Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1888-04-06

shall be an exact duplicate Of the
cash book. The treasur-
er's duplicate tax receipts must be
pass ed over'to the clerk at least once
m onth, and the clerk is to forthwith
compare such receipts with the origi-
nal tax lists in his possession, alq ii
correct to mark the tax paid, and
charge the treasurer on his cash book
with the money. On settlement the
treasurer will be credited With money
on hand, cancelled warrants, and the
delinquent tax list. It seems &c me
that the law is alright, and that the
clerk, if he Complies with it, must
know the condition of the treasurer's
business as we'll as the treasurer HIM
self. Let us suppose that the treasur-
err should fail to turn over the receipts
at the end of the month. He is still
charged with the amount i'll those
receipts in the original tax list, and
failure to present any would naturally
excite suspicion, and the SEM annual
settlement would necessarily disclose
any attempt at hiding. 1t has been
asserted that Mr. Williams at his
last settlement reported false deposit
of $500. If the books of the clerk
have been properly kept they ought to
have shown the difference between
$4,000, and $500 as wanting. 1 am
somewhat familiar with a system Of
bookkeeping, perhaps not the one in
vogue at Washington Springs, and | am
utterly at loss to know how defalca-
tion amounting to $4,000 and extending
over period Of two or more years, as
is claimed, could have occurred, il the
clerk alone, entirely regardless Of any
other official had performed his duty
as the law requires. MI. LOOMS has
been honored by an election and re-
election by the people Of Jerauld
county. The law makes him practically
the keeper of the treasurer. (S6000?)
of the peoples money has disappeared,
and now ii the gentleman will rise and
explain how it could occur, while he
performed his full duty, we will for
give him for many of the Things of
which we believe him to be guilty.
l will say, an explanation over his own
signature would be more acceptable
than an answer through his "hired
hypocritical, democratic ass"
have made a special effort to be
liberal in forming my convictions upon
this matter. have no desire to charge
any one unjustly though he be an
opponent. ! have tried to bring to
mind reasonable explanations, and yet
notwithstanding all this, my mind is
so constituted that am forced to the
conclusion that Mr.. LOOMS is equally
guilty, either as willfully neglecting the
plain requirements of the statute, as
being ignorant and unqualified for
his place, or as alder, sharer, and
abetter.
Imay be wrong in this know how
prone we poor mortalS are to error. ]
hope | am wrong, and that an eNplana-
ton may be made that will restore Mr..
Loomis to public confidence. He GER
tainly does not possess it today. l have
preferred to think Mr.. Loomis guilty
rather than to think him a fool. | may
be wrong in this, and shall keep my
heart open to conviction.
understand that the gentleman is
on the War-path; that suit for crlmi-
nal libel is about to be commenced
against Mr.. Blank and l presume /
shall be the second victim OF his ulaey-
olence. | desire to say in regard to this
phase OF the matter, that this attempt
to bull-doZe public sentiment will meet
with the contempt which it deserves.
This is about as thin a thing and about
as convincing evidence of rot as any
thing that has occurred. Mr.. LOOMS
seems TO have more money than the
rest OF us, but ] desire to say that his
| power OF money willnot muZZle thought
nor the expression Of 1t, here. "ILe Is
no lion if the people here are not kinds"
and ii all the people who believe these
things are to he arrested, convicted and
locked up to serve a sentence, it will re-
Quire about ali the property OF the
county that is Mt stolen, to provide jail
room. ! regard the official acts Of a
public Official as d legitimate subject
for public criticism, and "by the Eter-