The weekly mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado County, Calif.) 1861-1862, 1862-01-25
The Late Grand Jury Report.

Grand Jury Report, that the objections
urged therein to the recent hospital con.
tract arc untcnable and, if suffered to pre-.
vail, must fasten upon the county sys-
TEN which would make the INDECENT sick
prey to avarice and cupidity; that the
exhibit of the county finances, as present
ed by the Report, is erroneous and calcu-
lated to mislead the public by placing to
the account of current expenses more
than ten thousand dollars laid out in the
purchase ola court house and the build.
ing Of prison and that the statement
that the claims presented against the
county are allowed by the Board of Su-
PervlsOrs as Il matter of course, is clearly
at variance with the facts in the case, |
come now to consider the recommends
ton which the Grand Jury have seen fit
to make as offering a remedy for the evils
alleged to exist. And this is simply a
reorganization of the Board Of Supcrvi.
| tS'o NhShP II NuuSL Ot
confessed, should it turn out to answer
the purpose. Upon the subject the Re.
port says; " The Grand Jury have well
considered the condition of the county
affairs. and believe radical change neces.
sary to reform. They, therefore, recon.
mend that the members of the Leg isiature
from this county procure the passage of
am ocl TeOrganlzing the Board of Super
visOrs, increasing their number to not
less than five members, defining their du
ties, and limiting their powers with ex.
actneSS, and prohibiting the exercise Of
any powers by them, but those granted
specifically; and paying them per diem
: compensation"
Such is the remedy, The evils com.
planned Of, as we have seen in former
article, are substantially these That the
current expenses for the year ending the
30th Of September last, exceed the re
cciptS by nearly $1,000; that claims
-'Eb4Sp ,a~"st"t"d ag3ast ~. ---'''+.' ~--.
allowed by the Board as matter Of
course and that this is done to such an
extent as to leave no hope of reducing the
enormous expenditures without an entire
change in the management of county az
fairs.
Now, for the sake Of the argument, let
us admit these allegations and then in
1uire if the remedy suggeSted-the reor-
ganization Of the Board Of Supervisors
is the proper one. If the cause Of the
present enormous county expenditures is
the careless and reckless manner in which
claims against the county are allowed by
the Board, as the Grand Jury allege, then
the root Of the whole evil is to be found
in the character Of the members compo,
sing the Board; in their faithlcSsncSS or
incapacitv,; ard n0@in any want Of pre-.
cision with which it may be supposed the
powers Of the Board are at present defined.
In such case, there can be no necessity
for reorganization Of the Board. The
correction is not in the hands of the LcgiS-
lature; ii is in the hands of the people,
and is to he applied through the ballot
box in the election of better men-men
honest, faithful aud capable, as members
Of the Board. But it.ulay be said that by
increasing the number of members we
increase the chances Of elccting suitable
men; and as the number cannot be in
creased without reorganization, therefore
reorganization is necessary. can hardly
conceive, however, that such can be the
case, since, il we cahnnt elect two suitable
men in three, we could scarcely hope TO
elect three IN five, four in seven, or five
in nine. At all events the chances in IA
vor Of the latter appear quite too slender
To serve as the foundation of an act of the
Legislature. submit, therefore, that the
Grand Jury must either correct their
facts or renounce their remedy. They
must amend their complaint or go out OF
court.
So far, have proceeded on the hypoth-
csiS that the facts in the case were correctly
stated by the Jury, merely for the sake Of
the argument, as the law sometimes al
lows fiction the better tn attain the ends
of justice. Now let US inquire for a mo.
mrnt, aside from the facts a stated by
the Jury, whether the proposed rcorgani-
cation of the Board is desirable under any
circumstances. think not. And in
addition to what has already been said
with regard to increasing the number of
~, MIXERS, there is this objection As the
number i incr aSrI individual RESPONSE
biiit\ is leSsencd Each member in 81
large a number is apt To feel that he can
rely on the rest. This begets neglect aud
inattention and these, it is TO be feared,
will prove to be the mother Of a brood Of
evils, for it is believed by many that Il
member of the Board, if he would not be
overreached, must watch as well as pray.
That anything could be accomplished
bv an attempt to restrict the powers Of
the Board 81 as to prevent extravagant
allowances, is matter Of great doubt
The power to audit and allow all claims
legally charseable against the county,
must be lodged somewhere, and | can See
no reason why it should be considered
more liable to abuse in the hands of the
Board than it would be elsewhere. take
it for granted, therefore, that in the event
of reorganization, this power would be
vested in the Board as at present, and
then nothing will be gained, since it is
this power from the abuse Of which the