Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1902-12-17
County is Paid So, 5o5.l7, the
Amount of the Lyford
Shortage.
MR.. COX TRANSFERS HIS FARM
Offers of Financial Assistance Made
to SuperVi-
sOrs.

|
in full with the finance committee of
the county board for the amount of
Lyford's shortage. SS.5O5.17. Those
who will divide the loss are Phil Nit
chell, Joseph Rosenficld and Mrs
Mary L. Robinson, executrix of the
will of the late j. +. Robinson, of this
city; John NJ. Gould and II. y. Aims
worth, of Moline, and j. w. Simonson
and f. Z. Rogers, of Port Byron.
OF the above amount Mr.. Cox has
made good $1,000 by turning over to
the bondsmen his 4O-acre farm in lieu
of that amount of cash. The deed
was transferred yesterday and Mr..
Cox was given 80 days in which to
purchase back the homestead at the
same figure. He still has one-third
interest in the estate left by his
mother.
! The finance committee is meeting
with some success in its efforts to
provide funds to meet outstanding
claims against the county. Today
parties in the upper end offered to
| advance $4,000 and others from the
lower end have signified Willingness
to come to the rescue.
little business, tabling Il resolution
providing for an Investigation of the
records with Il view of raising tax as
sessments in certain quarters.
borrowing Custom.
At yesterday afternoons meeting
the board took the first action look
ing toward the abolition of the Gus
tom of borrowing money from the
banks on notes. The following resO-
luton was introduced by Supervisor
Myers and referred to the finance
committee to report at this meeting:
-. hereas. The present system or
method of borrowing money to meet
the obligations of county is unsatis-
factory if not wholly wrong and per
nicious; and.
Whereas. The expense of such
system or method costs the county
about $4,000 more than the system of
raising money on bonds and issuing
Understanding warrants; therefore,
be il
Resolved. That the board of SUI
pervisors investigate the advisabiIity
of submitting to the voters of the
county the proposition of issuing oh
to meet outstanding obligations, less
the amount of the anticipated taxes,
at some special or regular election to
be held in the near future.
RESOLVED, That the matter of is
suing Understanding orders for such
sums as are required by obligations
created from time to time when there
! is not money in the treasury to meet
such obligations. the same to apply
and become effective after outStand
ing notes are provided for"
Suits Now in Order
| The smallpox bills of this city and
Moline against the county were in
effect rejected by the committee on
poor claims. to which they were re-
ferred for the purpose of ascertain
ing which of them the county might
be held liable for and which the com
mittee deemed ii proper to reject.
! The committee reported as follows:
! I'VE met at the supervisors room
in the court house Dec. >. 1902. and
attempted to carry out the instruc
tions of the board in the way of de-
termining which. if any. of the claims
presented were proper charges
the opinion of the attorney general
and states attorney as to the circum-
stances under which the county
would be liable.
THE claims filed contain no infor-
nation of any value to the commit
tee. We undertook to call in the par
ties having knowledge of the facts
and succeeded in procuring the at
tendance of about seventeen persons
relative to claims from the city of
Moline, but being unable to compel
witnesses to appear to testify, we
found that we were making very lit
tie progress. As to the claim of the
city of Rock Island, we procured the
attendance of City Attorney Scott
but he was not prepared to furnish
the information we sought.
after six days spent in an almost
fruitless and wholly unsatisfactory
investigation. we are unanimously of
the opinion that if any of the claims
filed are proper charges against the
county. we are not able with the
means at our command to determine
that fact with certainty. and that it
can be ascertained more satisfactor-
lily to all concerned and with less
trouble and expense by means of
suit against the county.
I'VE think the interests of all par
ties will be best subserved by the i'm
partial rejection of all these claims,
leaving the claimants the right to sue
the county and establish their claim
according to law.
I'VE cannot determine the ques
tons involved here without in effect
sitting as court. This we have
neither the power, qualification nor in
clination to do
VIII Send a Lobby.
1t was decided to appoint lobby of
three members of the board to go to