The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1901-03-28
A FEW FACTS IN REPLY
To- REPORT or EXPERT
COMMITTEE

TO the Expert cOulmlGUee re-
port as published in grand jury
presentments last week.
In the first place they say moth
ng as to whether my books. are
correct or incorrect-one of them
told me some time ago that my
books were correct.
| notice that they claim to fiud
that | have received from the
county illegally, So, 369,75 for at
tending the county business for
ten years, and claim that this
amount, together with interest
thereon, making in all 81, 645. "A,
should be paid back to the county.
NV accounts for services to the
county have always been made
up as the law directs, (see Sec.
5402. Code 1880 examined, APP
proved and ordered paid by the
grand jury at each term of the
court. ] never received a dollar
any other way | do not owe
Cobb county cent.
have drawn by approval Of
twenty different grand juries,
made up of 400 or 800 of the best
men in the county, the gross
amount of 1894 for ten years
service attending to county bust
ness-take from this $500, low
estimate for expenses, horses and
buggies, railroad fare, lodging,
etc, and | have left "a 1874, or
$4S9. 40 per year. Now take from
this amount what the experts"
say should pay back, 81 ,645, and
/ am left $248 for my ten years
service.
| claim there is no justice in
such dealing as this. l do not
think the taxpayers of Cobb coun-
ty want to take from me money
that | have earned and am Justly
entitled to.
These experts" claim that the
wording of my accounts make
them illegal. l think things
should be reckoned by the intent
and purpose and not so much by
the wording or language of it.
By using the terms warrant"
and "order" ] meant to convey
the idea of the volume of the
work and duties connected with
them which led up to their issue.
| could have used other language
and conveyed the idea of services
performed just as we'll,
| performed the service and at
tended to the county business for
ten years, rendered my accounts
to the proper and legal authority
they were considered reasonable
just and correct. and were ordered
paid by said authority, the grand
jury. ! have been paid, and the
county has not been wronged out
Of a nickel.
] notice on the account | rem
dered to the grand jury last Au
gust for my compensation from
November 30 to March 1900, o
which grand jury Dr.. Mcintosh
was Foreman, that the said &C
count was approved and ordered
paid, and bears on 1t this endorse
ment -
The within approved.
August, 1900,
By the Grand Jury LIST week
March Adjourned Term of Cobb
Superior Court.
Bayard l., Mcintosh,
I Foreman. "
Now the DR.. condemns the &C
count and says it must be paiC
back.
Complaints have been mad
about our taxes for the past tw
or three years. | suppose every
body knows it takes money t.
build court houses, bridges am
roads. Seven>or eight grand iur
les had recommended the build
ing of Il court house. The neces
sity of it was, apparent to all
Roswell bridge and Others had t,
be rebuilt. We might have is
sued bonds and had the peopl
paying interest on them for tel
or twenty years, but we did no
think this best. We believed tn,
people had rather strain a poin
and get through with these ex
penses, and i'll our opinion it wai
certainly better business to rails,
the money and pay for them
than to collect taxes to pay inter
est for number of years. In al
this we have had an unusual crisis
upon us that will not likely come
again in many years.
The undertaking and plan OF
the court house was authorized by
numerous grand iuries, and the
np1 i1,o nv xxto.c a,,kl, 1,,;.aI L 1