Owyhee tidal wave. [volume] (Silver City, Owyhee County, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1869-1870, 1869-12-16
TcoaaUYIcATED.1
SILVER CIrY, Dec. Is, 1869.

1b- - AVE Ns'f w. ~Af~" $500 '>
use of your columns to correct some
misstatements. which have inadvert-
emily, | presume. found their way
into your paper and the Owyhee Ava
lanche in reference to the revenue
law passed at the last session of the
Territorial Legislature.
In an article published in your
last issue, entitled 1.-THE Tax Law"
the revenue law Of last winter is
spoken Of as law requiring the
county TO bid in worthless property
sold for taxes, paying the costs ont
Of the pockets of the people, This
is a mistake. There is no provision
in the law of last winter requiring
or even permitting the county to buy
in any property sold for taxes, as
any one can see who will take the
trouble to read it. On the contrary
the law was carefully framed 80 rs
to protect the county and the tax
payers from the payment of any
costs incurred in the collection Of
the taxes by suit and execution.
Section 43 expressly provides "Thst
no fees or costs shall be paid to any
officer or district attorney unless the
same be collected from the defend
ants" The Legislature Of last win
ter also passed an Act to create a
board of County Commissioners and
to define their duties and powers,
and section 9 of said Act provides
that the County Commissioners shall
have power. 10 lease or to purchase
any real or personal property abso-
lutely necessary for the use
OF the county; provided no
purchase of real estate shall be made
unless the value OF the same shall be
previously estimated by three disin-
terest-d persons, appointed for that
purpose by the probate judge of the
county" As it is settled princl-
pie of law that the County Commits
sioners have no power except such
as has been expressly conferred
upon them by statute. it seems clear
that they cannot, under any circum-
stances, either directly or indirectly,
by themselves or through their
agents, buy any property. real or
personal, unless the same is abso-
lutely necessary for the use OF the
county" The words absolutely
necessary for the use of the county
define the extreme limit of their
power in the purchase of property,
and if their action goes beyond or
outside of these words they violate
the law.
An article in the last number OF
the Avalanche entitled "fhe Demo
cratic Yoke" and referring to the
revenue law Of last winter, uses the
following streng language: :" 1t isa
most oppressive and unreasonable
measure, which no one with ordinary
intelligence could undertake to de-
fend." Let Us state = lew facts.
The revenue law of last winter Is a
copy of the revenue law Of the State
Of California, passed By the Legs
lature of that State on the 18th day
of May, 1861, during the admins
tration Of Gov. Downey. 1t was
passed, l believe, by = Democratic
Legislature. Since that time, Tor
several years. the State passed into
the hands of the Republican party,
but two years ago the Democratic
party again came into power, and
vet, during the whole time the la"
gave such general satisfaction
throughout the State that no attempt
has been made to repeal it. The
people of California of oil parties
after . thorough trial of the law
..cJ -.4k "a .~d thAy do no