The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1847-06-25

/ ", anu " men you CONE into II ana hav,
business with the county officers. yo,
have 10 look for them every where. an,
why! Because we canuot afford 10 pa,
them suilicirn, to allow a man to remau
in his office and attend tn his duties. II,
must be engaged in something else.
/ In case of the reduction of the nunber
! at representatives., what would small
cou ties do! Small counties have to paw
almost as much taxes for officers as large
ones. Small counties would be entirely
cat or in representation in die L'gisla.
tire, and the People of them could not
he sued. Every session there are peu-
tons for new counties. and the People
money sqaander"t in l,gi,laliug upon
them.
MI. Davis Of Montgomery SAID, tia,
he hoped this subject would be referred
again to the committee, or TO selrc, or
any other appropriate committee. What
scenes would be witnessed here every
wear. when ,hese petitions cone before
The Legislature ON this subject, asking
for new counties. Fly or sixty per-
sons came down here and hung round
he Legislature at every session, begging
and endeavorlng to carry trough some
me or other of these measures they
were round The committee on counties.
and aiiilavlIs upon atHdavis were spread
before them, with their petitions. Every
one knew how they were obtained, aud
10y what sort ut persons.
There was but llie difference between
the expenses of small counties and those
1T large ones, and the less number OF
counties. the less expense II would be to
The State
This was an evil which the People
were everywhere alive To, and he hoped
the Convention would put a stop TO it -
He hoped TIE provision requiring the
400 square S,es to the county would be
adopted. In ulne cases out of ten the
petitions for these new counties were
got up toy men looking for the county
Offices to be created or by men who
were anxious to have the county seat To-
Gated on their land, thereby increasing its
value. Indiana had provision Of this
Kind IN her constitution, and If he was
not mistaken, Missouri also had one -
No one there complains of it, and every
one admiTes the system. We already
had one hundred counties, and il would
he much better ii we had but sixty.
He hoped II would be adopted.
Mr.. DavIsof Mclean, agreed with the
gentleman last up. This was Of the
greatest iaterest to The People Of he re-
gion he came from, On no subject were
lhey more united than upon Iii: No
evil greater than this do the require this
Convention - correct.
Gentlemen cannot deny that great
evils grow out OF this system of creating
new counties every year. Indiana had
a provision against IT. Ohio. too, bad
one, and he believed the area was larger
IN those States than 400 miles. There,
every county is respectable, and there are
not those complaints about taxation.
The amount Of taxation in large couu-
Ties for county expenses, was less than in
smaller ones. Sangamon paid less than
Macon. These petitions were always
the work ofinterested persons. lie was
in favor Of a prohibition against new
counties being formed with the area less
Than 400 miles, and also that the county
from which it should be taken should not
he el, smaller than that. The attention
Of the People had been directed to this
question, and it was a serious one. By
adopting this, weeks Of legislation would
he saved. Since he had been in the State,
great amount of the time Of every lie.
gisIa,ure had been wasted upon this sub.
lecl. The Legislature that met 2 years
ago, performed browning act BY crea-
a,ing no new county, the first time any
hing Of the Mad had occurred. lie
moved the resolution he recommitled to
the committee with the following insiruc.
tons:
10 repor, provision, to be inserted
in the constitution, that no new county
shall be established by the General As.
semblv, which shall reduce the county ol
counties, or either Of them, from which
i, shall be taken, TO less contents thar
400 square miles !; nor shall any county
he laid off Of less contents. or any line
Of which shall pass within less than ter
miles Of any county seat already estab
| lished."
Mr.. Jenkins. The committee intend
ed to incorporate into some report, some
thing in relation to this matter, al another
time. lie had not said word about re-
ttenchmen,, though others had. Thf
| People do not expect us % rerench by
restraining them in their privileges. We
have no right 10 restrain them in peti
,ionng for new county when they deem
such necessary. We have no right tc
| bind them down to silence by saying
there shall be no new county unless i
contain an area of 400 miles. Gentle
men had said that the petitions for The
division of counties were always got W
| by men with interested or dishonest mo
lives. He admitted that this might oC