The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1899-05-23


the purpose. But the county having
increased in population and wealth
very greatly since that time. has
caused the business of the several
county officials to far outgrow the
office-room assigned to them, and the
vaults have become filled and over
crowded with records and other valu-
able papers, which cannot be duplicat-
ed, and upon which rests the titles to
the real estate and other property of
the people of the county, SO that today
a new and more commodious court
house is imperatively needed.
The county clerks Office is SO small
that the clerk has been compelled to
fence off with a counter small space
for the general public to transact busi-
ness with his Office. His vaults are
filled upon all their walls and clear
to the top. with files and book racks
full Of records, and as the county busi-
ness grows it will be necessary for him
in the future, unless his vault room is
enlarged, to pile valuable books upon
the floor of the vault.
The county commissioners are now
confronted with the problem of provid
ing more vault room for the county
clerk. It is absolutely necessary in
order to furnish the proper protection
to the county records and can only be
settled by building new vault in con-
nection with the present one, which
has been estimated to cost at least
$1,000.
And what we say about the county
clerks vault will also apply equally as
we'll to the vault of every other county
official; and all vaults are so poorly
lighted that it is necessary, in hunting
for a record in any of them, to light a
candle in order to get light enough to
find what is wanted. The superinten-
dent of schools, the sheriff, the assessor
and the county attorney have no vaults
whatever, and the superintendent of
schools is obliged to use jury room
as his office, which he must vacate dur
ing each term of court, while the coun-
ty attorney has no office whatever, he
being compelled to rent an Office for
himself in the Belknap block. Besides
this, the county surveyor has no Office
at all,
The building being fourteen years
old, has reached the point where repairs
have become considerable item Of ex-
pense, it being shown by the county
clerks last annual statement that fuel
and expense during the year ending
November 80, 1893, amounted to
$556.32, and county buildings and re-.
pairs amounted to $602. 90, a total of
81, 1873. 81. The Jail is in about the
same condition as is the county court
trouse. The county has but recently
completed improvements on it costing
$4OO.
Aside from the question of economy,
the burning Of the court house at Red
Lodge has shown beyond doubt that
should our present court house be con
sumed by fire. every record which is
kept in the vaults would be destroyed.
The vaults for the court house in Red
Lodge were built outside of the court
house building, which was constructed
of wood. and connected with the build
ing by steel doors and air spaces, such
as every modern vault has, and superior
in construction to the vaults which
this county has in its court house. The
walls of the Red Lodge vaults were
made fully as thick as the walls of our
vaults and constructed of brick, just as
ours are; and yet when the Red Lodge
court house burned, papers and books
in the vault of the county clerk were so
badly charred upon the outside that
they could not be handled without the
ends Of the papers and the covers of
the books breaking off in many cases.
And the wooden frames in which the
papers and books were kept were SO
charred by th. heat that parts of them
could be taken III the hands and broken
like charcoal, notwithstanding the
building did not fall upon the vaults,
but fell in. Should our court house be
burned, the vaults. being between the
brick walls of the building, all the
woodwork above would fall upon the
vaults and there be consumed; and the
water thrown upon the heated brick
walls would crack the vault walls, so
that the vaults would be little or no
protection for the records, and they
undoubtedly could not be saved.
The destroying of county records
would be of incalculable loss to the
county and would work hardship upon
many Of the inhabitants and property
owners of Yellowstone county, who, in
a great many instances. would be- una
BILE to prove ownership to their real
estate holdings. To replace the books
and blanks would mean an outlay to
the county of something like $4,000.
All these items are worthy of careful
The main portion of the city of Daw-