St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1860-02-16
St. Charles City, Iowa, Feb. Is, 1860,
DOingS at the Capitol.

VIM. Tucker, Esq, engrossing clerk
Of the House Of Representatives at
Des Moines, has our thanks for copy
IF bill by Mr.. Gillett for the rc-or.
ganization of counties and townships,
and bill by Senator Scott for a reg.
istry Of voters.
The bill for the reorganization of
counties and townships provides that
each organized county shall be body
polite and corporate, with such pow
ers and immunities as therein cstab-
lishcd. In each organized county
there shall be County Judges Sheriff,
a Clerk of District Court, Register
and Recorder of Deeds, and County
Treasurer said officers to bc chosen
by the electors thereof once in two
years. A Board Of Supervisors con
sisting of one from each civil town
ship, who shall hold their office two
years, and whose duty it shall be to
require all county officers to give such
security as they may deem sufficient
to purchase and hold real and personal
estate for the use of the county to
make all necessary contracts, to ex.
anime and settle accounts chargeablc
against such county, to audit the &C
counts of county officers, and of other
persons against their respective coun'
ties and townships, and to direct the
raising of such sums as may be nee.
cssary to defray the same. The Su-
pcrvisor, Town Clerk, Assessor, Col.
lector, Commissioner, and Justices of
the Peace, are to be chosen by ballot ;
the remainder by ballot, yeas and
nays, or division of electors, as they
may choose.
1t shall be the duty Of the Beard of
Supervisors, as often as t,cioe in each
year, to examine the accounts of the
Treasurer Of their county, and to as.
certain and enter upon the records a
full statement of such account. They
shall cause to be made out and pub
lished, semi-annually, Immediately af
ter their meetings, in at least one
newspaper, if there be one in the
county, if not, in some paper pub
lished nearest thereto, a report of the
receipts and expenditures, which shall
state the names Of all claimants, the
amount claimed, the amount allowed,
for what purpose rendered, and full
statement of the amounts of the Treas
urer's account on the last settlement,
-as on his balance sheet or account cur.
rent, in making the settlement.
The bill is quite lengthy. If il
should pass, it will be an improve
mcnt upon our present system, but We
think the machinery of it is too com
pick and cumbersome. The plan
spoken of in another column by Sena-
tor Drummond would be more simple
and less expensive. The people, how
ever, demand reform in the County
and town organization, and there is no
doubt that change of some sort will
be made. The difficulty is to har-
monize the conflicting views of the
different members of the General AS
sembly, and any law upon the subject
must necessarily be the result of a
compromise.
The bill for the registration of vo.
tiers makes the Township Trustees,
Township Clerk, and Township AS
SCISSOR Registry Board, and requires
that four weeks preceding each Gen
cral Election they shall meet for the
purpose of making list of the legal
voters of the township. They are al
SO to hold subsequent meetings, the
last of which shall be on Monday pre-
ceding each general election for the
purpose of perfecting the list.
The resumption by the State of the
land grant to the Iowa Central Air
Line Railroad Company is occupying
much of the attention of the General
The bill reported by a.
majority Of the Railroad Committee
in the House for the resumption of
these lands, has been referred to the
Committee, and to the At
torney General, for their opinion of
its practicability.
Our Representative, Bowdoin, seems
to have frequent tits with the world
renowned Judge Claggctt. On one
occasion, motion was made to add
Messrs. Williamson and Jennings to
the committee on Des Moines River
Improvement, which motion Judge
Claggett opposed.
Mr.. Reese said it was for the inter-
ests of the State that he made the
motion. The committee now was
taken from along the Des Moincs riv.
or, and the gentlemen proposed had
no direct interest in the affairs of the
company.
Mr.. Bowdoin said the opposition
made to the motion seemed to indi-
cate that all was not right. The gen.
tleman from Lee (Mr. Claggctt) was
in favor Of investigation upon other
affairs, and he hoped he would be con-
sistent.
Mr.. Claggett replied that it was a
most supplementary mode of pro-
ceeding. They proposed to take the
business out Of the Speakers hands.
1t showed some object in view. The
gentleman from Floyd (Mr. Bowdoin)
had made motion to add gentleman
to the committee ON Schools because
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