Town annual reports of the several departments for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1856-1861, Part 48

Author: Worcester (Mass.)
Publication date: 1856
Publisher: The City
Number of Pages: 940

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester > Town annual reports of the several departments for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1856-1861 > Part 48

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1859.

MAYOR, Alexander H. Bullock.

COMMON COUNCIL.

PRESIDENT,

John W. Wetherell.

Ward 3, Lyman Brown, James E. Estabrook, Walter Henry.

ALDERMEN,

Alexander Thayer, Joshua M. C. Armsby, Jonas Bartlett, Pliny Holbrook, Isaac Goddard, Lorin Coes, D. Waldo Lincoln,

Ward 1, Ward 4, Timothy W. Hammond, Charles B. Pratt, Henry P. Nichols, Ransom M. Gould.

William Adams, Appleton Dadmun.

Ward 5,

David S. Messinger.

Ward 2. Lucius W. Pond, A. B. R. Sprague, John Barnard.

John Simmons, Henry Murray, Samuel V. Stone.

Ward 6, Edwin Draper, George S. Barton, Dana H. Fitch. Ward 7, Edwin Morse, Aury G. Cocs, Samuel R. Heywood. Ward 8, John W. Wetherell, George A.Chamberlain, William Greenleaf. CLERK, William A. Smith.

CITY CLERK, Samuel Smith.

COMMON COUNCIL.

PRESIDENT, Elijah B. Stoddard.

Ward 1, Charles H. Ballard, T. W. Hammond, Il F. C. Bigelow.

Ward 5,

CITY CLERK, Samuel Smith.

COMMON COUNCIL.

Ward 3,

PRESIDENT, George M. Rice.

Jason Temple, Henry D. Stone,

Calvin E. Pratt.

Ward 4,

Charles B. Pratt, Rufus O. Williams,

CITY CLERK, Samuel Smith.

Oran A. Kelley, Ransom M. Gould,|| Daniel Tainter.

Ward 3, Samuel C. Richards, Jolın S. Gustin, Lyman Brown.

* Resigned, Edward Lamb elected. t Declined, James H. Wall elected. # Resigned, Henry

Earl elected. || Not filled. 6 Resigned, Jonas Bartlett elected. 1 Ransom M. Gould elected.

** Resigned, Pardon W. Aldrich elected.

159

1860.

MAYOR, William W. Rice.

ALDERMEN, Alexander Thayer, Albert Tolman, Asa L. Burbank, Francis Harrington, Isaac Goddard, Edwin Draper, Samuel R. Heywood, David S. Messinger.

CITY CLERK, Samuel Smith.

COMMON COUNCIL.

Ward 3,

Ward 6,

PRESIDENT,

Lyman Brown,

Henry Goddard,

Joseph H. Walker.

Dennis G. Temple.

John W. Jordan.

Ward 1,

Ward 4,

Ward 7, Joseph H. Walker,

Henry B. Hakes,

Moses Taft,

Aaron G. Walker,

Gerry Valentine,

Charles B. Pratt,

Aury G. Coes.

Samuel E. Staples.

Charles S. Childs.

Ward 8,

Richard Ball,

Ward 2,

Ward 5,

Simeon Clapp,

Elbridge Boyden,

Eph'm F. Chamberlain.

Charles F. Washburn,

George Crompton.

CLERK,

William A. Smith.

George R. Peckham, A. B. R. Sprague, Edwin A. Muzzy.

James E. Estabrook,

Dana H. Fitch,

City Document Ho. Sixteen.

INAUGURAL ADDRESS · OF

HON. P. EMORY ALDRICH,

MAYOR OF THE CITY OF WORCESTER,

JANUARY 6, 1862,

WITHI THE

ANNUAL REPORTS

OF THE SEVERAL

CITY OFFICERS,

FOR THE

MUNICIPAL YEAR ENDING JANUARY 6, 1862.

WORCESTER : PRINTED BY CHAS. HAMILTON, PALLADIUM OFFICE.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

The Mayor's Inaugural Address,

Mayor Davis's Valedictory Address, ..

Report of the School Committee,

List of School Teachers, with their Salaries,

Report of the City Treasurer, ..

Account of Receipts and Expenditures,

Schedule of the City Property, ..

129

Amount of City Debt, . . ..

134

Free Public Library Debt, ..

134

Salem Street School House Debt,

135

Quinsigamond Lake Causeway Debt,

135

War Debt, .. ..

. .

