmer
Whitney, Harold P.,
So. Lincoln
Secretary
Woodworth, Lewis W.,
So. Lincoln
Farmer
54
REPORT OF THE SELECTMEN
The Selectmen present the following report for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1930.
The Board was organized by the choice of C. L. Todd, Chairman, and R. D. Donaldson, Secretary.
APPOINTMENTS
The following appointments have been made during the year :
Sealer of Weights and Measures, John J. Kelliher.
Forest Warden and Moth Superintendent, John J. Kelliher.
Weigher of Coal, Hay and other Commodities, Elmer A. Rollins.
Inspector of Animals, John F. Farrar.
Janitor of Public Buildings and Caretaker of Public Grounds, Edward Graff.
Special Police, Herbert G. Farrar, Henry Warner, An- drew J. Dougherty, Jr., Daniel Ryan, M. H. Doherty.
· District Nurse Committee, Robert D. Donaldson.
Inspector of Slaughtering, J. J. Kelliher.
Fire Engineers, M. H. Doherty, Thomas Dee, J. J. Kelli- her, H. G. Farrar, A. J. Dougherty, H. S. Cousins, Sumner Smith.
Registrar, for three years, Ernest H. MacFarland.
Board of Survey, R. D. Donaldson.
55
The following table gives the appropriations made by the Town during the year 1930 and the appropriations recommended by the Board to be made at the next Annual Meeting :
Appropriations for 1930
The Selectmen recommend the following appropriations for the ensuing year
For Schools
$35,500
$37,500
Vocational Education
1,000
1,200
Public Welfare
2,300
1,600
Highways and Bridges
19,000
19,500
Highways a /c Maintenance of Chap- ter 90, Roads
1,000
1,000
Cemeteries
800
800
Library and Dog Tax
800
1,000
Board of Health
1,000
2,000
Tree Warden
1,000
1,000
Moth Work
500
500
Miscellaneous Expenses
12,000
1,800
Hydrants and other Water Service
1,980
1,980
Waltham Hospital Free Bed
400
400
Street Lights
2,450
2,800
Fire Department
1,200
1,200
Middlesex Extension Service
200
25
Interest on Town Loans
2,100
2,100
Water Works
O
9,635
Veteran's Aid
300
300
Police Dept.
O
2,000
Town Hall, Expense a /c
O
1,850
Town Officers' Salary a /c
O
3,050
56
The appropriations for 1931 are recommended this year "without receipts" as the State auditing department has advised that all money to be spent by the different depart- ments must be appropriated in full. This procedure, in the end, is as broad as it is long insofar as it effects our taxes, but it is much more complicated from a bookkeeping stand- point, and also there is a greater chance of making an error. Take, for example, the Board of Health account; heretofore we have appropriated, say, $1,000. and receipts. We knew that the receipts would be about $1,000. and that the Board of Health expected to spend, say, $2,000: therefore, it fol- lows that previously we needed to appropriate $1,000. only, whereas now we must reckon the approximate receipts and include them in our appropriation. The Assessors, in figur- ing out the tax rate, must take into consideration the estimated receipts to be paid into the treasury by the sev- eral departments.
We recommend that the appropriation of $19,500. for the Highway a /c be expended as follows :
$15,000. for general highway work. Of this amount we think $1,000. will be paid back to the Town for local work;
$1,200. to be used in conjunction with the State and County, each appropriating an additional $1,200., to widen and make over a short portion of the road on the Lincoln side of Adams Bridge, in accordance with a plan submitted by the County Commissioners ;
$3,300. to be expended to continue widening and remak- ing the Bedford road, beginning at a point completed on this road by the Town last year and going as far as the ap- propriation will allow. Some money has already been spent on preliminary work on this piece of road.
We wish to bring to the attention of the voters that the Treasurer reports a balance at the end of the year of
57
$9,553.28 and the Collector of Taxes reports an uncollected tax of $12,748.47, a total of $22,301.75. Out of this must be paid a note of the Town of $20,000.00 leaving an unex- pended balance of $2,301.75. Lincoln received from the State a /c Income taxes in 1929, $9,892.00, in 1930, $9,120.00, and in 1931 we are told that the amount which the Town will receive from the State will be materially reduced. It would seem, therefore, that we must be as careful as possible in making our appropriations.
As a matter of record, we report the town lines of Con- cord, Lexington and Bedford as having been perambulated and the bounds found to be intact.
The Selectmen have received and include in their report the report of The Department of Corporations and Taxa- tion, Division of Accounts, who have audited the accounts of the Town of Lincoln from January 1, 1929, to October 2, 1930.
January 12, 1931.
To the Board of Selectmen :
Mr. C. Lee Todd, Chairman, Lincoln, Massachusetts.
