The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1861-11-28
ADDISON p. RUSSELL, Sec'y of State.
THE COUNTY PRINTING.
Opinion of the Attorney General of Ohit


THE COUNTY PRINTING,
Opinion of the Attorney General of Ohio.
Some days since we applied to the Prose
cutting Attorney of this county for his opin-
ion of the law governing the duties of the
various county officers, relative to the matter
of letting the county printing. We did
this in order to settle question sprung by
Ethen Allen Uiggina, on section of law
passed in 1856, which, according to his in
depreciation, commanded the County Com
missloners to let the publishing of the
delinquent list" and tax notice" and coun-
ty printing generally, to the lowest respon-
sib'" N1der. The learned gentleman thro'
Il g adv je of his right bower when spades
are .mps,' even went so far as to say the
County Commissioners had no discretion IN
the matter, 1choteUe7 that the law was
p0Sut0e in its terms, and they had no
alternative but to comply. Higgins first
published lis law on the subject about six
weeks ago, and he has been harpiug on it
every week sincc--iinally coming to the
economical conclusion that if the law did
not prohibH the act, the Commissioners
ought to let the printing to the lowest bid
der as matter of justice to the taxpayers
of the county!
We claimed that the duties of 0H the
county officers were expressly fixed by
statute, which gave the Auditor and Treas
tha p 81. ii
quent list ana Tax notice in such paper
As they see Gt-provded it was published
III the county ana had general circulation
therein. We further claimed that the law
by which the printing was regulated, did
not give the County Commissioners any iu-
risdiction in the premises, whatever, and in
the event of their taking the matter in their
own bands, it would be without the war
rant of law and in violation of the estah-
lished rights of the Auditor and Treasurer.
Mr. Price, after a careful examination of all
the law bearing upon the question, fully en-
dorsed our views On the subject but TO
put the question beyond further cavil or
controversy, wrote to Hon. James Murray.
Attorney General of Ohio, for his official
opinion, which we publish in full below.
Mr.. Higgins hypocritically pretends to
be in favor of the enforcement of the laws,
but every one at all acquainted with his
mOtires knows that he is in favor Of their
enforcement only so long as they can be
made to jibe according tG the construction
he may see fit to place upon them. He had
sold us the Journal Office, with the under
standing that he was never again to engage
in the printing business in this place, and
in view of this fact succeeded in getting
from us one thousand dollars for thc
position, i'm addition to the estimated
value of the material" subscription list
and good will of the concern. After he
had got all his pay, $50 far as he was COZ
cerned) then he conceived the honest, ur-
right and brilliant idea of starting another
paper in Perrysburg-as one of his friends
remarked at military meeting, " to build
up business and influential paper one
that the people could have confidence IN ~
to the detriment Of the interests of the
Journal In other words, to swindle us ont
of the very position he had received one
thousand dollars for. His first strike was
to secure the county offices but, failing in
this, he found, by the aid of a gentleman
who pirates SO much about putting down
corruption, the section of an act, passed for
the benefit of another county, which he
fancied would be just the thing for falling
greatly ~ love with the enforcement of the
laws.
In all dishonest purposes there is pecu-
liar strategy to be resorted to, TO make
the scheme successful. lts called by some
as laying the ropes" by others as pulling
the wires" Both these terms are often and
sometimes very classically used by the
Short-and-Dirty Clique" Of which Higgins
is tho acknowledged leader. He gave q
huge puff" TO one of the County Commits
soners, shortly after which he brought ou
his law with his Interpretation thereof. His
modus operan6 was apparent at once. i
was to control the official action of the sale
commissioner, and week after week he hal
been nrging the Commissioners to ac
promptly in the matter Of advertising for {
PupAlO iStblHb Vi I4O SN"i'J PiHi'iHS PlS
missing with the expression "we hope" etc
OF course he hoped. He hoped to swim
die u.s. and to this end was using his bes
efforts to induoe tine Commissioners to ac
at an irregular meeting, before the expira
ton of the term of the pulled Commissioner
But his whole scheme was frustrated, AM
we think when he reads the Attorney Gen
erals opinion, his hopes will be blasted
slightly, on the printing question.
We had intended to pay no further after
tion to anything Higgins might say OF
personally, but in noticing the Attorne
Generals opinion, We deemed it proper
make the above comments