Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1900-06-01
STILL UNANSWERED.
"Citizen" Asks That the Times Explain
These Facts.

EDITOR GAZETTE:
Again I notice that the Corvallis Times
does not deny that Mr.. Waters claimed
on the stump that he was an oyer-worked
/ oMcial by registering the voters gratis.
The fact is, he was masquerading before
the public as hero, when he had an un-
derstanding with the members of the
county court that he should receive for
this extra work the wages that an extra
deputy clerk would cost the county. The
Times says, Waters has not received a
cent for registering votes" Granted, yet
he expects to enforce his agreement with
the members of the county court and get
in the neighborhood of $195 for these SER
vices. Everybody who read the Times
notice of his work, mentioned about two
weeks ago in this particular, knows it
was to be understood by that notice that
Mr.. Waters was doing this work free of
charge for the county. Let Mr.. Waters
now deny that he at first asked for a
special deputy to do this work, and then
asked to do it himself for special depu-
tvs hire, and then did il with the full
expectation of receiving this extra pay, if
he truthfully can do so. A statement that
che has not received cent for registering
voters" does not say that he does not ex-
pect to do so, nor that he and the Times
did not wish it understood by the public
that he was doing SO without extra pay.
He does not deny, nor does the Times for
a month deputy hire, thereby costing the
county money in defending the suit.
Does that action look like great love for
Benton county? He was then by law
getting S. per day for every day in the
month. including Sundays, for services
as county clerk, yet he sues the county
for deputy hire for James Skipton at $50
month. Does this prove great devotion
by him to our interests?
Again he does not deny the fact that
he requires the attorneys in all the cases
to prepare all journal entries for him per-
tanning to the conrt business. We re-
peat, Messrs. Wilson and Hunter were
able to write up the court records with
out The aid of lawyer, and did so as do
all other clerks than Mr.. Waters. He
is in that regard mere copyist, S.
day copyist at that, to say nothing of the
extras he draws down for deputy hire.
He does not deny that the present law
puts the purchase of all supplies in the
clerks Office in the hands of the clerk,
and he is the only county official allowed
this privilege, and that he puts out these
orders without bids and does not thus
protect the county from exorbitant
charges for the same.
He does not deny that he importuned
the court for the extra furniture recently
pat in the clerks Office at cost of 1892
and that he asked for about as much
more.
The records show that Mr.. Waters
never paid much taxes and it is of small
Importance to him whether we do SO or
not What is Benton county to him
who has only lived in the county, as at
present bounded, as an officer, feeding at
the public crib. His interests are not
ours; we have kept him ever since he
came to Corvallis, and he does not feel
the heavy rate of taxation that we have
to bear, or he would certainly protect us
per annum, extras for tax
rolls, extra furniture, extra everything
except extra work by the clerk.
Let us have man for clerk in SYM
pathy with Benton county who can take
the clerks Office and run it with less ap-
petite for expenses. CITIZEN.
May 81, 1900.