Gentlemen :
I submit herewith my report of an audit of the account of the Town of Lincoln for the period from January 1, 1929, to October 2, 1930, made in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 44 of the General Laws. This report is in the form of a report made to me by Mr. Edward H. Fenton, Chief Accountant of this Division.
Very truly yours, THEODORE N. WADDELL, Director of Accounts
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, State House, Boston.
58
Mr. Theodore N. Waddell, Director of Accounts,
Department of Corporations and Taxation, State House, Boston.
Sir :
As directed by you I have made an audit of the books and accounts of the Town of Lincoln for the period from Janu- ary 1, 1929, to October 2, 1930, and submit the following re- port thereon :
The financial transactions of the town, as recorded on the books of the several departments receiving or disbursing money for the town, were examined and verified.
The books and accounts of the town treasurer were ex- amined and checked in detail. The recorded receipts were checked with such records as were available in the several departments collecting money for the town and with the other sources from which money was paid into the town treasury.
The payments made on order of the selectmen authorizing the disbursement of town funds were checked with such orders, and the payments made without orders were verified.
The cash book was footed throughout for the period cov- ered by the audit, and the cash balance was verified by a reconciliation of the bank account with a statement fur- nished by the bank and by an actual count of the cash on hand.
The appropriations voted by the Town were listed from the town clerk's records of town meetings, and a compari- son was made with the aggregate amount chargeable against each appropriation.
In checking the records of appropriation votes, it was noted that several departments have been voted the use of receipts in addition to the sums appropriated for their use. This practice is, in my opinion, contrary to the provisions of
59
Section 53, Chapter 44, General Laws, which reads as fol- lows :
All moneys received by any town officer or depart- ment, except as otherwise provided by special acts and except fees provided for by statute, shall be paid by such officer or department upon their receipt into the town treasury. Any sums so paid into the town treas- ury shall not later be used by such officer or department without a specific appropriation thereof, except that sums allotted to towns for highway purposes by the commonwealth or a county, which shall be used only for the purposes specified by the officials making the allotment or to meet temporary loans issued in antici- pation of such allotment as provided in sections six or six A, shall be available therefor without any appropri- ation.
I would therefore again recommend that, in the future, all appropriations be made for the full amount to be expended by each department, and that the receipts be estimated by the assessors in fixing the tax rate, as provided in Section 23, Chapter 59, General Laws.
I wish also to repeat the recommendation contained in the previous audit report, that separate appropriations be made for the salaries and expenses of the various officers, town hall maintenance, election expenses, care of public build- ings, and police expenses; and that only a small appropria- tion be made for the miscellaneous account to cover items which cannot be properly charged against some department.
It was noted that the practice of paying over to the treas- urer of the library trustees the appropriation voted by the Town for library purposes still continues, although the il- legality of such practice was called to the attention of the officials in the report of the previous audit. Attention is therefore again called to Section 35, Chapter 41, General
60
Laws, as amended by Section 1, Chapter 65, Acts of 1926, which reads as follows :
The town treasurer shall give bond annually for the faithful performance of his duties in a form approved by the commissioner of corporations and taxation and in such sum, not less than the amount established by the said commissioner, as shall be fixed by the select- men or mayor and aldermen, shall receive and take charge of all money belonging to the Town, and pay over and account for the same according to the order of the Town or of its authorized officers. No other person shall pay any bill of any department. He shall have the au- thority given to an auditor by section fifty-one; and shall annually render a true account of all his receipts and disbursements and a report of his official acts.
Attention is also called to Section 52, Chapter 41, General Laws, which reads, in part, as follows :
The auditor or officer having similar duties in cities, and the selectmen in towns, shall approve the pay- ment of all bills or pay rolls of all departments before they are paid by the treasurer, and may disallow and re- fuse to approve for payment, in whole or in part, any claim as fraudulent, unlawful or excessive; and in that case the auditor or officer having similar duties, or the selectmen, shall file with the city or town treasurer a written statement of the reasons for the refusal; and the treasurer shall not pay any claim or bill so disal- lowed.
It was noted that an appropriation has been voted each year for the payment of temporary loans borrowed in antici- pation of the revenue of the previous year and unpaid at the end of that year. This practice should be discontinued, as these loans were issued in anticipation of the revenue of the financial year in which the debt was incurred and was ex-
61
pressly made payable from such revenue by the vote author- izing the loan. Therefore an appropriation to pay such loans from the revenue of the following year is contrary to the provisions of Section 4, Chapter 44, General Laws.
It was noted that appropriations have been voted to be taken from funds in the treasury when there was no free cash available to meet such appropriation. For example, at the annual town meeting of 1930 it was voted to take $20,000 from funds in the town treasury to apply on the appropria- tions voted at the meeting, although there was not free cash of this amount available at the time the vote was passed. As a result there was a revenue deficit on October 2, 1930, of $5,940.74, as shown by the balance sheet appended to this report.
