The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1877-02-15
COUNTY AFFAIRS.
Soune Facts for .sRO6 Oak," and
MI lntcFOooCG.

SOmG FACTS 1Or Vu800 O0Ap o00
all lntcrcsoc6.
Editor Advertiser IL presume our
RED Oak friend would not have
written quite so long an article for
your last issue IL he had read Sec. 1851
Of Code. which empowers the town
ship trustees to provide for the relief
OF such persons in their respective
townships as should not, In their
judgment, be sent to the poor house.
And good and just law ! think it Is,
for many in that way are afforded
temporary relief that helps them
through hard winter, or through .
season Of sickness, and by that means
do not become permanent county
charge. Also If he had read sections
1873 and 1880 he would have seen tho
reason why a committee was appoint
ed. and why the poor house should be
visited at least snce . month by some
member of the Board. Also II he had
made inquiry With regard to that
property being willed to parties out
side of State he would have found that
she had no title to the real estate 30
willed. He will also find that he IL
mistaken with regard to the paying Of
superintendent of psor farm IS for
taking pauper from Upton to farm.
As to the matter of purchasing goods
for the county at one place, it has been
done so for some years and have heard
no complaint. BY doing so the coun-
ty gets q reduction of ten per cent.
from the current retail price.
1t was to be expected there would
be complaint Of high taxes the present
year. for the reason that the taxes for
the three previous ones had been quite
low, and an increase Of the levy 5 mills
OH the dollar making about so 600
was quite jump up. A part Of that
increase was made necessary by the
levy in the two previous years being a
little too low and not quite meeting
the expenses of the county, and the
balance is for the building of bridge
oyer Cedar river and the extra repair
Of bridges carried away by last seasons
floods. you recollect there was four
or five years ago surplus Of about
twenty-five thousand dollars Of the
county fund and rs that was thought
to be too large an amount to lie idle.
the Ievies two and three years ago
were made less so that the surplus
might be cut down, and that accounts
for the lower taxes of those years. 1t
would be better if the estimates of the
expenses of the county could be made
each year SO as to levy a tax just to
meet them or leave but small surplus
but they being irregular ii is difficull
to do 40. Yet the deficiency has been
supplied for the short time that il was
needed each year at low rate of in
terest and the people have had the use
of their money.
In this connection, perhaps the fol-
lowing comparison Of the taxes levied
here with those levied in other coun-
ties of the State may not be uninterest-
ing: The levy in this county for all
purposes, such as State, county, school,
township aud corporation tax, is Is
mills on the dollar-that is, averages
that, although more in some town.
ships or school districts than others.
In 63 counties the average levy is
from one TO sixty-fivs mills on the
dollar more than in this county. In
20 counties the levy is the same and
from one to five mills less on the dol
lar. In eight counties the levy il less
than 70 mills. SO it will be seen, not
withstanding our extra expenditure
this year, we are not near as heavily
taxed as the majority of counties in
the State.
As to the balance Of the increase of
tax caused by the bridge over Cedar
river, l presume there is q difference
of opinion with regard to the necessity
of it. Yet | have not heard an indi-
vidual who is considered at all enter
prising, or who is interested in the
welfare of the county, complain OF the
tax for that purpose. The county has
expended large amount Of money in
the last fifteen years for building
bridges and l have heard no com.
plant, only that they didn't build
them fast enough or good enough.
The bridges over Sugar Creek alone
and its branches have cost the county
nearly as much as to build two good
ones over the Cedar, and a great many
of them are not a. good as they might
be and new ones will soon be needed.
But there is one thing that think
the people should complain Of. and
that is, the large amount Of money ex-
pended uselessly upon our highways
and small bridges. Many Of the small
bridges are rebuilt most every year
Instead Of making good stone culvert'
and abutments, the money is spent
on Pinch plank which il mostly lait
in the mud or on wooden stills which
last but little longer than the tim
spent in putting them up. There wa
. time, when the country was new
when such work on our roads wa
excusable but there IL none for il now
Feb 10Th 1877 -