Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1870-12-22
COMMUNICATIONS.
The New Court Goom.
W. II. LEHEW, Chairman,
G. 81. B0BUbi, Secretary


the Board Of Supervisors of Shenandoah
county in appropriating $500 to build q
new Court koom, to seine extent meets
with disapprobation, it will not be amss
to say few words in vindication Of that
action. Every candid man must admit
that tn e present Court Room is entirely
too small for the accommodation of the
people Of the county on public occasions,
and that it is q very pncom Portable room,
badly ventilated aud ipconveniently ar
ranged The county court Of Shenandoah
had taken steps just before the war, some
ten years ago, to have new Cours Room
constructed, and committee was appoin-
ted to make the preliminary arrangements
The war prevented these arrangements
from being perfected, else the action If the
Board Of Superv isors would have been
unnecessary.
But in addition to the above named OBJ
jections to the Court Room, which iniiu-
enced the action OF full bench Of Aagis
trate5. from all portions Of the county, ten
years age, there is more serious objac-
ton to 1t now. Tie rear tcoU has gicen
array to such an extent ttut tie building IS
uHSye. Irue it is that it has not fallen
dosu yet. end crushed those who
happeae2 to be . bout it, but there IS no
telling when aA old stone wall, almost a
Hundred years Id, some eigat inches out
of plumb, and twenty feet high, will TALL.
especially if cracked through and through.
and from top TO bottom III severai PLACES,
as in the present instance. Every uubi-
ased man who viii make a thorough ex-
animation must be CO nyinced that tie pres
cut Court Room is unsafe. Tbs kich-
mond Capitol disaster warns Us not to
trust Insecure putlic buildings Imme-
diateiy after tAAG disaster sae press OF the
whole country teemed with articles on the
necessity OF having thorough inspection
of such bUldines Il was advocated by
many ID at those who had them il charge
should be held crim@At4y responsible lor
disasters Of The character az above, The
SUPERVISOR uudec ihe laws Of Nirginia are
he Sureglu!eudcnts Of tAo public build
lD9s u their resptouye counties 1t is
Incumbent oa t!ltA TO build aud keep in
repair county buildings, and to provide
suitable rooms ior ooeuly purposes. Now
the Supcry SO oi Shenandoah a;ter making
d. thorough examination o! tie Court Room
came 10 tue coaciusl9n tb&s it WIS not q
suitable room for c-ulty purposes, and
tiQ5 1t rus unsafe. Su:h beng their
judgment it became their boundon duty
to provide new room: for after coming
to this conclusion, osgst reasonable on an
speeding the Jaj!dsng mad they failed to
do as they have done and disaster hap
pened, they would have been censared on
all sides for their cuipab!c, not to say,
criminal negligence.
In conclusion what is the cost OF this
building! Inc Supervisors appropriated
$2500 Tor constructing il. Tue whole
amount Ie,.,j lor county expenses was
$S544 o. HoicA sum includes the levy for
the Coul, Hoase, and depositum of
$2961 FOR Tie expense Of the ensuing
year. The levy made in August 1867
fer 10 months was S12 G23 G22. for
ulno months prior to Nay 1868 $500, for
the year ending May 1869, $93I5 10, an
average of nearly tea thousand dollars
year aud in these. levies made by the
county court the depositum provided for
vas not near as large as that provided fox
by the Supervisors, The present county
levy is to be raised by tax of 25 per
cent Of the State Tax of 1870 Oh the tax
able property Of the county, except IL
senses and c4pltation tax and by capt.
tation tax of fifty cents on each titheable
The tax on property is therefore 124 cts
on every husdrcd dollars worth, about one
third of which has been appropriated for
the Court House In other cords ajout
rear Gents, an round nHmbers, on tie
bundled dollars north cfproperty ischatA tie
Supervisors Of Shenandoah county haces
appropriated to render the Court House
comfortable and safe. A man, the asses
ed value Of whose property is $1,000 pays
40 cts. If $1,000 he pays 50 cts. and
SO on to tbs end of the chapter.
1t is only necessary to make the above
exhibit to show that the bAilding of the
CIV Court Roem will be hardly felt by
the taxpayers. The advan tage to the
county in having a comfortable and safe
room for the transaction of county bust
ness is surely an Offset to this paltry ex-
penditure, and it does seem that no reas-
enable man when he reflects on the ma
ter can complain. lie must rather ac-
knowledge that the supervisors Of Shen-
andoah county in levying a tax of FoUR
cents on syery one hundred dollars worth
Of property in their county to prov idc
safe and suitable Court Room, had no in
tention TO bankrupt their fellow citizens,
but only performed manifest dafy.
E'afracts from the minutes Of January
county court 1861.
Present ". L Krebs, S. P. Ruoert
W. w. Magruder. Nathaniel Araentrout
Joseph Zea, G. H. Ii. Koontz. Charles
Welsh. W. Cofelt, Samuel Kingree, j.
2. Coverstone, Joseph w indie, John Gate
wood, Philip Helsley. Sam. Harmon
Obed Funk, ". A Quick, j. G. Zirkle
Isaac Cornerstone. and Jacob Lantz. The
justices being summoned to his court to
consider tie duty and proprioty of erecting
a fire prof Clerks office. and majority
being present and voting rica g0cs were
unanimous except tae vote of John G
Zrkle, who voted no, that it was the duty
of the court to build fire proof office.
Present-D. ". Prescott, Moses Han
/ mon ana Ta-a,.l pl,o.ia. - III