Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-02-15
CHILDERS' OPINION.
To the Editor of the New Mexican:

|
10 the Editor of the New Mexican:
santa Fe, N. M, Feb. Is, '97.-At ever,
session of the legislature the question O
tne division of counties in New Mexic,
| comes up. An examination of the ad
mlnistration of county affairs in th,
smaii and large counties and compari
son OF the expenses furnishes an unan
swerable argument in favor of county
division. The one objection which il
constantly urged, the insurm ountabl,
alhculty, Is an agreement upon az
| equitable division of the outstanding in
debtedness of the counties sought to be
divided. This difficulty is easily over
come. A special tax is levied each yea,
to meet outstanding county indebtedness
There is no reason why counties should
not be divided, new counties established
and the lines of the old counties prior to
division maintained fol the purpose OF
collecting within the old limits the
special tax levied to pay existing and
prior indebtedness. The courts where
Judgments are rendered against counties
to collect them within ths old lines prior
to an attempt to change them for the
purpose OF escaping liabilities on account
OF such Indebtedness. 1t is not necessary
TO Gle instances to sustain this PROPOSE
tlon. 10 illustrate, the county of Wash
ington, composed of parts of Grant and
Dona Ana counties might be established
and the taxes for maintaining the coun-
ties after such a change would be assessed
and collected within the new limits. The
taxes for the purpose of paying the in.
terest and principal of existing county
indebtedness in the portions of the terri
tory cut off from Dona Ana and Grant
could be collected just as if no new
county had ever been established; that
part of the territory going to make up
the new county taken from Dona Ana
county would continue to pay taxes for
the satisfaction of the indebtedness of
that county as heretofore. Likewise
Deming and the rest of the territory
taken from Grant county could be as
sessed and taxes collected as heretofore
for the payment Of the indebtedness of
Grant county. The details for working
out the assessment and collection of these
taxes would be very simple, and it is not
necessary to state them here.
It occurs to me that it is worth while
to suggest this solution of what seems to
be stumbling block to progress at least
for what it is worth. It needs no argu-
ment, and simple investigation will
sustain the proposition that where
criminal and civil process has to be SER
i1ri 80
miles from the county seat, and prisoners
conveyed over distance of hundred
miles to county seat, that we can not
have an economical administration of
county affairs. The holding of elections
in counties where precincts are hundreds
OF miles, or at least more than 100 miles
from the county seat, is also very ex-
pensive matter. have not adverted to
the want of personal knowledge of condi-
lions and expenditures on the part of
county commissioners in the larger coun-
ties. Very slight investigation will prove
that in all the larger counties thousands !
Of dollars are uselessly dissipated every
year by reason of the great distance of
outlying precincts from the county seat.
This is especially true in the counties
where there are considerable towns and |
oopulous settlements remote from the
county seat.
While our legislators are speaking Of
eforms in public expenditures why
hould they not get some exact data from
he records of the different boards of
county commissioners as to the different
TENS of expenditure in the shape of fees,
mileage for witnesses and Jurors, prison
re-, costs OF maintaining jails and feed
ng prisoners in the different counties,
nd other items of public expenditures.
here can be no doubt it this was done
haiti would furnish an unanswerable
rgument ia favor of county division,
'hether 1T be Grant, Bernalilio, Valencia
r any other county.
w p Curnpps