The age-herald., 1899-01-27

" IH/I|lW7
 | which warrants were drawn by the com missioners for their services show ten days general business ten days inspecting roads, | six days special service at court house | From all the evidence it appears that each l one claims to have spent about l2O oays | each year inspecting roads; one tMorroW) | testified that he got his transportation al | ways from one stable; the bills paid that l stable the examiner says, show that ne could not have been on road duty over 1 twenty-five days, and yet he drew for more 1 than 100 days pay for that service In two l years $700 was paid out for horse ana pugsy l hre-nearly all to the commissioners theni- l selves-this is about equal to the entire l cost of commissioners in the average coun- l ty. The number of inspections that could 1 have been made by four ailigent and faith l ful men, devoting 100 days each year to 1 the service can well be imagined
 1 They generally drew $15 month for horse | and buggy hire for this business, and this | sum was drawn for the three months that l they were wholly engaged at the court | house.
 l The examiner says that in no case (except as to two, one not now member, was any 1 ftemized or sworn account of these services, 1 as the law requires, presented, nor did the | court order any account paid; the commis- sioners would simply call on the clerk TOT l warrants they kept no accounts and relied on their memories.
 | It is hardly necessary to say that under | this generous system the four commission- 1 CTS drew for the two years ending Septem- l Der l. 1898, s12,S00.38 an average of over l S6 400 per annum. The county of Montgom- cry paid four members of its board Of reVe- l nue (excluding clerk) less than $l 800 per an- | num- The revenues of Montgomery county | paid to the state are about Sl25'ON against mn Iaffa Dallas paid its entire board of revenue, live | members. for 1897, about $6s0 for all services and allowances; and for 1898, about $eOO, or | about half what the county of Jefferson pays one member of it's court The county | of Mobile pays it's members of the poard or l revenue $500 each and mileage. Inese three l counties combined-excepting Jefferson, the | largest in population and wealth Tn the 1 state-get all their affairs managed at less | than it costs the single county or JeHersol. | The county of Ialladega paid last year all l the members of it's court for all services, | $520.
 That there was no authority, whatever, to draw SIS month for horse hire seems never to have been considered by the com missioners, with one exception, until after the probate judge refused to pay. an | gratifed to state that some of the money | has been refunded. The examiner thihhS there is no authority to draw for road serv-
 
 Fuel, Lights and Water
 The examiner shows that the cost to the l tax payers of Jefferson county for lighting the court house and jail and furnishing them with heat and water, including lce' l for the year ending September l, lS9', az | gregated $4,646.OS and for the year endlhg September l, 1898, $4 ,233.36, or an average I cost of over 4.4OO each year. The amount a COnSumDtlOn or neElr- | iv i 900 tons for court house and jail. He- | ports made to me by the probate judges or | Mobile, Montgomery, Madison, Calhoun, | Talladega, Wilcox, Hale, Butler and Hen ry-nine amongst the very largest couhties l in the state (and where coal IS generaly 1 used and at double the cost in JeHersol' 1 shows that the entire cost of all these couh- | ties for the same purpose, for the year | 1seR was s4. .S9, being less than the average oost in the one county of Jefferson. Ihe | largest hotel in Birmingham pays Tor these l items of coal and water $1, ,0S3 against about | s33 300 by the county.
 The examiner reports that the contract | for coal was deliberately let to the highest bidder. who was fortunate enough to be represented by a brother of one of the com uissioners. that no record was kept of the transaction no contract made; the only excuse given for this was by one commits | siouer (tbe relative), who stated that the court knew coal could not be furnished at | a lower price than that offered by the high- est bidder. The jealousy with which the court seems to have guarded the interest or | the people is shown by the fact that only | three or four bills paid for coal were item ized to show the number of tons. and not l one sworn to- in fragrant violation or the l law of the land. The care that the court I took to prevent other bidders from injuring 1 themselves by bidding too low, or to pre- | ,i,,II 1n | weights is worthy of consideration.
 1 Aims House
 The examiner reports that the cost Of keeping paupers has exceeded $S.5o per cap- ita per month or a Title more than the 1 young ladies of the Girls Industrial School | are required to pay for board, light, wash l ing, etc The county has an aims house | and 100 acres of land on which is grown l much of the supplies needed, and yet to l maintain from forty-five to fifty inmates it l cost the county an average of over s5,000 per annum for each of the last two years.
 1 Reports from the probate judges of nine 1 amongst the largest counties In the state 1 show that the average cost of maintaining l paupers Is less than $6 and some are well | maintained at & or less than half the cost | in Jefferson. In addition to this large ex-
 pense the people of Jefferson, through their 1 commissioners, pay out an average of over l $1, 700 per annum to persons outside of the l poor house, some getting as much as sS per f month and upon orders which seem to 1 have been given without any consideration | by the court but at the pleasure of each l comm ssioner, and once to strangers pass | ing through the city of Birmingham. 1 Appropriations are also made to other 1 charitable institutions. so that the people l of Jefferson county were taxed for char l tiles and donations disbursed through their l commissioners for the last two years more | than s15.000. or more than all the money i taken from the people of the average l county in Alabama for all county purposes The examiner reports that "the vouchers
 were passed upon in a grossly careless and 1 reckless manner, that no regard was paid | to the plainest mandates of the law; that 1 of many hundred accounts he found only l about thirty sworn to or itemized."
 l It is hardly necessary with such a report of sworn and faithful officer before you ] to Invite your attention to losses occurring