Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1872-08-29

Directors were each allowed s.. so per day and n
small amount for expenses the aggregate of which
we have net preserved. The e. mmissiouers
themselves in the several ar counts fled by them
with the Auditor. on which they have been paid
have included sundry items for travelling expcn-
ses the aggregate Of which during the year COW
cred by our examination. is abo ut forty dollars.
This is a.small matter but IL lille gall cannot be
checked too soon for it is the tendency of sn al
leaks to ecome large ones.
When the Commi ssioners have allowed the In
Hrmary Directors g. 5 for each da they are ne
cessary employed in the duties OF their office,
they have reached the limit pres cribed by law and
exhausted their power over that subject. S. s
53l.
AS to their own compensation the law appl
cable to counties of or population is, THAT
each Courty Commissioner shall be allowed
three dollars for each and every day that he
may be employed in his official duties and five
cents per mile in going to ami returning. from
the County seat. for each regularo called Sc
sion, not exceeding in the whole eight sessions
| in one year and no.other compensation,
either in expenses or travelling fees shall be
allowed: swan & Saylori s..
Surelt legislation could go no further in pre-
scribing an absolute limit to the compensation
OF luC commissioners, uhu, SNeiS SShs NSs WV
this which is taken by the msclves for expenses
or paid to others fer travelling facilities afford
cd 10 them is illegally drawn from the Treas
| ury, -. :.
At the September session, 1sTi. the claim of
p. Cunco, sa5O for posta &C stamps and be- rent
for Auditor and Trcasurer's offices, was allow
cd and ordered to be paid out of the county fund.
In the account crJ. S. Ill are. Treasurer, audited
| and allowed at the same term there is includ-
| ed &c so for postage stamps. There is also an
| other allowance to T.. Cuneo, for stamps for
Auditor and Treasurer. $3.50
| Wecan find no law which either directly or
implicitly allows this perqulsite to either Au-
ditUr or Treasurer.
| AUDlToR's CONVERSATION.
| The Commissioners record shows that at sun =
dry times the Auditor was authorized to draw
| specific sums on account of salary, that at the
March session, 1871, he was authorized to draw
ssT2 in full, for balance due on services to
March l, 1872, anil at the March session, 1872,
the sum OF $1506S in full for services to Ma rch
| /, 1s7s.
In inquiring further as to tho actual compen-
sation paid we find that at each March session
the Auditor presented a bill for services which
was allowed and the balance appearing due or
dered to be paid. The following arc; copies of
| the bills presented in March 1871 and March
| lS12:
| Wyandot County in account with Jonathan
| Maffett Tor services as Auditor for the year
ending NJ sch ist, 1871:
| To services asAuditor per enumeration 81, l6O w
4" under School law, 409 90
To 20 Der cent on above amount 3l2 60
| To allowance under act of 1867, for all
bitches, eco 90
To making general transfer record un-
| der new ap3raiscments, 5oo W
Total. AZ s. 5Ta 90
Deduct amt paid at dif fferent times, ZOO 90
| Balance due, ss72 90
| Wyandot County, Ohio, to Jonathan Mafrett. DIR.
To services rs Auditor of said county, for the
meration, 81 ,159 90
| To max ing Journal entries of Commits
| sioner'> proceedings a,Id annual re-
| port of same, y! ~
To services under School Law Sect Al, 500 OO
| To making Road records, Road dupli-
| Gates abstracts of duplicates and re-
| cords of same, records of general ah-
| stract and settlement sheets, furnish
| ing State officers with sundry Re-
| ports of statistics, furnishing copies Of
| notices to printers for bridge lettings
| and awarding contracts for same, mo-
| tices Records and contracts in the mat
| ter of swamp lands, issuing orders
on Treasurer for paying out different
| funls and for various other services,
| rs per Sec. l, page 3.O 5. " s., 80 O
, Total, al $2,U5l 6>
SESSIONS. is is7i. 1900 o,
Total due, SI5I 6>
Aside from certain fees with which VIC need
not concern ourselves, the Auditor is EbsC1utr'
ly entitled to be paid out OF the County Treas
ury as an annual compensation for Ills services
an amount fixed by the last cnumeration on ci
males over twenty-one years of age and which
is in this county, SLIGO.
The Commissioners arc also required to
make the Auditor an allowance for service
performed AMI expenses incurred undsr the
School Act S, & e. 1860. Beyond these two
items the question CT compensation is viii
certain restrictions upon the amount, with il
the absolute discretion of the Commission e :
whose duty it i, TO examine, investigate and
understahdingly lcSi slate upon the matter.
But the utmost they can do is to allow in thi
county additional compensation to the amount
of Five Hundred dollars per annum, and il
those years in which real estate appraisementl
are mad they may make an allowance net OK
cceding twenty per cent on the amount fixed by
the enumeration. See act April H. 1851, S..SS
80.
] In the YClr tcy m Narcn /, 1871. Tcis
estate appraiSement was m lde and conccdI M
that it was competent for the Commissioner
in tt at year to allow the twenty per cent. ant
the 1--WE hundred dollars and that they allowed
S4OO for services under the school law the y u
; ditor's compen nsation for that year: woul'
amount to the aggregate sum of 2.292 90 whic
result would also be aimel at by reducing th
3 | item on the account for that year to S232. o.
| ont IN nd strik iny mi he la =
item altogether.
The view Of tile law already indicated woul'
compel lis also to condemn the allowance orth
. ID item in the account for the year endln:
March Ist, 1872, We deem it part of the of
ficial duties of the Auditor for which no spe-
cial or separate compensation is to be paid.
Finally it is as before intimated the absolute
duty of the Commissioners to determine year
ly and each year: lst, what c1nSens alton tn
, Auditor should have for his services under tn
, School law; 81, how much, il any, a,lditio na
compensation he shall have, and en- ter thei
determ ination upon their Journal.
PUBLIC PRINTING.
We find that during the year covered by oul
report there was paid out of the County Treas
ury, for public printing, the sum of 81 SOS 81
which is exclusive OF So2l % paid out during
the same period, for books and stationery 70
the use of the County officers. Such print
ing bill is no slight addition to the public bur
dens and it is in our opinion high time that re
trenchment and reform should reach this branc
of public expenditure. Most of the printing
patronage is in the hands of the Auditor an
Treasurer, yet the Comm sioncrs can do some
thing toward checking the extrav ag ant ou'la
J 1t is the deliberato opinion of your Commit
P required bv law might well lie dispensed with
and that for all which is done twice as much
paid as similar work would cost private indi
vidual.
J.D. SEARS.
: r. II. MCKEE,
N NJ. III. ElRlsI.
-! q = Prosecuting Att
April 9th. 1872.
>sO.- II.
The Ohio State Fair. for this yea