135

High School Medal Fund, .. .. ..

135

Report of the Commissioners of Hope Cemetery,

136

Report of Directors of Free Public Library,

141

Report of Commissioner of Highways, ..

154

Report of the Chief Engineer, .. ..

156

Report of the Aqueduct Commissioner, ..

159

Report of the Overseers of the Poor, ..

161

Report of the City Marshal, . .

170

Government and Officers of the City of Worcester,

.. 176

Members of the City Council from 1848 to 1861, ..

.. 184

CLAIMS AGAINST THE CITY.

TREASURER'S OFFICE, CITY OF WORCESTER, APRIL, 1862. TO PERSONS HAVING CLAIMS AGAINST THE CITY.

Bills presented for the action of the Auditor of Accounts, must specify what the article or articles sold were for - when for labor, where it was performed, number of days and price per day, unless otherwise agreed upon. When there are charges belonging to different departments, separate bills must be made, including only charges belonging to each department.

IF ALL BILLS MUST SPECIFY THE DATE OF THE SEVERAL CHARGES.

Claimants should carefully note the name of the person who orders the article or service, and should inquire to what department the charge shall be made, and should also know that the person is duly authorized to make contracts. Unless this is done, the claimant will be put to the trouble of making out his account the second time, and run the risk of losing it.

When bills are certified to, as per Chapter 3, Revised Ordinances (below), they can be left at the Treasurer's or Auditor's Office, before 2 o'clock, P. M., on or before the THIRD DAY of each month, except bills at the close of the year, which must be left on or before December 25th.

Those who attend to the above, will find their bills audited and ready at the Treasurer's Office, who will pay them promptly at the times designated below.

TIMES OF PAYMENT.

Salaries of the City Officers, and Teachers in the permanent Schools, on the first day of each quarter.

Families of Volunteers, on the fourth day of each month.

Salaries of Watchmen, on the first day of each month.

Salaries of Firemen, on the 15th day of May.

All other bills on the 10th of each month.

When the above days come on Sundays, payment will be made the next day.

IG And persons having claims are requested to call promptly for their money ON THE DAY DESIGNATED.

GEORGE W. WHEELER, City Treasurer. Treasurer's Office in City Hall Building.

PARTICULAR NOTICE.

AUDITOR'S OFFICE, April, 1862.

All persons having claims against the City, are hereby reminded, that agreeably to an estab s';ed rule, all bills, in order that they may be ready for payment on the 10th, must be left with the Treasurer or Auditor, on or before the THIRD day of each month, except the closing bills of the year, which must be left on or before Decem- ber 25th, before 2 o'clock, P. M. Those who fail to comply with this rule, will have to wait till the following month before their bills will be ready for payment.

CHAPTER 3, REVISED ORDINANCES. AUDITOR.

" SECTION 2. No account or Claim against the City, other than judgments of the Judicial Courts, shall be received or acted upon by him unless such account or claim shall be accompanied by a certificate of the Mayor, Committee, or other proper Certifying Officer of each department authorized on behalf of the City to make the contract or cause the expenditure to be made, that the same is correct."

GILL VALENTINE, Auditor.

Office No. 3 Piper's Block.

INAUGURAL ADDRESS.

GENTLEMEN OF THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN,

AND OF THE COMMON COUNCIL :

No thoughtful man and loyal citizen can, at this event- ful period in the history of our country, enter upon the administration of any portion of public affairs, in however humble a sphere, without a feeling of deep solicitude.

Fifteen months ago profound peace and general pros- perity prevailed throughout the Republic, to-day war is flagrant, raging along the entire border marking the boun- dary between the loyal and disloyal states ; and not less, perhaps, than a million of men called from the peaceful pursuits of commerce, agriculture, and the mechanic arts, are now arrayed in hostile hosts against each other, pre- pared or preparing to settle by the stern arbitrament of the sword, questions which we had too confidently hoped would have resolved themselves in the peaceful and nat- ural progress of our Republic, in its onward march to greatness and supremacy among the nations of the earth.

This great and disastrous change has brought with it the long train of evils inevitably and always attendant upon the withdrawal of large masses of men from the pro- ductive pursuits of peaceful industry to the destructive arts of war.

But the power of the government and the patriotism of the people have so far proved quite equal to the great

emergency, and it is not to be doubted that they will con- tinue to rise with every new demand for men and money, until this most unnatural and wicked rebellion shall be driven from the fair fields of the Union, and that this gov- ernment, then free in fact as in name, and which at once inspires the admiration and hopes of the masses of man- kind and the envy and hatred of the few who indulge the vain belief that they are born to rule and domineer over the many, shall rise to greater heights of prosperity and renown than it has ever before known.

