Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-09-16

swamp land fund, for the purpose of ascer-
thinning the true condition Of this fund, and by
SO doing we have called out long report, or
apology, from the County Judge, which
appeared in yesterdays Journal
We said that "those most interested knew
but little about the mattcr-viz.: the dispo-
sition of the swamp land fund--and could not
get the desired information from any public
report made BY the County Judge or Treas
urcr." To this the County Judge replies:
This assertion is incorrect, unless those
most interested are unable to read the Journal
print, for, in my annual report, published in
the Daily and Weekly Journal and Demo
cratic Enquirer, July, 1858, made fun
and complete exhibit of the condition of the
swamp land fund of this county something
neither of my predecessors had DONE This
exhibit showed the amount received to the
date Of my report, the amount paid out, and
the amount in tire hands of the Treasurer"
Now, let us see if this is true In the
report Of the County Judge, made July, 1868,
we find the first report ever made of the con.
dition of the swamp land fund. Here it is:
SWAMP LANDS.
Receipts on sale Of lands, for which deeds
hava been executed, q, 450. 90
Expenditures pd. Of Co. fund, $sl5lS
Expenses incurred previoa. to
August Is, 1857, 6l7.29
Expenses incurred subsequent
to August Is, 1857, 1885 l,00770
Total swa.np land fund in Treasury, $2s52 50
This is the public exhibit to which the
County Judge refers, and which he says
shows the condition Of the swamp land fund
to that date. The only receipts are for lands
for which deeds have been executed. Now
according to this public erhi6it, on the lst of
July, 1853, there was in the treasury, from
this one source alone, after paying all claims
presented up to that time, $2,352.30.
Does the County Judge mean to convey the
idea, by that public exhibit, that no money
was received from any lands except those for
which deeds were made? If so, we think he
is mistaken. If We are not in error, money
to considerable amount was paid to the
County Judge, or Treasurer, on lands for
which the purchasers only received certifi-
Gates Of purchase, or contracts for deeds at
future time; yet this money was in the hands
Of the county officers, and part of the swamp
land fund. But let US connect this report
with the statement made in yesterdays
Journal of the condition of the fund up to
July LIST, 1853, and VIC will see that, when
the present Treasurer went into Office, he
received from his predecessor about 81 900,
or the amount the fund was indebted, and,
during the first ten months Of his adminstra-
ton, he received, according to these reports,
about $3.50 more; and, according to the
report of the County Judge, made July 1st,
1859, the swamp land fund on hand, after
paying claims, amounts to S., 440.66 cents.
Of this balance, which he says is left after
paying the debts contracted by Meason, former
Judge, and by himself, he says he has loaned
to Mr.. Hoyt, Lcvee Commissioner, for the use
Of the levee, 81 900; to Kincaid, for the same
purpose, 5000; and to VIM. II. Miller, for
the same purpose, $3.50; and that the interest
on this amount will be due in january, 1860;
that it will then be paid and credited to the
swamp land fund. But how much interest
will be due, or from what time the loan dates,
this public exhibit does not tell us. Nor does
it tell US why this swamp land fund, designed
for the purpose Of building levees and drains
to reclaim these swamp lands, must be kept
SO snugly and securely in the county Golfers
that the Commissioner elected to build these
leyees and drains can only get the use Of it
by borrowing it trtm the County Judge.
There may be reason for this, and, if so, we
would like to know what it is.
Again, this public exhibit does not tell US
how much money was received from persons
purchasing said lands, over and above the
contract price, being the amount of eight cents
per acre, 1--WE think, which was levied by the
County Judge for the express purpose of
paying the expense Of the suit at Desmoincs,
for which the fund was indebted to attornies
and witnesses.
This public exhibit does not tell at what
time any of the loans referred to were made,
but we can infer that some of them were not
made until after the April election, for the
Drainage Commissioner was elected at that
time. Perhaps the money loaned to the
county may have been loaned before that time
perhaps after. Most likely, it was loaned
at divers times, as the county demanded it,
and it will be paid back in the same way, thus
keeping the amount, or nearly all of it, in the
hands of the county officers all the time, and
there it will remain, for the reason given by
the County Judge, viz. the uncertainty of
getting it back, should it be wanted for the
purpose Of building levees or drains, and the
uncertainty of collecting it, when wanted,
though secured by mortgage on real estate,
will always keep from 81, 900 to So, 900 in the
hands of the county officers, which is per-
mitted to remain in the county vaults, without
drawing one cent for the county or for the
swamp land fund.-
We may recur to this report again, but for
the present will leave it, after noticing an
assertion made by the County Judge, which
we say is not true. He says, ''The spirit and
the letter of the law has been complied with,
even to the most minute particular" The
law reads as follows, viz:
"The County Judges and Treasurers shall
have power, jointly, and it is hereby rendered
their duty, in all cases where the same can be
done without injury to the work of retaining
said land, to loan any swamp land funds that
may be in their several treasures, at ten per
cent. interest, on approved real estate security,
for such times rs they may deem advisable,
and the County Judges and Treasurers shall
make semi-annual and separate public exhibits
of the condition of the swamp land fund,
showing the amounts received, the amounts