The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1898-10-07

latterly is not very great, as it is much
less in quantity and is shared with the
county judge who has equal Jurisdiction
The present salary as fixed by the statute
population scale is 800 per year for
the principal and Obligatory by statute)
a deputy at half that salary, and the net
result of these later statutes is, that the
clerk of courts Office now costs the
county some $4,000 year which is paid
to the same officers for the same duties
thatipreviously cost the county nothing.
The county judges Office is however
the greatest snap in the business. The
ideas of our legislators seem to have
gradually grown as to the great dignity
and importance of this Office as the years
have gone by and the amount of addi-
tional little things with salary added, to
his honor the judge, shows that somebody
or some bodies have had great pull at
Bismarck. Time was, back in the sos,
that the judge ofprobate as then called,
had to be content with the fees. Later
a $500 salary was attached. At the time
the present official was put in office in
1891 he was pleased to get an annual
salary of s., ,275; no clerk hire then. His
next term of 1s93-94 the salary rose to
81, ,825 for each year. In 1895, S2,325; in
1895, $2,2l5; in 1897, 1920, and up to
August of this year he has drawn $1s5
for each month. That is, for the seven
years and eight months of office he has
received as salary as county judge the
sum of s14, ,440. And we can name
twenty capable men in this city who
would perform all the duties of the Off
ce of the county judge for s., 200 per year
and think it q snap and in most cases it
would not interfere to any great extent
with their present lines of business. But
this is not all. The legislature prompted
doubtless by disinterested persons, saw
fit to give the county judge nice little
side snap and made him ex-officio a
member of the county board of insanity.
This isn't much of course, but in the
seven years of the present incumbent's
time, by the auditors books, it has add
ed the nice little sum of $704. .o3 tothe
other $l4,440 salary and clerk hire.
There are several other little side lines
that come in ''ex-oficio," such as an
occasional marriage, fnal proofs, \con-
veyancing, and if the officer is an attor-
ney some law practice, etc. The statute
provides, "For the purpose of reinburs-
ing the county for the salaries provided
in the foregoing section" certain fees
must be paid by estates, etc. to be turn
ed into the county, which fees according
to thelast published statement, amount to
the magnificent accumulation of $664.26
for the year ending Dec. 31st, 1897. What
we think is, that if the county judge were
paid an amount equal to the fees turned
into the county, and a salary of $500 or
$500 additional, what with his other side
lines that would naturally come to him
by virtue of his office, he would be a
well-paid officer, and there would be
plenty of applicants for the office, while
the county would be about 81, COO ahead;
and to us it seems that $4,000 in the
clerks office and $4,000 in the county
judges office is a yearly sum worth saw
ing. 1t would pay all the countys bond
ed indebtedness in few years.