It was found that abatements have been granted on the levy of 1925 of $299.22 in excess of the overlay for that year. This amount should be raised by the assessors in accordance with the provisions of Section 23, Chapter 59, General Laws.
As was the case at the time of the previous audit, appar- ently no record has been kept of the condition of the overlay accounts, which should be done in order that the latter part of Section 25, Chapter 59, General Laws may be complied with.
The books and accounts of the tax collector were examined and checked in detail. The commitments were reconciled with the assessors' warrants, the recorded collections were verified by a comparison with the treasurer's books and by an actual count of the cash on hand, the abatements were checked with the assessors' records of abatements granted, and the outstanding accounts were listed and reconciled.
The outstanding accounts were further verified by mailing notices to a number of persons whose names appeared on the books as owing money to the Town, and from the replies received it appears that the accounts, as listed, are correct.
The town clerk's records of receipts from dog and sport- ing licenses issued for the county and the State, respectively,
62
were examined, and the payments to the county and State were verified by th receipts on file.
The books and accounts of the treasurer of the library trustees were examined and checked, the cash book being footed and the cash balance verified. It was again found that the receipted vouchers had been destroyed at the end of the year, and it was therefore impossible to verify the expendi- tures for the year 1929 from this source. I would therefore again recommend that all payments from the appropriation voted by the town be made through the town treasury upon warrant or order approved by the selectmen, and that the original vouchers be retained for all payments made by the treasurer of the trustees from the income from trust funds.
The accounts of the water department covering charges for water rates, etc., were examined and checked, the receipts were verified by a comparison with the treasurer's books, and the outstanding accounts were listed : In order to do this it was necessary to analyze each card covering a particular service. The collector keeps the card records of services, and each year charges each customer the same amount as the previous year unless advised otherwise. No records were available in the water department to verify the total amount of the commitment. The cards should be kept by the water department and a detailed list of the various charges should be committed to the collector. When it is found necessary to abate a charge, a statement relative to the abatement should be given to the collector and a record kept in the de- partment.
It was also noted that no appropriations have been voted for the water department as required by Section 2, Chapter 396, Acts of 1928.
At the present time there are a large number of outstand- ing accounts in the water department which are over a year old,- in some cases running back for several years. A de- termined effort should be made to collect these accounts
63
wherever it is possible to do so. Sections 42, A, B, C, D, E and F, Chapter 40, General Laws, were accepted at the town meeting of March 7, 1925, and these sections provide the Town with methods sufficient to collect these outstanding accounts after the necessary conditions have been complied with. Nothing appears to have been done, however, up to the present time to enforce collections, but as the Town has, as stated, accepted these sections, it would appear to be ob- ligatory on the part of the water commissioners to carry out the vote of the Town.
The securities representing the investments of the water sinking funds were personally examined, the income was proved, and the funds of the various securities were found to be as recorded. It was not possible, however, to verify the cash in this fund, as it was included with funds belonging to the banking concern with which one of the commissioners is connected.
The securities representing the investments of the trust funds belonging to the Town were also examined, the in- come was proved, and the disbursements were verified wherever possible. It was not possible to verify the cash in most of these funds held by the commissioners of trust funds, as it was included with funds belonging to the bank- ing concern with which one of the commissioners is con- nected.
In the report of the previous audit attention was called to the fact that a number of the securities in which the funds were invested were not legal investments for such funds .. These securities, however, have not been changed, a large number of them being securities which are not legal invest- ments for savings banks, as required by Section 54, Chapter 44, General Laws, which reads as follows:
Trust funds, including cemetery perpetual care funds, unless otherwise provided or directed by the donor
64
thereof, shall be placed at interest in savings banks, trust companies incorporated under the laws of the com- monwealth, or national banks, or invested by cities and towns in securities which are legal investments for sav- ings banks.
The securities of the trust funds are deposited at the office of the banking concern with which a member of the commis- sioners is connected, and it recommended that the securities be placed in the custody of the town treasurer as required by Section 46, Chapter 41, General Laws.
It is recommended that the treasurer of the sinking funds and the town treasurer, as treasurer of the trust funds, be bonded as required by Sections 44 and 46, Chapter 41, Gen- eral Laws.
In addition to the departments and accounts mentioned, the records (where they were available) of all other depart- ments receiving money for the Town were examined and verified.
The surety bonds of the tax collector and treasurer were examined and found to be in proper form.
Attention is again called to Section 13, Chapter 41, Gen- eral Laws, which requires that the town clerk shall give bond for the faithful performance of his duties.
