The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1862-10-04

Crawford, Clerk to the County Commits,
sioners, which sets out with curious cap
ton, extends with some curious reasoning.
and concludes with some curious cphcring.
The - criticism - referred to by the writer
was an extract from the Code of Public
General Laws. which is public property
Why their Clerk is so very morbidiy scusi-
tive about having remark made in refer
cnce to the county government, will possibly
make some foolish people think something
might be concealed. Nothing in our few
remarks, however. could possibly justify
any such conclusion. We will publish the
clause Of the law which appears to cause so
much nervousness, in full, as clipped from
one of the county papcrs-which pu blishcs Il
Lery Lis, and not an canal ysis' of that List
italics and ,fl, is the Clerk of the Com
miSSioncrs of Kent county has published it.
The following is the clause as clipped from
the head of the Levy List published in the
Kent Coasrrafor:
The County Commissioners shall make
ont and publish annually in at least two news
papers published in their respective counties
II there be two, detai!cd. minute md accurate
s'"ffmcht " the expenses IF heu snii counties,
specifying therein each pariicuior item Of e.rpemse,
ant fer ~hnt, and 10 whom paii, and shall also
deliver to the Sheriff of their respective
counties as many copies OF snch state mcnts
as there are Election Districts in the county,
| Il least ten days before each genera! election.
and the sheriff shall. within six days after the
| receipt of such copies SET mp one of them at
the place of holding elections in each election
district; and the Clerk to the County Com
| missioncrs and the Sheriff who shall fail t"
perform the duty imposed by this section.
Shall forfeit the sam of one hundred dollars
We do assert, Mr.. Crawford's newspaper
experience to the contrary notwithstanding,
| that every county in the State Cecil
excepted. publishes a Levy List containing
the name of every individual that receives
one cent of the county funds Judges, jurors.
clerks, witnesses, justices of the peace.
constablcs, coroncrs, carpenters, store.
keepers, attorneys in Il word, every one
that money is paid to. and for what purposes
applied. People wish to know who receive
money from the county, for what, and the
amount. They like to know what is ex-
pended on the roads in their District, and
in word. everything that is going on in the
county of public interest, and this is why
| they take Il county newspaper.
J In reference to such items as Support Of
the poor, repair of roads, &c. why cannot
'names land "purposes both be given
in this county as well as in other counties
They are given in all the Levy Lists'wc have
examined and used to be unpublished in Cecil
when Mr.. Ricketts, was Clerk, and Levy
List was published; and no matter of public
interest was as eagerly sought after and
pcruscd IN the county papers rs the Com
missioncrs' annual statement But Gin
such cases no names could be given" Mr.
c. says. That is, in the case Of paupcrs.-
Our bcgsars must be getting proud and
uncommonly sensitive.
But this matter Of publishing full state
ment of the expenditures of public Offices
is not peculiarly q Maryland county affair
Every Department of the Federal govern
mcnt sends into Congress, at the beginning
ot every annual session, avoluminous Report
Of its expenditures, which reports contain
every item, even to q half dime expenditure.
State officers do the same thing. And Con
grcss and the Legislatures of the States
publish those reports, at great expense, for
public distribution. The same law applies
to Cecil county, where alone it is disrc
gardcd and dclicd, and the people are flip
PANTY told by the Commissioners Clerk
that if they want the law carried out they
may so to the Grand Jury for redress. 1t
is not Mr.. Craw(ord's business to inquire
whether the ''public can have no special
interest y in knowing the fees of jurors,
bnilitls, coroncrs, accounts of magistrates,
constabcs, &C.; but it is his and the County
Commissioners business to follow the law
which the peoples Representatives have
laid down for their guidance in the duties of
their Office. 1t is not for them to dictate
measures of economy as officers, to the pco-
pie, but TO obey the bidding of their peers.
All the County Commissioners throughout
the State, except Cecil, think such items
and names are of public interest, or else
they obey the law without troubling their
heads as to what the people shall read, for
they publish them.
The people have no time or inclination to
make a journey to Elkton and turn over
pondcrous volumes of manuscript to get
information respecting the county finances,
nor would the Clerks patience and time
long withstand such pressure of visitors
upon INN. The peoples Representatives
knowing this, have ordered, by Act of Assem-
bly,, in the most emphatic manner, that the
County Commissioners publish this nforma-
ton in the county newspapers, SO that every
man can sit down at home and read it, either
for amusement or Information, as he may
choose. But Mr. c. tells us tlrcle IS com
plcte copy of the Levy List in the Court
Room, end % copy of each Districts proper
ton of the List IN the hands of the nine Col
lcct"rS, which is to say that each Collector
has his ''book,' which he paid the Clerk
for making out, and which is exclusively his
own private property, that no mar can see
beyond the pleasure of the Collector The
law also requires that copy of the Levy
| List shall be furnished to the Sheriff for
each Election District, and set up by him at
the places of holding elections This is not
done but the people are told they can go
to the Court House or Commissioners Office,
if they want information, about county