This dread ordeal through which we are now passing has imposed and will continue to impose upon the general government, upon the several states, and upon all towns and cities, heavy losses, and a burden of taxation to which Americans have hitherto happily been strangers.

It therefore becomes all, and especially all who are in any way called to the administration of public affairs, to practice the strictest economy in the present, and to pro- vide wisely and well for the future ; for when once there is an appeal from law to arms, from reason to force, it be- comes impossible to foresee what a year, a month, or even a day, may bring forth.

Our own City, in common with the whole country, has experienced the bad effects of this change from a state of peace to a state of war. Our fellow citizens, in large numbers, have been called, or rather have voluntarily gone forth to the defence of the government and constitution, formed by good and patriotic men and which bad men and traitors are seeking to subvert, and thus withdrawn from us some portion of the productive energy and enterprise which were contributing to the growth and prosperity of the City. Loss of property, bankruptcies, stagnation in business, and an almost or quite total suspension of some of the branches of industry which have heretofore tended

largely to secure individual prosperity and promote the general welfare of this community, are some of the fruits of this disastrous change.

Still, neither the courage nor the patriotism of our citi- zens has failed, and after the first rude shock of arms left time for reflection, men of enterprise, contemplating the altered condition of affairs, directed their energies into new channels of industry, and there is already a marked revival in the business of the City. An abundance of all the necessary comforts of life has crowned the year that has just closed, and there has been comparatively little suffering, apart from the causes already enumerated, be- yond that which seems almost necessarily incident to the present imperfectly developed condition of human society. No wasting diseases have been extensively prevalent in our midst, but good health rather has been our happy lot. Our public schools, public charities, and all our public institutions have encountered no serious interruption, but have been carried forward with characteristic energy, be- nevolence and success, and, notwithstanding the great uncertainty that hangs over the immediate future and the threatening aspect of our national affairs, a general cheer- fulness and hopefulness pervades our community.

We shall undoubtedly be required to contribute much more largely than ever before to the support of the gen- eral government ; and state and municipal taxes may range higher than they have for many years past, if not higher than ever since our government was first founded. The most careful and strict economy should therefore be prac- ticed in all appropriations and expenditures of the public money.

It is under these circumstances, Gentlemen of the City Council, that we have been selected by the free suffrages of our fellow citizens to administer for them, not for our-

selves, their municipal affairs during the current year. And we are now assembled in this hall for the purpose of completing the usual and necessary organization of the municipal government, and having complied with the pre- scribed forms of law, to enter at once upon the discharge of our public duties. The sphere of these duties is not large, but a proper performance of them is intimately con- nected with the welfare of those whom we are called upon to serve ; they may at times be irksome and perplexing, but having been undertaken by us they should be discharged with entire fidelity and with sole reference to the public good. Happily for us, these duties are all defined and regulated by the general statutes of the commonwealth, or by the city ordinances. We have severally solemnly sworn faithfully and impartially to perform the duties that belong to our several stations, and I know of no better or safer rule for the conduct of a public officer than first to make himself thoroughly acquainted with the obligations he has assumed, and then firmly and dispassionately dis- charge them, without fear or favor, and without the hope of any higher reward than the approval of his own con- science and the approbation of loyal and law-abiding citi- zens. We have not been elected, that I am aware of, upon any one particular issue, but it is quite certain that our fellow citizens will rightfully expect that our execution of the trusts committed to us will be as comprehensive as the oaths we have taken and the laws and ordinances pre- scribing our duties.

Among the objects that will claim our attention are our public schools, the glory of a free state, -the highways and streets, which are correctly regarded as furnishing sure indications of the progress and cultivation of a community, -the shade trees which line nearly all our principal streets and add greatly to the beauty and comfort of the

City,- the public grounds, which will be more used and valued when these valleys and hills shall be filled and crowned with a busy population of a hundred thousand, - the poor who, from whatever cause, have ceased to be able to provide for themselves, - the public library, whose principal founder still lives among us and is anually adding to his original munificent gift, and whose name will be held in honored and grateful remembrance until the love of reading shall cease to be one of the purest sources of enjoyment and the light of science become extinct. The families of the gallant men who have gone from our midst to uphold and protect all that makes homes and life here desirable, must be liberally provided for ; and if more needs to be done by us to add to the comfort and efficiency of our soldiers in the field, or for the sick and wounded of our own men, we must not with an illiberal hand withhold the needed assistance.

