The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1886-03-19

correctness OF the CoURiER's article jasl
week. in regard 70 the good manage
nncnt OF certain officers In connection
with the gratifying fact Of the final pay
ment Of the last dollar Of Dubois coun-
ty's Indebtedness. and some were not
disposed 20 give the officers mentioned
any credit for good management, but as
sert that it Was owing entirely 20 the
payment Of taxes by the people "
course the money Was derived. q al
public money IL. whether obtained BY
tariff. license or direct taxes, from the
masses, but how often Is the public
nancy uselessly squandered. lost Or
stolen, and when officers apply The
money 50 that there Is no public indebt-
edness, and no crying public want, We
think euch conduct merits commenda-
ton. During the talk about the matter
" were asked iii il showed good man
agement for : public officer TO fail to
discharge his sworn duty?' aud i was
asserted BY gentleman that he was .
member OF the County Board Of Equali-
cation 1t one term, when the Beckmsns,
Of Ferdinand, had not sworn TO their
assessment liste. and that Commissioners
Schnell had suggested that something
was wrong, and an investigation must
he had. after which . general raising
81 The Bcckman's lists was ordered by
the board OF equalization, some Of the
amounts given in BY them being
doubled; that the board adjourned; and
that when the tax duplicates were made
out II was discovered that said amounts
had not been put thereon, as ordered,
but the original amount, IS shown upon
the assessors book, substituted therefor.
and the proposed raise erased without
any authority Of law, and the original
figures substituted, aud the records
would show that fact This charge
was entirely : new one TO ", and u true
showed bad aud dishonest management
for which an officer might be legally
prosecuted and ousted from the ONCE ne
had thus disgraccd, and 90 We went 70
the records, - the gentleman requested,
20 examine. and found IL was all mis-
take. In June, 1882, the tax-lists Of
three Of the Beckmans' were raised each
several thousand dollars. but John Her
man Beckman's was not raised ct all,
and in making up the duplicate the raise
ordered on John Henry Beckman WAS
put opposite John Herman's name,
which mistake caused the necessity OF
two erasures and alterations on the dup
ljcates. The names, IS will be noticed,
are very similar. But every dollar
ordered by the board to re added u
their lists. was csrried TO the tax dupli-
cate, and taxes collected thereon. A
public charge Of this character, made on
the street corners. IL very serious one,
Is It Injuries an officers business and
moral character Is we'll. and 10 this case
We satisfied ourselves from the record
that Il had no foundation 10 fact. Find
ing fault is much easier than correcting
errors. but facts should always be q the
bottom Of il.
Another gentleman in the same crowd
found fault with the alleged good man
agement, and desired Ne TO ask, for tht
benefit Of the school children 10 Hall and
Ferdinand townships, II the publ
schools in those townships had been con
Quoted in accordance with law. The gen
tleman IL an ardent Catholic teacher, and I
friend Of public education and our public
school system, and he asserted Of his 0wr
knowledge that the schools in Celestin'
and Ferdinand were not conducted law
fully, but that their teachers were Offer
compelled TO spend large portion o
the time which rightfully belonged 4
the public schools IN religious duties, 4
the detriment Of the education Of th'
children. We know nothing Of the mat
Ter ourselves, had newer heard Of il be
fore, but q he professed to be cognizan
OF II, We agreed 10 ask the Trustees Q
those townships, through the CoURIEH
IN regard 10 II. and will cheertully &C
cord them rnom or any reply they ma.
desire to give the public.