The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1867-10-12
Leaves from History.

The gray back convention having nomi
mated Mr.. David Scott for the first Office in
the county, the enquiry of the people is
turned to him and his record, as a
county officer, the latter dating back to 1853.
Mr.. Scott served as Clerk to the Democratic
Board of County Commissioners, whose
term of Office SO ingloriously expired in that
year, on account of the exposure of the
great frauds committed upon the revenues
of the county, in the squandering of public
money, which were dragged to light by P.
c. Ricketts,, at that time editor Of The Wing.
The majority Of our readers will remem-
Der the Infamous corruption, by which the
Railroad Company were released from the
payment Of upwards Of fifteen thousand dol
lars of taxes due the county, by compro.
mise, on which certain Democratic pets re.
ceived more than three thousand dollars as
counsel for managing said compromise. !"
The dragging this corruption to light, brought
the Clerk to the Board of Commissioners,
(Mr. David Scott, present Democratic nom
inee for the Office of Clerk of the Circuit
Court to the defense of the parties, and
the Board Of Commissioners, concerned in
that stupendous robbery.
This led to general oyerhauling and his.
tory of Mr.. SCOTS stewardship rs public
servant, the first chapter of which we pub,
lish to-day, in accordance with custom, the
people always desiring to know the history
of candidates brought out for election to
offices of public trust and importance.
The following leaf from history is taken
from the issue of The Wing, dated January
18th, 1864. 1t opens with reference to ar.
ticles that had preceded it in former issues
of the county papers, The Wig and Demo.
crat:
An article in The Cecil Democrat of the
18th ult., from the pen of Mr.. d. Scott, late
Clerk Of the County Commissioners, makes
it necessary that we should again refer to
the subject of the management Of the county
funds-a subject quite thoroughly discussed
during the late political campaign.
This controversy, and particularly the part
of this article which is to follow, is disagree.
able to us; it will not be entirely uninterest.
ing to our county readers, however, as il
will lead them, or has led them, into some
Of the modern modes of squandering the
public moneys and abusing public trusts
First, then; any man who is not a fool
knows that the record which shows the re.
suit of a suit in the Circuit Court is to be
found in the Office of the Clerk of that
Court, and the record there shows that the
collectors sued by the late County Commits
sioncrs did not owe the county. This point
we have before discussed, and it remains
undisturbed by Mr.. SCOTS future remarks
in which he purposely msquotes our Ian
guage.
1t has been industrously circulated that
John Cooley, without authority from the
Commissioners, brought those suits for the
sake Of the fees, Mr.. Scott, the Clerk q
the Commissioners-their officer to do tbeil
bidding-furnishcd Mr.. Cooley with copies
of their bonds, and charged the county 70,
so doing, and the Commissioners paid him.
The conclusion is irresistible that the Com.
missioncrs did order the suits. or that Mr..
Cooley was not the only one who consprcd
for fees.
The next matter to remark upon is his
late reference TO his published statement oil
The railroad taxes, in which statement he
'ut 'ohu III - y dS Ill- Dt'il pau 10 us.
This sum we stated did not come out of the
railroad money; but he contradicls 1atly.-
Hear him:
But few words moro III regard to his lying and dis
graceful comments upun tho CLERKS account II will
be remembered that Mr.. re. Ricketts, states With thai
account before him, there in the Clerks clstod,
so034G surplus funds, out Of which c0Hd and Which
he insists ldid pay the Sll7. That pronounce, and
Will prove. orttd9co"siH fniSc.n
The lardhood and mpudencc of this man
Scott, must astonish any man who will ex.
anime the books, as kept by himself in the
Commissioners office. We shall be a little
particular with the Sill affair, as it seems
to be the starting point between him and us.
it was part OF The sum levied for us in 1851 ;
the collector did not have funds to pay us
it was levied again in 1952-included in a
balance TO meet deficiencies. On the 18th
of May last, not having still received it, we
mentioned the matter to the Commissioners
who on that day passed the following order,
as will appear by their minute book:
"Ordered, That D. Scott Treasurer be and he hereby
is authorized to settle with p G. Ricketts, his
ing allowance, for 1s5l that portion yet unpaid by
the collectors, may appear settlement and pay the
same, 30 soon sufficient sum % mo Me-; -,
money may co me into his hands"
Now, on the nextday, MAY 18th, there was
in Mr.. Scotts hands as treasurer, 1886. of
unappropriated funds. He did not receive
one tarthng of the railroad money, until the
2lst day OF Magazine days after the above
Order was passed, and every hour of the
time, he had in his possession over $500 of
Incorporated funds, ont of which he was
ordered to pay US. He did not pay us. how.
ever, until the 4th of June; and when he
did pay, he had in his hands, as we stated
before, S903. 4G, Independent of the railroad
money. He states that there was but about
$lS5 of unappropriated money then in his
hands; but his books contradict him, OF
the $903. there had been paid in on &C.
count of a bridge $5G5 the balance, S33s,
46, mot about $685. was unappropriated
and he had that in his hands when he paid
us. But he enters the payment made to us
on the 18th of June; between the 4th, on
which day he made the payment, and the
It'll, he had paid to other parties SIG. 53 ::
that would reduce the $838.4G, to S221 so
but according to his statement of the rail.
road taxes made in both papers on the 22d
of October, and his ledger, three of the pay
ments made before he paid us, viz: to 4.
Boulder $46.Ol, to s. Boram S67.75 and
to j. Owens $22.75, (the first before the 4th
the last two on the It'll of June,) were out
of the railroad taxes so that, granting the
erroneous date on which he has entered the
payment, 1t appears by the books kept by him.
and by his statement, that he had in his
hands $S59.44 of Incorporated money on
the 18th Of June, and S38447 on the 4th-
the day the payment was actually made.
With that Order before him, and an abun-