All causes injuriously affecting the public health or morals, or tending to the disturbance of the peace, and all common nuisances, should be abated, so far as that can be done by a reasonable execution of law. There is a large class of evils, not to say vices, lying quite beyond the sphere of municipal law, and wholly within the pro- vince of morals, with which we as public officers can have nothing to do, and perhaps the success of a municipal administration depends, as much as upon any one cause, upon the clear comprehension and recognition of the true limit, beyond which the operation of positive law cannot be properly carried, and beyond which moral and religious influences alone must be depended upon to correct abuses ; though there is another principle quite essential to suc- cess, and one quite too often forgotten by men in places of power and influence, and that is, that although the sphere of law does not embrace the whole field of morals, yet

moral obligation does extend over the whole sphere of law, and that in fact all right government and laws spring from and rest upon some moral principle, and that, there- fore, a public officer does not cease to be a moral, because he has become a public, agent.

But not to detain you longer with these general obser- vations, I will hasten to perform the duty incumbent on me at this hour, and lay before you such information re- lating to the different departments of the City Government as I have been able to collect.

FINANCES.

The City Debt proper, as I learn from the Treasurer, was, on the first instant, nearly or quite $90,719 40

Public Library Debt, .. .. 14,500 00

Quinsigamond Lake Causeway Debt, .. 5,600 00

School House, Salem Street, .. .. 4,500 00

Military or War Debt, .. .. 14,435 98

Total, .. .. .. $129,755 38

Some of these amounts may vary slightly from the actual condition of the debt on the first of January, 1862. Different portions of this debt, it will be seen, are desig- nated by different names, but the whole is in reality a debt of the City, and which the tax payers will at some time be required to pay. It has been the policy, undoubtedly a wise one, of every administration since the first organi- zation of the City Government, to diminish rather than to increase this debt, but notwithstanding, the debt has been but inconsiderably reduced at times, and is now very much increased.

January 7, 1861, it was .. .. $102,533 95

This does not include $8,000 of Public Library Scrip,

authorized to be issued in 1860, but not actually negoti- ated till 1861.

The total indebtedness of the City, January 6, 1862, was .. .. $129,755 38

Showing an increase during the year, including the $8,000 of Library Scrip, of .. .. $27,221 43

Of the $14,500 called the War debt, about $8,500 has been paid to the families of those of our citizens who now are, or have been, in the military service of the United States. Most of this last named sum it is believed will, according to the provisions of existing laws, be refunded by the State. Whether the entire amount will be repaid I am unable to say, but if the State authorities construe the law with the same generous regard for the rights of the soldiers as the committee here have done, who have had charge of the disbursement of this fund, a very large proportion of the whole sum paid out will be refunded. It would seem that the legislature, in passing a law authorizing the pay- ment of money by towns and cities, to the families of soldiers, did not intend to enact a pauper law, but to offer a bounty to the patriotic citizen who should volunteer in the service of his country. If our predecessors have not already taken the necessary measures to secure the pay- ment of this sum of money from the State, the subject should claim your early attention.

Of the whole amount of the City's indebtedness, the following sums are to be provided for the present year :

$13,000 due June 1, 1862,

1,604 due July 17, 1862, 4,000, Library debt, due December 1, 1862.

There are also about $28,000 due on demand notes, which will be called for during the year, - making in all to be provided for, the sum of .. $46,604 00

Cash in the Treasury at the commencement of the fiscal year 1861, .. ..

.. $6,441 02

At the commencement of the present fiscal

year, .. ..

.. .. 5,712 55

The following table exhibits the amount of taxes, the valuation of estates, and the City debt proper, for each of the years named :

YEAR.

TAXES.

CITY DEBT.

1858

$123,776 55

VALUATION. $16,385,600

$100,188 80

1859

126,391 00

16,816,400

99,533 95

1860

140,745 70

16,406,900

94,533 95

1861

139,212 30

16,230,600

90,719 40

The whole indebtedness of the City being, as already stated, $102,533.95 in 1860, and $129,755.38 in 1861.

