Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1905-05-18
The Court House Proposition.

hoIlCC Al III
your last weeks JOURNAL, over the
signature of "a Tax Payer" discuss
ing the court house bonding prop
osltloni, rejecting somewhat on the
integrity of the board of supervis-
ore, and also on the some 500 voters
OF this county who signed petitions
to the board for the submission of
the question to general vote. Mr..
"a Tax Payer" after coyly stating
some generalities regarding the A
merlcan citizen, which as abstract
propositions may be, atleast for the
purposes of this discussion, con-
ceded, he goes on to ask the ques-
tlon"does the public welfare de-
mand IT." The honorable board of
supervisors have found that the
public welfare demands that $4,000.
be expended in the building of new
vaults In the court house, and we
have no right to question it's integ-
rlty. 1t is only fair to assume that
the members of the board have
found the necessity for this exist
ing after due investigation, and
that they have found it their duty
to make this appropriation in order
to protect Mr.. "a. Tax Payer" with
the rest of US. So much for the
demand of public welfare, Now let
us look at the court house question
not 80 much from standpoint of
demand as from that of ofexpediency.
Demand used in this sense is
relative term. We farmers used to
come to town, or go visiting on
Sunday with our families in a lum-
Der wagon,we found after time that
there was demand for spring
wagon to use on such OCCASIONS,
and good many have since found
that there is demand" for car
riage. We used to make $500 suit
OF clothes do US for year or two alta
time, now we feel demand" for
a $500 to $1,000 suit every year,
Sl.5O pair of shoes used to serve us
admirably, now there is a"demand'
for $500 to $3.50 pair. The indivi-
dual citizen of this county, as time
has progressed, has found his
worldly possessions increasing,and
has felt a corresponding demand"
for improvement and that is why l
think the majority OF the citizens
collectively feel a demand" for
public improvement. As matter
of strict necessity we could get
along now as we'll as formerly,
without carriages and fine clothes
and many other things in the ma
ture of luxuries, which we used to
forego, and as matter of strict
necessity we could probably get
along with the present court house,
, necessary additions and repairs
being made, for few years yet,
some more next year possibly, and
then find at the end of few years
that it is absolutelyiimperative that
new court house be built. Again
MIR. "a. Tax Payer" asks "shall we
in the outlying districts put up for
the embellishments and beautifying
of the county seat when the present
court house is all sufficient
Ah, but there is the rub, the present
court house is not all sufficient,
the board of ofsupervisors has said
that 1t is necessary to expend the
sum of $500000 on it for the building
of new vaults, and in the absence
OF any showing by Mr.. "a. Tax
Payer" to the contrary, we are GER
tainly justified in assuming that
the expenditure is needed. His
question ARE the vaults which
have so we'll answered the purpose
iOA yCd1S, suddenly COue 10 decay
and become wholly inadequate for
further use" may prehaps best be
answered yankee fashion, by asking
another question, is that barn
which so we'll answered the pur.
pose for years, when you only had
one team and d couple of cows sud
denly come to decay and become
whollyinadquatef for further use now
that you have many horses and a
drove of cattle! No doubt the build
| ing of court house will benefit
the county seat somewhat more
than il will the outlying district
but how is it going to be
helped: Every outlying district
can not have court house. If Mr.
"a. Tax Payer can devise plan
whereby the benefits of public ex.
penditures can be perfectly, equita
bly, divided between all tax payers
contributing thereto, he will be
entitled to the lasting gratitude o.
the nation and niche i'll the hal
of fame. A. CITIZEN.
George Weighton, Audubon
Il ~