Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-10-24
To the Public.


FellOw Citizens Of Chatham County:
Ia announcing to you this morning that
am candidate for the Office Of Clerk Of the
Superior Court, it becomes necessary for me
to. urge some reasons In favor OF myself.
I am q ware of the feeling against me be-
cause l declined being candidate for Re
ceiver OF Tax Returns, and became candi-
date for Ordinary. It was said that gave
up good Office to turn out some one else;
that If remained Tax Receiver l could
hold the Office for life, etc. ask
only to be heard, and judged
accordingly. A stern necessity urges me to
this step, and 1 shall use all honorable
means to secure election. II defeated, /
will have left me the proud consciousness
that under circumstances sufficiently ad-
verse to appal the stoutest heart, have
from early manhood to past the meridian
of life, with perseverance and endurance,
fought It's great battle.
In becoming a candidate for Ordinary l
gave up no Office. l sought not to displace
any one. The term for which l had been
elected expired by law on the first day of
the following January, as did the term of
the gentleman who held the Office which I
sought, and an election was to be held for
the succeeding terms. Believing myself
equally capable Of performing the duties,
I SIMPLY asked for the sseTt i1acae1abessey. In
1873 and in 1875 there were applicants for
the Cfice which then held, and the can
didates were the nominees of great politi-
cal party, ard I have been at other times
opposed. / made no objection. l could
make none. I deemed 1t no presumption
En,sr ST. e. Z
an election fora successor had been ordered,
Now, In regard to the Office of Receiver
of Tax Returns, there is no man in Georgia
who can, under existing laws, make out a
correct digest. In the first place the Tax
Receiver cannot by law commence to re-
ceive returns prior to the first of April, and
he is required to finish all of bis work in
four months, which is an impossibiity. To
properly perform his duties the Tax Receiver
requires the whole year and constant atten-
ton. He cannot In the short space of four
months collect all of the returns, make out
these digest hunt up all defaulters, find
out who has died, OF what disease, look up
all of the idiots, epileptics, e'c., get their
age. sex, etc, and the tax laws sffording no
facilities whatever.
To make out a correct digest It will cost
the Tax Receiver more than the amount Of
the commissions that he receives. In fact
he cannot do it at all
He commences on the first OF April with
out anything to assist him but the tax digest
of the year previous What does that digest
show? Nothing but the lanes and amounts;
It points ou no property; there is no book
of transfer on which should be entered every
sale of real estate that takes place;
in short, there is nothing whatsoever to as
sIst the Tax Receiver In the discharge of his
duty.
The Conn., -oller General, in his circular
Of instruction, says to the Tax Receiver:
81 wish you to correct and revise the list
OF defaulters. The custom has been to take
the list Of defaulters from the digest of
the preceding year. This should not be
done; but carefully revised list Of all de-
faulers should be made"
The Comptroller tells the Tax Receiver
what he must not do and what he must do,
but he qleUsr tells him hon to do it WHY?
Because the AK laws afford 10 facilities.
The Comptroller further says to the Tax
Receiver "As your work will be closely
examined by the grand jury, H. would be
best to make every man make correct re-
turn"
Again he fails to point out the remedy
It simply amounts to this, that the Tax Re
ceiver must take what returns are made to
him, and let the rest go. The tax laws are
away behind the age. are inadequate to the
purposes for which they were enacted, and
ought to be repealed and new and better
ones made.
If property throughout the State of Geor-
gia was properly returned, the State tax
would be nominal. don't believe that the
rate of State taxation would be the one
twelfth of one per cent.
Let not the grand jury lightly pass their
eyes over the tax digest and unjustly CEN
sure the Tax Receiver.
Go further and examine carefully the
laws and the system under which he per-
forms his duties, and find out who is at
fault, those who make the laws or those
who execute them.
Finding that could no longer hold the
Office of Tax Receiver, was compelled to
seek another Is 1t reasonable to suppose
that would, without good cause, be will
ing to reliuquish an Office that occupied me
only four months in the year for one that
would keep me closely confined from Jan
uary to December?
Asking your support at ~the polls, re-
main, respectfully yours.
-Adv. BARNARD E. BEE.