Omaha daily bee., 1885-09-16
HE DAILY BEEooUNo BLUFFS WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER Is 1885
IS CLAIM.
He Insists on the City Paying His
Fees as Justice in the Poll Tax
Gases.

The mayor Is trying TO get the council
to allow him q snug little sum for his
fees In some poll-tax cases brought be.
fore him as justice of the peace before his
election as mayor. 1t seems that large
number of those who had not paid their
poll tax had been sued by the city, and
In many of these cases judgments
were obtained, but no money
was secured. The mayor now wants
to have the city pay him his fees In these
cases. An investigation showed that at
the time of these Cases, Mr.. +. M. Hun
ter was acting as city attorney In collect
Ing these delinquent poll taxes, and that
he made an arrangement with Justice
Vaughan by which the latter was not to
charge any costs to the city, but was to
content himself with such money as he
could collect of those who paid. A good
many did pay In cash, and the justice got
the benefit Of these costs, but this does
not seem to satisfy him, and he now
wants the city to pay costs in cases where
no collection has been made from
the party sued. The mayor
admits that such an arrangement as Mr..
Hunter states was made, but claims that
1t only applied to the first ten cases
brought by the city. Mr.. Hunter has
fled an affidavit, however, claiming that
this arrangement was made In all the
cases. If Vaughan did not succeed in
collecting the money, he was to have no
fees. Other testimony has been secured
pointing to the same state of facts. So
1t seems that the mayors attempt to get
fresh allowance ont of the city treasury
will fall.
The revelation does not add any to
Vaughan's record as q justice, and Ger
tainly not anything to his record as a
mayor. 1t seems very queer for justice
of the peace to enter into any arrange
ment by which bis deci,ion of csse
brought before him Is to bs biased by the
temptation to 80 decide as to secure his
fees. Suppose man of responsibility
was sued before him for poll tax, and set
up some defense. The Justice presiding
having mado arrangement to the effect
that If he did not render judgment
against the man he would not get any
costs, and that IL he did he would
make several dollars, would he
be inclined to lean In favor of
giving the judgment2 He would be more
than human If he was not Influenced to
some extent by such an arrangement.
The mayor Is known to be human enough
to be influenced by slight causes some
times, and such an arrangement, by
which Justice Of the peace Is made
collector merely for the city, his pay to
depend on his 80 deciding the cases as to
favor the city, makes farce of the
courts. Suppose the judge on the dis.
trlct bench should make an arrangement
by which he wes to receive certain
amount of money for every case he should
decide In favor of the city, what would
be thought of the arrangement?
The mayor has entered up these judg-
ments On his docket, and he makes the
threat that If the city does not allow him
his fees he will certify these up, and have
them as liens against the real estate of
the citizens, or will issue executions, and
cause trouble that way. He is bound to
have his fees. He says that In many of
these cases the parties against whom these
judgments have been obtained really did
not owe for poll tax, but that they let the
cases 60 by default. 1t docs not appear
that the council will be scared into pay
ing a bill under threats of troubling
some one else, but the mayor has been
given little more time to present fur
ther proof of the justice of his claim 1t
he has any.
IUseems as If the justice should not
have rendered an unjust judgment against
a citizen, not knowingly, and If so he
ought not to expect the city to come in
and pay him for doing SO. If, on the
other hand, the judgments are honest
and true, then the persons agairs whom
the judgments were obtained should pay
them and the costs. The whole affair
gives new insight into the queer ways
In which the justice shops are run.