This statement shows how very difficult it is, even under the management of the most careful and skillful in finan- cial matters, to control and keep down the public debt ; for while the taxation of the last two years was much above what it was the two years next preceding, the debt was largely increased in both the last two years. For although the City debt, as it is called, was reduced $5,000 in 1860, a public debt under another name, to wit, the Library debt of $8,000, was created, which resulted in a net increase of the whole debt to the amount of $3,000; and in 1861, as has already been shown, the increase was $27,221.43. And this has occurred notwithstanding the very confident prediction, made at the beginning of the last year, that all the ordinary expenses of the City could be provided for without increasing the rate of taxation, and have $25,000 or $30,000 to apply for extraordinary expenses or liquida- tion of the City debt.

The extraordinary expenses, as they are called, of the

last year, remain unpaid to a large amount, and the City debt is not materially diminished. I make these observa- tions with no view to unfriendly criticism upon the acts of our predecessors, for if they have increased the public debt, they show substantial reasons for it. A library build- ing, a school house, a new highway, the supplying to the families of the soldiers in some measure what they lose by their absence, are all legitimate objects for which to expend the public money. And I have only alluded to the subject in this connection for the purpose of showing that the debt is much more likely to be increased than lessened, and for the further purpose of inquiring whether it would not be wiser to raise the rate of taxation a trifle, and thus have the money to pay as we go, rather than run the risk of continually augmenting a debt for posterity to liquidate. The expense of building a school house, the construction of a new highway or street, the increase in our proportion of the county or state tax, can hardly with propriety be treated as extraordinary expenses, for in a growing com- munity like ours, increasing in wealth and population, some or all of these things are of almost annual occur- rence, and should, if known, or to be reasonbly antici- pated, before the assessment of taxes, be provided for each year, unless special reasons exist against it.

There remains uncollected, of the taxes of 1861, between $7,500 and $8,000, of which the collector thinks $4,500 may yet be collected. Several important improvements in the highways within the limits of the City were ordered by the County Commissioners during the last year, all of which are required to be completed the present year, and will involve the necessity of heavy expenditures. One of these improvements has been commenced and a portion of the work done, but no part of the expense has been paid ex- cept by borrowing in anticipation of future taxation.

Under this state of facts, and in view of the heavy demands likely to be made upon the tax payers of the City from the sources I have alluded to, all will agree that our appropria- tions should be limited to objects imperatively demanded by the public exigencies. But should it be found necessary to erect a new school house, or repair an old one, it would seem to be the part of sound policy to provide the means of paying therefor, not by the easy expedient of bor- rowing, but by taxation. Expenditures will then be more likely to be limited to necessary objects.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

It is highly gratifying to know that our public schools, under the judicious management of the accomplished Superintendent, aided by an able and faithful corps of teachers, are illustrating the full benefits of popular edu- cation.

I learn from the Superintendent that there are now in the Centre District twelve school houses, including the one erected on Salem street last year.

These twelve school houses are furnished with seats for 3,349 pupils.

In the suburbs there are twelve houses, furnished with seats for 587 pupils.

All the houses in the centre district are in good condi- tion, except that several rooms in the Sycamore street house must be enlarged. All the houses in the suburban districts are reported to be in good condition, except the one in the North Pond district, which should be extensively repaired, or replaced by a new one. The condition of the school house in this district has been, as I am inform- ed, the subject of complaint on the part of the inhabitants of the district for some time, and the complaints seem to be well founded. I would therefore recommend early

attention to this subject, and that all needed and reasona- ble improvements for the accommodation of the scholars of the district be promptly made.

It seems to me that liberal appropriations and pro- visions should be made for all the schools distant from the centre, and in the more sparsely settled portions of the city, so that the scholars in these districts shall, although few in number, enjoy, to the fullest extent their situation will allow, the benefits of our excellent school system.

The whole number of schools is

.. 60

teachers, .. .. 66

pupils registered in 1861, 5,495

in Centre district, 4,816

suburban districts, .. 679

The average number belonging to the schools during the year, that is, so connected with the schools that seats are appropriated to them when the number of seats is enough to give one seat to each pupil, is .. 3,966

In the Centre district, .. 3,554

66 suburban districts, .. 569

Comparing the number of seats in the Centre district with the average number of pupils, it is found that the number of pupils exceeds the number of seats by 205 ; while in the other districts the number of seats exceeds the number of pupils by 18.

The average daily attendance in the Centre district during the year 1861 was .. .. .. 3,077

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Town annual reports of the several departments for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1856-1861, Part 48

Author: Worcester (Mass.) Publication date: 1856 Publisher: The City Number of Pages: 940

Author: Worcester (Mass.)
Publication date: 1856
Publisher: The City
Number of Pages: 940