The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-12-30
FRIDAY December 30, 1898
WISE COUNSEL TO LEGISLATORS

The Demesratic party promised tn
people economy. 1t made no specific
pledges, but told the voters that public
officers should be paid fair and reason
able compensation and nothing more
The Legislature win be called upon t
give careful scrutiny to all salaries am,
fees, State and county, and to make sucl
reductions as economy demands. Th
editor of the Chatham Record, one
the most accurate and one of the hes.
posted men in the State, has an editoria
in his paper this week which will b.
widely commended by the taxpayers o
the State 1t is so timely that we Civ
space to it in full:
THE Legislature when it meets mex
week is expected to do much more tina
it, or any other Legislature, can do. Blu
one thing it can do, and that is, II
duce some of the fees now paid to on
officers. This is wherein our Fusio.
legislators most signally failed to d
their duty and to fulfill their oft-repeate6
promises.
Everybody remembers one of the ia
yorite campaign cries of the so-ealle.
'reformers" was the promise TO "reduc
all fees and salaries to correspond wit
the low prices of farm products" The,
complained loudly that our public off
~cials We're receiving as much for thei
work as they ever did, while. the farm.
ers were not receiving over half as muc
for their work. But when these pre-
1ad srsafn No, ha 4
keep their promise, they signally faile
to do so. and did not reduce any fee
or salaries.
Now, while the members of our Dem
ocratic Legislature did not make an
such promise in the last campaign, We
we would impress upon them the prf
priety of carefully considering the fee
allowed all our public officers and II
ducing all that seem proper to reduce
And there is no doubt that many fee.
ought to be reduced. A special commit
tee on the reduction of fees and salarie
ought to be appointed by the Legislature
and our present fee-bills carefully scan.
ned so that proper reductions may b
made.
I'VE will not here attempt TO call at
tention to all the fees that ought to b
reduced, but will cite one or two i
order to show the propriety, il not ne
eessity. of this important matter beine
carefully considered by our legislator
Take as an illustration the office of regis
ter Of deeds, which is one Of the bes
paying offices in every county. Anon.
the fat fees received by the register
% cents for every order issued by tb
county commissioners, without regard
the amount of the order. For instanc
at the last meeting of the commissioner
Of this county an order was issued t
remit % cents ON the taxes of one o
our citizens, and the county had to pa
the register % cents to record and issue
this order,
THE register is ex-officio clerk Of tn
board Of county commissioners and i
paid 50 day for his services as such
and it does not seem right that he shoult
be paid IN additional % cents for ever
order made by them, when usually h.
issues most of these orders on the SAM
day that they are made. In this wa
the register of deeds frequently receive
$50 for one days work-and not q HARD
days work at that.
Another expense that ought TO b.
cut off is the payment by the county 70
filling up the blank tax receipts for TIL.
sheriff. his Work nau always Dee0 uOll
by the sheriff without extra pay, unit
the Legislature of 1898 ordered the coun
~ commissioners to have it done for th
sheriff. and each Legislature since thei
has Incorporated this useless expense il
its revenue act. For this work the coun
ties pay on an average about 500 apiece
every year, thus making nearly $4,000
a year paid by the people of North Car
Nor their sheriffs. Usually any MAJ
is glad to fill up, or write. receipt 70
any money paid him, and our sheriff
ought to do so just as they always dit
before 1893