The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-11-24
Singular Action Taken BY the
County Commissioners Yesterday.
HELD A SPECIAL SESSION
-SoNLY HALL AND RAWLINS
WERE PRESENT.
Warren Foster Puts In a Twelve
Cent Bid, and On Populist Halls
Motion, It Is Adopted-Whole
Proceeding Believed to Be Illegal
Another Session.


The board of county commissioners,
or rather, bare quorum of the board,
transacted a very peculiar piece of
business yesterday afternoon in special
session. Chairman Armstrong had
gone on visit to his Idaho ranch and,
taking advantage, it appeared, of his
absence, Commissioner Hall proceeded
to exert his influence.
Commissioner Rawlins, the other
member present, was made chairman
pro TEN, and his colleague did the pro-
posing. Bids from The Herald. News
and Tribune for publishing the delin-
quent tax list had heretofore been con-
Sidered and rejected, not from any lr-
regularity or presumed lack of respon-
sibility, but because the board deemed
the proposals too high. The prime OBJ
ject Of giving the fullest publicity pos
sible to the notices of delinquency and
sale was in view when bids were so
lcited for publication in the daily and
Semi-weekly editions. The Herald's bid
was at the rate Of 25 cents per name
anu description, which rate is the same
as allowed by law and collected by the
county The other two bidders propos-
ed 2S15 cents and 35 cents, respectively.
AT yesterdays meeting of the board
q bid was received from Warren Fos
ter publisher of Living Issues propos-
ing TO print the list for y cents per
name and description, the type-setting
4 9o be done by the Western Newspaper
= union.
Commissioner Halls favoritism for
the Populist editor manifested itself
very plainly. He urged the acceptance
OF Fosters bid, and Commissioner
Rawlins announced his concurrence.
The county attorney was directed to
draw a form of contract and bond for
ance Of the obligation, the bond to be
in the sum of $1,000.
The law requires in mandatory terms
that the delinquent tax list shall be
published for q period of ten DAYS in
newspaper having a general circula-
ton in the county. Considering the
question of composition by hand and
giving the weekly Populist sheet every
doubt as to extent and frequency Of
circulation and also as to how far re-
moved it is from in reality being a
newspaper, it is difficult to see how
Commissioner Halls protege can hon
estly comply with all the requirements
of the law relative to this important
publication.
The irregularity Of the call for the
special meeting viii necessitate at least
a reassembling of the commissioners
and a ratification of yesterdays strange
proceedings. When the question of ir-
regularity was raised last evening, the
two commissioners, on the county at
torney's suggestion, concluded ito take
another try tomorrow afternoon.
If the proposed plan of publishing
the delinquent tax list in sheet that
nobody win see prevails, it is a moral
certainty that such cloud of doubt
viii surround the matter of tax sales
that few if any investors will care to
risk their money in purchases, result
ing inevitably in the county, for itself
and a trustee for the state city and
school funds, having 10 bid in the
amounts of delinquency, which will be
very large, rather than receiving the
taxes and costs of publication and sale
4A0m investors who would hold the
IMurchased liens for redemption. A
vOidance of the whole proceeding by
legal process is another probability.
Before yesterdays session adjourned.
the treasurer was directed to notify
each delinquent taxpayer, after publ
cation, of the amount of his delin-
quency. How much Mr.. Foster viii re-
ceive for extra papers containing the
notice has not yet been stated by Mr.
Hall.