Hide Article Text (OCR)
Charged Dr. Houghtaling’s Chief Aide “Not Qualified’ Tax Money Needed to Balance Municipal Budget— R. F. C. Loan to City is Given Final U. K. Deputy Health Commissioner Ja cob H. Miller is to be investigated. The City Commission meeting, late Monday, authorized the Investigation which is to determine whether or not Miller, in charge of the inspection of food and dairies, is legally qualified to hold the office and if he is per forming his duties properly. The investigation will be made next week when Dr. F. M. Houghtaling, city and county health commissioner, will be called before the Commission to state the qualifications and answer questions of the work of his assis tant. Og . The move was made at the instiga tion of City Commissioner C. F. Mis chler assisted by Dr. William A. Ferry. Dr. Ferry stated that he did not believe that Mr. Miller was doing the proper work needed in safe guarding the city’s milk supply and expressed the opinion that a licensed veterinarian should be employed. Both Dr. Ferry and Commissioner Mischler asked the investigation to determine if the state law requires a licensed veterinarian to do the work. Both indicated that they believed Mr. Miller lacked these qualifications. Dr. Ferry is a licensed veterinarian and was formerly employed by the ety in much the same capacity as is Mr. Miller. Commissioner Mischler gave in stances where he said he felt that proper inspection was not being carried on. He said that recently he saw 2 cow 80 old she could not chew her food from whom he said milk was being sold. At other times he said that he had himself seen examples of milk sold in the ecity which didn’t appear fit for consumption, Dr. Ferry said that the only herd being inspected regularly was that of the Fitz Dairy Co. The Fitz Dairy Co. told him this, he stated. Others have not been visited by a veterinarian from the health department in a year, he stated. He said that the state had inspected all herds for tuberculosis but the state inspectors did not seek any disease other than tuberculosis. Often cattle in dairy herds have dis eases other than tuberculosis, he said. Commissioners indicated that they might have a state man visit the city for a conference with the Commission in regard to the matter. Mayor Ernie Siggens said that he was almost entirely in the dark as to just why Commissioner Mischler and Dr. Ferry were seeking the In quiry. Dr. Houghtaling was out of the city Monday. Previously he has stated to Commissioners that Miller was well qualified for his task. Dr. Houghtaling said that he had trained Mr. Miller personally and that he knew his business. Balances in two of the city’s funds and overdrafts in two making a total deficit of $9,695.53 for the city for the third quarter ending Sept. 30 were shown in a report made to the Com mission by C. F. Breining, city treas urer. City Manager C. Webb Sadler told the Commission that the city still had some tax money coming, which he in dicated would overbalance the deficit. Balances were shown in the street repair,and waterworks funds and overdrafts in the general and Oakland Cemetery funds. A deficit of $3,599.88 was shown for,the cemetery fund and $9,851.87 for the general fund.. The street repair fund showed.,a balance of $2,563.94 and the waterworks fund a balance of $1,191.78. A heavy reduction in disbursements for the department of safety amount to more than $26,000 over the corre sponding quarter of 1931 and more than $49,000 over the corresponding period in 1930,was shown. This de partment includes the police depart ment, traffic control, fire department, wiring inspection, sealer of weights and measures and workmen's com pensation. The total expenses of the department for the period were listed at $66,112.14 as compared to $80,769.43 for 1931 and $115,770.97 for 1930. The heaviest reduction in cost was shown in the fire department. The cost of maintaining the department for the quarter was $37,982.67 for 1932 as compared to $47,182.91 in 1931 and $74,761.39 in 1980. Disbursements from the street re pair fund showed a slight drop over the corresponding period in 1931 but were still higher than for the same period in 1930. They were $54,473.42 as compared to $53,096.63, In 1831 and $30,447.80 in the corresponding period for 1930. . The Oakland Cemetery fund has started with a deficit for the two quarters previous to this and will start a third consecutive quarter with a deficit, each time a little larger. At the beginning of the quarter just closed it started with a deficit of $2, 868.55 and the corresponding period in 1931 with a deficit of $681.18. In the third quarter of 1930 the fund showed a balance of $626.93. The waterworks fund started the third quarter of 1932 with a deficit of $4,634.62 but managed to come through with a balance this time of $1,191.78. Disbursements from the waterworks fund had dropped stead ily, however, since 1930. For the quarter just closed disbursements totaled $73,704.16 as compared to one for 1981 and $178,015.66 in A proposed ordinance to regulate the use of bright headlights and spotlights on automobiles in the city limits came before the Com mission Monday but failed of pas sage, although Commissioners in dicated that a revised ordinance dealing with the same subject mat ter would be acted upon later. The proposed ordinance provided that auto lights should be dimmed at night at a distance not less than 200 feet from an approaching auto. Within this distance the rays should not be visible more than three and one half feet above the surface of the street or highway and should remain so until the approaching car had passed. The proposed ordinance provided that it should be unlawful for any driver to use a spotlight when an other vehicle is in sight except when the rays should be projected directly on the ground at a distance of not exceeding 50 feet in front of the vehicle using the spotlight. It also should be kept to the right center of the street, it provided. Violations were to have been pun ished wih a fine of not more than $25 nor less than $10 for the first offense and not less than $26 for the second and not more than $100 .Formal ratification of an agree ment whereby the city will be enabled to borrow $77,000 from the Recon struction Finance Corporation for the construction of a city waterworks sludge basin was voted by the Com mission. The city agreed to sell $77,000 in dghee.to the Corporation to be repaid ‘within two years either by selling bonds to some other company at leas than five per cent or to the Corpora tion for five per cent interest. The money will become available imme dately.’ The city will secure $10,000 a month until the work is completed. Interest will not be paid on the money until the city has actually made re quisition for it. Thus for November the city will borrow $10,000. During November it will pay interest only on that $10,000 and not the $77,000. At the end of two months it will have secured another $10,000, aport which it will begin to pay interest. Each month it will repeat until it has used all of it, when it will pay interest on all of it. Manager Sadler said that he ex pected work on the sludge basin to go forward all winter. He said that steam from the waterworks kept the bay open at that point almost all winter, which would permit the set ting of cribs. When the bay does not permit setting cribs the men will be at work on cribs and quarrying stone, he said. A department of city welfare was created temporarily Monday by, the Commission, for the distribution of relief this winter. The ordinance creating the depart ment provided for a director be paid $1,500 a year and two assistants to be paid $75 a month. The director will be allowed six cents a mile for the use of an auto and the two assistants will be allowed monthly mileage for one car to be divided between two cars. The deprtment will care for all welfare cases within the city limits. Commissioners did not indicate who would be appointed city welfare di rector, but since the officials of the Associated Charities have been direct ing relief work it was assumed at the City Bulling that they would con tinue to direct activities In the new department.
Newspaper Details
Sandusky Star Journal
Sandusky, Ohio, US
Tue, Nov 01, 1932
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Brian B.
