The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1891-10-16
Friday. Oct. I6, 1891.
Reforms That are Needed in
County Politics.

The day of election is drawing
near. And a very important election
it will be. The offices considered
first in Importance by the politicians
are among the least in Importance to
The public. The greatest money
Office is Clerk of the Circuit Court. q
mere routine, clerical office. The
second is Register of Wills. This,
like the first, is also clerical Office
with certain routine duties we'll de-
fined The fees attaching to these
Offices are the much coveted plums
sought after so eagerly by the men
who manipulate politics as a profess
sion. There should be reform in
both these offices. In place Of being
as they are. fee offices, they should
both have fixed salaries attached to
them and if any fees were paid by
persons who have business with the
offices such perquisites should be
turned into the treasury, and that
treasury should be the county treas.
ury, the State treasury being sup
piled from other sources, which are
in abundance if properly utilized.
The next office which is coveted
most as being valuable as money
Office. and consequently temptation
for the machine politician, is the
Office of sheriff. This is also fee
office, and should be changed to a
salaried office like the two former,
and have the term of Office extended
to four years. A Sheriff hardly gets
settled into his new quarters at the
Jail till he prepares to pack his
trunks and turn over the keys to his
successor. There is one commend
able feature about this Office that
should be preserved, which is ineligi
bility to second term without an
intervening term. The Clerks and
Registers offices should also have
this ineIigibility clause attached.
These three county Offices are the
prizes the politician is ever planning
to capture, because they represent
the most meEoy in their pockets.
They all three should have fixed sal
aries attached to them, and the sal
aries should be fixed at moderate
sum. There would be no lack of
takers if the salaries were fixed at q
thousand dollars per annum. exclu-
sive of some necessary expenses
which attach to the offices.
The two most important trusts to
be filed by the popular vote are the
offices Of County Commissioner and
the Legislature. Both these offices
require men of administrative ability.
The former especially requires men
OF business capacity above the ordi-
nary, and the latter knowledge of
State affairs which is not easily at
tainable. Under our primary election
system it is almost impossible to
secure ouch representation in the
legislature as the Importance of the
duties demands. The parties in
whose hands the destinies of the
State are placed are too apt to be
incompetent imbecils or are on the
market for all they can make out oil
the opportunity. The term of office
of County Commissioner should be
extended to six years, and one elect
ed every two years, which change If
contemplated by the alteration in
the organic law of the State at the
approaching election, and a clause Of
ineligibility should be inserted in the
law, for succeeding term. When
not barred out by such clause. the
majority of those who are placed in
Office by popular vote are apt to de
vote large portion of the time Of
their term of office to s'settiDg mp
pins for second term and are ex
ceedingly apt to not hew to the line
They fear offending somebody if they
do their whole duty. One term ID
enough. The neglect of duty and
loose official acts, in shaping matters
to secure second term, are apt to
outweigh the benefits derived from
experience to the public. In order
to secure the full benefit of the most
competent officers, and the full meas
ure of their capacity, radical
change is demanded in the manner
of conducting primary elections
such as we have suggested heretofore
or something similar. The primary
has been reduced to science, and
the ring men have got the hang of il
so completely that they can make II
turn out just the candidates they
want, with the certainty that an ex-
pert gambler can turn up the card be
wishes to.
There is another abomination in
legislative bodies which ought to be
broken up: that is the caucus. The
delegate should place the interest oil
his constituents above party and the
command of the caucus. This is the
invention ofthe boss and hired lobby
those vultures which hover about
legislative halls. The legislative OF
congressional ball is a place fol
public discussion and examination
of all questions concerning the public
welfare, and the member should be
untrammeled In every stage of his
proceedings, and subj cted to no
other infiunce than the will of bis
constituents. The discussion of all