Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-02-26
County Auditors Will Petition Leg
islature for Favorable Action.
ANNUAL CONVENTION JUST CLOSED
Auditors Are Poorest Paid of County
Officiais-Will Ask That Present De-.
fects in Railroad and Telephone AS.
sessments Be Corrected.
[ From Saturdays Daily.]

From Saturdays Daily.1
County Auditor I. H. Hammond re-
turned last night from Des Moines
Where he has been in attendance at
The annual meeting of the County
Auditors association of Iowa, which
was in session at the Slavery
hotel, Thursday and Friday of this
week. Much important business was
transacted during the meeting. and
some matters of state wide import
ance taken under consideration One
OF the matters that was decided on
was to ask that county auditors be
given more salary.
They are, the poorest paid of the
county officers and they will repeat
their demands for financial recognition
at the next meeting of the legislature.
Such was the decision of the legisla-
tive committee yesterday morning,and
committee was appointed to look af-
ter the matter and see that it is prop
erly presented and cared for in the
Twenty-ninth general assembly. The
auditors get $1,000 per year. County
treasurers get $1,000, while recorders
get fees limited to a similar amount
County clerks get $1,000, and in most
instances probate fees bring their sal
airy up to $780,
In addition to this the auditors want
the present defects in the railroad and
telephone assessments corrected. At
the present time the secretary of the
executive council certifies the mileage
of railroads by assessment districts,
while the auditors want the same GER
titled by school districts, on account
of the fact that the levies of the diff
ferent districts vary and it is neces-
sary to know the exact mileage in
compute the tax.
These are the two principal griev-
ances of the auditors. The annual
convention in session yesterday and
the day before finished it's business
shortly after noon, and at 2 o'clock
the auditors went in a body to the
state house, where they were shown
thru the offices and met the different
state officers.
Yesterday morning the session was
devoted to the discussion of railroad
and telegraph assessments, and to the
construction of the law with regard
to the building of drainage bitches
Auditor Weaver, of Kossuth county
raised a number of interesting ques
lions on these subjects.
Regarding railroad assessments he
stated that in Kossuth county in ono
of the towns the railroad owned a
number of vacant blocks which they
were not az present using for railroad
! purposes, but which were being held
/ for future use. These were assessed
locally in spite of the fact that the
auditor received certificate from the
secretary of the executive council
stating that this property was includ
ed in the state assessment.
The railroad company was notified
of the assessment, but refused to pay
the same, contending that it was a
double assessment. Two years taxes
are now delinquent, but the county
| treasurer has never advertised the
land for sale, nor has he sold it for
taxes. Some of the auditors express
ed an opinion that the property was
| included within the assessment of The
railroad by the executive council
whereupon Auditor Weaver asked
what should be done where the com
pany owned eighty acres of land
| bought originally for a gravel pit, six
| ty acres of which were rented out To
a farmer for hay purposes, and only
| twenty used as a gravel pit.
John McQuiston, deputy state treas
urer and former auditor of Polk coun.
ty said that he was of the opinion
| that where the company rented out