The age-herald., 1899-01-22

(Continued from Twelfth Page). ~~--~-~---~-~~--~-~-~-~-~~~ ished by the engineer-when they have one; but very frequently the commissioners pass upon the work themselves, make out an ac- count, bring 1t before the court and it Is allowed.
 COUNTY PHYSICIAN AND HEALTH
 OFFICER.
 The court has employed for the two years past county physician at salary of slOo per month, and in addition to this health officer at salary of $75 per month. have not undertaken to foot up the enormous amounts paid by the county on account Of the smallpox epidemic last year. During this period additional amounts were paid for medical assistance and health officers.
 For the two years past find, in addition to the salary paid the county physician, he has received $S0T5 for assistance and eX- penses. l find there was paid the health officer, in addition to his salary, for extra services, visits to the pest house, attending smallpox patient and expenses, the sum of $2S3.2. Dr. w. L. Rosamond was paid s9S.50 as assistant health officer for Warrior pr. J. D. Heacock was allowed $l66.35 for one and two-thirds months treating smallpox patients.
 The amount of $4,SS2.20 was expended for vaccine virus for the county. In addition to this, ascertained that the city expended s230 for the same purpose. There was paid for vaccination the sum of $1,045.59. From the vouchers examined it seems that these accounts were paid in a most reckless man. ner, very few of them being itemized and none of them sworn to.
 SETTLEMENT OF THE R. G. HEWETT
 MATTER.
 In May, 1897, upon the examination of the books of Ex-Tax Collector Hewett, Exami- her Foster discovered that that gentleman was due the state and county considerable sums. A settlement of this matter was had with the state, and also with the county. From MT. Fosters report ascertained that MT. Hewett was due the county the sum of $2.6337 IS and interest from July 1, 1896, $4S.S .S3 with interest from July 1, 1895, $2.42 with interest from July 1, 1893, and $53.21 with n- terest from July 1, 1892. By calculating the interest on these amounts to date of settle ment with the county, and adding same to principal, it will be seen that the total in- debtedness of MT. Hewett to the county was $2.960.67
 At the June term of the commissioners court find the following order upon the minutes
 "It is ordered by the court that the sum of $2,300 be accepted from R. G. Hewett. ex-tax collector of Jefferson county, as final settlement of amounts with which he should have been charged from 1891 to 1885,"
 Upon examining MT. Hewett in regard to this settlement he states that this was all he paid, and was to be in full of all de- mands the county held against him; that there were errors made against himself in previous years amounting to $40O, for which he had never received credit. He had for gotten these items and after settling with the county he had lost or misplaced the data and had dismissed the subject from his mind The testimony of some of the commissioners amounts to about the same thing with regard to the settlement The no upon the subject.
 At the December term of the court the minutes showed the following order to have been passed:
 "It appearing to the satisfaction of the court, from due evidence submitted, that there Is a manifest error in the assessment for the year 1897 of R. G. Hewett of money solvent credits (money loaneD of S5,200, the taxes on said amount being $5S.S0; it fur ther appearing to the satisfaction of the court that the above amount of S5,200 was claimed by the state and county under State Examiner Fosters report, and that the said R. G. Hewett has paid $5,2O0 over to the state and county, it is therefore or dered by the court that the tax collector of said county deduct from the taxes of said R. G. Hewett the said sum of s59.S0, the amount of the taxes due on the said sum of $5, 200. and that the tax collector of said county have credit for the said amount of $59.S0 in his settlement with the court in errors of assessment for the year 1S97"
 The report of Examiner Foster shows that MT. Hewett admitted its correctness. and the state collected from him the full amount, principal and interest, shown by that report to have been due. The county failed to get about one-fourth the amount due it.
 ACTION OF THE COURT IN REGARD
 TO TAX MATTERS.
 This matter has been the subject of close Investigation. and from all the evidence de- duced am forced to the conclusion that a majority of the court have been influenced by the corporations to such extent that the state and county treasuries have suf- fered the loss of many thousands of dol- lars. In 1897 after the passage of the back tax commission law Mir H. l.. Badham was ap- pointed tax commissioner for this county. In the discharge of his duties he presented to the court of the county commissioners a number of corporations and asked that the valuations of their property be in- creased. Although backed by tho most in- disputable testimony that the valuations given to the assessor were entirely too low, the court turned a deaf ear to his ap- peals. and in nearly every instance yielded to the corporations and refused his de- mands. The cases were appealed to the cir cult court. That court held the records of the commissioners incomplete and the transcript sent up from that court void In the meantime MT. Badham began in vigiant manner his efforts upon the cor porations How successful were these ef- forts is shown that by compromising with many of them he succeeded in getting them to increase the valuation of their property to such an extent that there was paid di- rectly to tho state treasurer about $10,0 900. Owing to the adverse action of the commis- sioners' court the county received nothing; had the action been favorable. the county would have received about s 900. To show the untenableness of the position held by majority of the court, the assessment lists for the succeeding year will show that these same corporations voluntarily gave in their property at an increase of half million dollars.
 I have attached to this report in an ap- pendix a list of these corporations showing the valuations of their property rendered to the assessor, the amounts proposed to be raised by the tax commissioner, the ac- tion of the court etc. Tn order to show the