Appended to this report are tables showing a reconcilia- tion of the treasurer's cash, summaries of the tax accounts and the trust and sinking fund transactions, together with a balance sheet showing the financial condition of the Town as of October 2, 1930.
For the courtesies extended and the assistance rendered during the process of the audit by the various town officials,
.
65
I wish, on behalf of my assistants and for myself, to ex- press appreciation.
Respectfully submitted, EDW. H. FENTON, Chief Accountant.
C. LEE TODD ROBERT D. DONALDSON HERBERT G. FARRAR
Selectmen.
4
66
REPORT OF SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON MATTERS PERTAINING TO THE LINCOLN SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL HOUSE ACCOMMODATIONS
The vote of the Town authorizing this Committee requests a report as to the housing needs of the Public Schools of the Town and obviously implies that not only the present needs should be considered but that those of the near future should also be outlined as far as possible. Your Committee felt that to arrive at conclusions it was necessary for them to familiarize themselves with modern educational methods and trends. They have also thought it necessary to compare the facilities and methods in vogue here in Lincoln with those in other similar communities in this state and else- where. They have recognized that our country is committed to Universal Education which beyond question means that it is incumbent upon each and every Community to provide the best that it can afford with an equal opportunity for all, rich or poor. Depending on the success of these provisions rests the type and character of the future citizenry of the country. The inferred responsibility is an equal one for each citizen of the Town whether a parent or not. After studying the various phases of the question and coming to certain seemingly logical conclusions themselves, they further en- gaged an outsider, an expert in just such things and whose viewpoint was entirely unbiased, to come in and make a similar study and give them the benefit of his study. Be- cause all our conclusions so nearly coincide, it seems proper to give them to the Town as the result of our survey.
Inasmuch as many of the citizens of the Town may not be familiar with the physical aspects of the School system as it exists today, it seems wise to outline them briefly.
67
The Town maintains two schoolhouses :- the two-room wooden school in the south part of the Town which is over 38 years old and which houses grades 1 and 2; and the more modern brick school in the Centre which is 21 years old and houses grades 3 to 9 inclusive. The three upper grades or Senior High school pupils are sent out of Town to school; either to Concord or Waltham and occasionally to other Towns. Those who wish vocational training go to the spe- cial schools provided for this in Waltham, Boston, or New- ton. The Centre and South are approximately 11/2 miles apart; the Centre School being situated at about the geo- graphical center of the Town.
Last year there were 52 pupils in the South School ; 176 in the Centre School and 46 attended High School out of Town. Of these latter only 5 attended vocational school.
The teaching staff consists of a superintendent, and 9 full time teachers, and two part time teachers in manual training and music. The morale of the teaching staff is excellent, and the average capability from Superintendent down seems high for towns of our size. The salaries seem to be reason- ably sufficient to attract capable teachers of the right type, and the yearly turnover is not excessive. All teachers are of Normal School or College grade.
Approximately 76% of the pupils are transported to and from school, the cost last year for which was $5,162.00. This is about the average yearly cost for the last ten years.
The Town pays tuition for the Senior High school pupils at the annual rate of $125.00 per pupil in Concord, and $100.00 in Waltham. $5,978.43 was paid for tuition alone last year and in addition $2,252.70 was paid for the transportation of High school pupils ; this latter sum was repaid by the State. The Town is also reimbursed for one-half the tuition of vo- cational school students.
There is an individual class room for each grade and no grade has more than 36 pupils thus allowing for much more
68
individual work than is usual in some schools. No kinder- garten is maintained.
We are committed to the so-called 6-3-3 plan which means in substance 6 years elementary, 3 years Junior High, and 3 years Senior High. This is in contrast to the old and fast becoming obsolete 8-4 system, i.e., 8 years Grammar school and 4 years High school. At the present time over 50% of the school children of this State have the advantage of Junior High system and each year the number is increasing. Progressive educators, while not unanimous, in the majority believe this the proper system.
With this necessarily brief description of our school sys- tem in mind, let us consider those things which seem to be in need of correction as far as the Committee can judge from criticisms overheard and from their own studies. No at- tempt is made to enumerate these in such an order as might aim to accentuate their relative importance.
We first call attention to certain conditions existing in the Centre School and their relation to a modern system of edu- cation. This school was built and equipped 21 years ago when the needs of the Town were much less than at present. Six good class rooms were provided, and also a superintend- ent's or principal's office, a teachers' room, a small room on the second floor for domestic science, and two basement rooms for playrooms. Seven grades are now housed in a building originally planned for six ; the playrooms have been utilized for manual training and cooking and the teachers' room has become a combination teachers', nurse's, emer- gency, and clinic room. The extra class has been for several years temporarily housed in the small room located on the second floor originally designed to be used as a domestic science room and which is inadequately lighted and venti- lated for use of more than fifteen pupils.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.