Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1890-03-20
mnsr nr RnrnENonnzNr.
County Officers should $40 salaric
-'Ehe PeItLIOns for deductions.

y
Eiitor Gdsstte ,f Journal: Tha time has
arrived whom certain county officers in
stead OF boing appointed by the governor
should be elected BY the popular vote Oh
the citizens Of the respective counties
entitled to vote. Public opinion do.
mands that change should be In do,
and this principle OF selection applies
more particularly to those OF clerk Of
the peace, register OF wills, parliamentary,
recorder OF deeds, clerk OF the orphana'
court and register in chanoery. Those
officers shonld DO required By law to col.
Iect the fees belonging to their respective
Offices and pay the same into the treasury
of their respective counties. II should
be made the duty OF the treasurer Of each
comfy 10 pay the incumb ants OF said
Offices certain salary 10 1bo pissoribei
by law as Just compensation for all theil
respective services as such officers.
Our present New Castle county levy
court gystem should be abolished aud ia
lieu thereof commission OF three or five
should be elected by the popular vote of
the citizens entitled to vote. Their salary
should also be fiKei by law and paid out
OF the comfy tfeAsury.
Something must be done and at once.
Look at the depreciation OF rural real
estatea. Large tracts of valuable land
arc selling at nominal rates. For this
month alone have counted over 90 sales
of farming personal effects. Suoh AN
alarming state OF affairs was never known
ia the history OF the county before, The
farmers will be bAnkrupted and not ona
half can pay their tebts The peach cropa
failure aud farm prodnot returns falling
far below their cost value. This together
with unnecessary and oyerburdensom3
taxation ia more thsn they can bur Gu
under and il something is not speedily
done and we maks no energetic aud in
telligent effort TO suspeud our present
wastefuluess in our county, taxation will
speedily devour what litilo we have left,
aud a few years hence the tax gathereE
or sheriff will hang out his red flag over
the homo Of our family mansion and alas
for the PASTORAL acres and the dear old
homes Of our hoyhood, FOR everything
will pass into the hands OF strangers.
The weight OF 0nr present condition
is beginning to produce Its natural effect
and men who are usually removed from
the impulses which guide public life
ara looking around them saying some
thing must be done. The farmers ora
not alone in carrying there burdens. 1t
Is known that some of our manutactur-
ing Industries, merchants and business
men Of the county are wasting the acou-
mutations OF o life time in the endeRyor
10 keep open their mills 30. We are
told that our manufacturing industries,
fur from being ruined are prosperous. IL
~ true they arc not yet ruined, but many
nre more depressed than they have ever
before been. There are many who argus
that orr manufacturers would OF cnoe
give up manufacturing II il did not pay;
and no doubt II Is very natural assump-
ton, that II manufacturer continues
his business 1t is o proof he in making
money by it, but It is very often the oaae
| that no continues to manufacture onY
because he cannot afford to stop. They
\ little know how many manufacturers con-
tinue to struggle on in business merely
because they do not know how to get out
OF it. man with fifty, one, three or
bVe hundred thousand dollars sunk In
work and machinery cannot give up
business without ruin. The causes that
diminish and lessons the return from bis
! produce diminish also the value OF his
plant; his capital and interest ere i'm
perilled at the same time and by the same
cause. Now many persons doubt this
distress, deny it altogether. Let them
visit the scenes have mentioned and they
VIII hear and see evidence that cannot
lie.
The Taxpayers OF New Castle county
nave already petitioned the levy court to
take into consideration the advisabilisy
OF reducing the present per diem allow
ance paid for feeding our county orimi-
mails, and they will further petition that
honorable body to practice economy in
all the departments Of our county gov
eminent coming under their jurisdiction,
and, II they are disregarded, The op-
ponents Of an economical form of gov
ernment must take the responsibility.
me overwhelmed taxpayers are Ia
earnest, and they have right to be
heard. II IS not a question whether the
petitioners are Influential and have any
weight with the politicians and offics.
seekers or not, but it il question with
them OF dollars and cents, and II the few
opponents OF retrenohment are not ready
ior reduction 10 our county expenses,
the people are, and il they do not get
redress through tho levy court, there are
other ways and means by which their
grievances can be heard.
/ Speaking of extravaganza and one Of
the greatest farces ever imposed on tina
people WAS The allowance to our public
officers large sum OF money for making
NV induces and an equal sum to d COM
mitiee to examine the same. / assisted in
making tho ilrst index in New CASTLE
county under the Campbell system. | was
clerk under my friend, Mr.. Thomss NJ,
Ogie, then recorder Of deeds, who Wal
Tue Drst to give ms start in life. Thu
copying waa carefully made and com
pared az eaoh page was completed. So
fhF as paying for making the indcss Was
concerned that wan sii right, tie work
WHs tedious and deserving OF a liberal
compensation, but what struck me-
bumorously, was thil, while only bow /
Remember 50 well laughing o. ths idea of
such thing, itappeared 80 ridiculoug to
me, to pay person good round sum to
perform o certain duty and then pay
another almost more than an equal sum,
to ascertain ii he had performed that
uuty or not. FRANK Il. HERBERr.
| --S-S-e-
sntterinsH OF Chippewa Indians.
| Parliamentary Masoh