The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1897-08-11
The County Dent Again.

Mason county owes 70 various l2eo-
pie sums that with accumulated IN
forest viii aggregate not far from
one hundred thousand dollars. As
one of the Commissioners appoint
ed by the County Court to ascer-
tain the amount Of this debt he has
had special facilities for getting at
the truth, and / haveno doubt that
his estimate is very conservative
one. When the taxpayers of this
county get through paying this
debt, they will be satisfied that
Mr.. Beller put it too low.
In 1896 the County Commission
ers allowed claims and issued or
ders for about fifteen thousand dol
lars more than the levy for that
| year would produce, this in spite
of the law which prohibits them in
effect from issuing more orders
than the levy viii pay.
This has been going on to a
greater or less extent for the past
eight years, during which period
most of this debt has been created;
it has has not been incurred to
NEE: legitimate expenses of the
county; it is the result of stealings,
small and great; the feeding of a
hungry gang of politicians who
have fastened themselves like
teaches on to those who hold the
keys to our county treasury and are
rifling the pockets of Mason coun-
ty taxpayers Bridges are built
where none are needed, and wheth-
er needed or not the contracts for
building them are let to the ring
or its agents at prices far above the
value of the work. Contracts for
large sums have been let to this
favored few without advertisement,
and in some cases at prices hun
dreds of dollars greater than the
bids of responsible competing par
ties.
In this way thousands of dollars
have been squandered, but it is
is only one leak, there are others.
I will give few samples: Bills
for sspainting and papering the
Court House and Clerks offices.
were allowed in 1895, amounting to
seven hundred and fifteen dollars,
about twice what it was worth.
Bills for coal for court house and
Jail for the year 1895, were allowed,
amounting to $336.25, a sum that
would buy almost FIVE thousand
bushels of coal. Coal for court
house and jail in 1882 cost the
county S179, but little more than
one half the amount for 1895.
For books and stationery in 1895,
the Court allowed $4310 5, whereas
in 1882, S2o1.50 was the cost of
these articles. Hundreds of SINH
lar cases might be cited, where the
Court has winked at this growing
extravaganza. Another frightful
leak is that by which Road Sur
veyors, who are prominent party
workers, are allowed enormous
sums for nominal services. This
has become so notorious, that no
one need be in ignorance of it.
The delinquent tax list is another
fraud. About seventeen hundred
voters of this county are returned
by our Sheriff as unable to pay
poll tax of one dollar. Does any
one believe this to be truef I do
not. In these lists I have seen the
names of men with property, and
well able to pay their tax. In
many cases they have not been
asked to pay it.
1 have known man living in
sight of the court house. worth
one thousand dollars, in property,
to be returned delinquent, and
there are other similar cases every
year. This is not all, the Com
missioners annuaIly allow the
Sheriff and his Deputies large
sums for tax tickets not in the de-
linquent list, but kept by them as
good. For political or other pur-
poses-they never ask a man for
this tax, but go to the Court and
have it allowed. True, it is illegal;
the Court has no right to do it, but
it is only one of the illegal things
done by it. Under such system
any man might be exonerated by
the Sheriff from payment of taxes.
as the names of these delinquents
are never published. Claims and
orders for money, thousands of
dOlIoro baxya Iaan oI1OIpad and T1aid