The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1897-06-16

i'll the new ...s.ty would have to be
Tlado fr0Hl anderson and ~Greenville
Court Houses, besides q record Of all ex-
listing mortgages. This alone would re-
quire an expenditure Of from ten to TWEEN
ty thousand dollars, and then we would
be at the beginning, for there is not one
tract Of land in fivo that has not at some
time been sold, either for tho purpose of
partition, or under a judgment, execution
or mortgage; and the full records of these
cases, as they appear in the Court of
would be necessary to determine the va
lidity of q title. While it might be claim
ed that this is no part OF the COunty's
duty, but would fall upon the individual
land owner; still, the expense would do
volve upon the inhabitants Of these Sec
tions, and would be equally b~urdensome,
whether levied in the form OF taxes, or as
officers and attorneys fees.
The establishment of G new County
would require occasional visits from all
Of the citizens in its territory. When
these visits can be made and other bust
ness transacted at the same time they arc
not so burdensome, whereas if nothing
could be attended to when the County
seat was visited except the legal business
which carried one there the time would be
regarded as wasted. Williamson has
never been a commercial centre by rea-
son of it's location and lack of railroad IA
cilities and it can never become one
though a Court House were established
there, because the towns Of Anderson,
Bolton, Pelzsr and Piedmont are SO near
it, and the facilities for buying, shipping
aud using cotton are 30 much better at
these points that Williamson could never
thrive. Therefore, evo if q man lived
nearer to Williamson, not being able to
attend to anything but his legal business
there and having to 60 elsewhere TO do
his trading, he would lose far more time
than by going to a more distant place
where both trading and legal business
could be attended to.
Williamson would no doubt do her
best as a town toward building the Court
House and Jail, but she has not sufficient
property within her boundaries to defray
the necessary expenses, though she went
to the limit allowed by the Constitution.
Under the law, q municipality cannot in
cur a larger debt than s per cent. of its
taxable value. as appears upon the Audi
tors books for State and County taxes.
It is not claimed that q suitable Court
House end Jail could be built for less
than $685. 900, and the experience of most
of the Counties shows that the cost
amounts to nearer $40, 900, when all is in
Guided. Now the Auditors books show
that Williamson has $4,000 of real estate
and S33, 900 Of personal property; s per
cent. Of this would would be only Sc,
$1,000, one.fourth of the minimum
amount required for this purpose; hence
it is very clear that, il we take for grant,
ed that bonds will be issued, which is
really an open question until the election
is held, we must conclude that a portion
of the cost of the Court House and Jail
would still fall upon the new territory.
Greenwood, which has probably five
times the taxable property of William
ston, guaranteed to build the Court House
the County was established legal pro.
council from carrying out their agree
ment, II ground taken among others,
being that a town can only issue bonds
for that which benefits the town as q mu-
nicipality, whereas the Court House and
Jail are for the benefit ofthe whole county.
While this suit did not 60 to final judg-
ment, the petitioners succeeded in Ob-
tanning an agreement from the city Dun
Gil not to issue the bonds until additional
authority was given them by the Legis-
lature. The result is that Greenwood is
a new County and the town Of Greenwood
has not built the Court House and Jail,
and probably never will. That would
necessarily be our condition, and if the
new County is established, it may as we'll
be understood that the County will build
the Court House and Jail.
Anderson County has no debt except
that lately assumed for tho Court House
and Jail. The new County must bear its
pro rata share of this debt without receiv-
ing any benefit from that Court House
and Jail. Greenville County, on the 9TH
er hand, has a large bonded and floating
debt, a large part Of which was incurred
for railroad construction. The new
County, including that portion of Ander-
SON., will have to its proportion
of this debt without deriving any benefit
from the taxos on these railroads, which
would work a manifest hardship to the
new County. This, however, does not
relate to tho township bonded debt in
Oak Lawn and Dunklin townships for the
G., K. & W. r. r., which will remain on
the respective townships whether they
stay in the old County or go into the now
County!
The territory set off for the proposed
williamson County embraces the Saluds
River with five bridges. Reedy River
with ten. besides Grove Creek and other
streams. The cost of maintaining all
these numerous bridges will BIO q heavy
tax on the new County which is now
borne in part by Anderson and Greenville
Counties.
Some confusion has arisen in conso-
quence of both elections being ordered
for the same day. 1t is well, therefore,
for the voters living in such portions as
are claimed by both new Counties to re-
member that they can vote against both
proposed Counties by putting a mo"
vote in each box, and they should take
pains to do this, for every voter who is
opposed to the now County, by staying
at home practically gives two votes to the
new County, as they must carry each Sec
ton by q two-thirds vote. For the same
reason, every voter who votes against the
new County kills two votes on the other
side. No new County has yet been es-
tablished and voters have the privilege to
remain in their old County or 60 into a
new n THOMAS j. MATIN,
Chairman.
P. D. Huff,
Joseph w. Sullivan,