The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-10-04
George Washington Presented
by the Grand Jury
For Failing to Return Property
for Taxation.
THE OFFICIAL RECORD
Has Been Dug Up in Fairfax
County, Va.
The Hatchet Story Is Upset by
the Evidence.

Washington, Oct. 4-Documentary evil
dence has just been discovered in Fair
fax county, Virginia, to prove that
George Washington was not always re-
garded by his neighbors as a model of
AT the May term of the Fairfax county
court IN l16O he was publicly presented
by the grand jury for swearing TO a
false list of his taxable property. In
other words IL citizens of his home
and tax dodger.
The discovery of this record was made
by Capt. S. r. Donahue, editor of the
Fairfax Herald. the weekly paper of
EalrIax courthouse. While seeking
data for a history of the county which
he is engaged in writing, Capt. Dona-
hue examined the ancient records of the
county court In the musty DEPTHS of
pages yellow with age. he unearthed a
day or two ago proof of the fact that
in 1850 criminal proceedings were instf-
tuted against Washington for not en-
tering his property for taxation, an Of
Tense which involved the making of q
false oath.
Musty Record Bellies Tradition.
/. On page 463 of the volume entitled
Libera," the minute book of the court.
Capt. Donahue found the report of the
grand jury of Fairfax county, colony of
virginia rendered May 21. 1850. and
there, in company with presentments Tor.
indictments for landing Quakers the
following:
I'VE present George William Fairfax,
George Washington, John Carlyle Dam
iel French, Robert Bogges, Catesby.
Cooke, Townshend Dade, SyibiIl West.
Garrard Alexander, Jemima Minor VIM.
Ramsay, Benjamin Grayson, George
Mason, John Plummer, Daniel McCar-
thy, and Abraham Barnes for (noO en-
tering their wheeled carriages agreeably
to law as appears to US by the list de-
livered to the clerk of the county"
The. word present as used in this
report carried in those days only a
slightly different meaning from that
Of the word 'indict," a difference
largely technical.
Indicted as a Tax Dodeer.
1.-THE old laws of the colony of Vir-
ginia,' said Walter Oliver of the Vir-
ginia legislature, a prominent lawyer
of Fairfax. today, provided for Grim
inal proceedings in two ways-by in
dictment or by presentment. In case.
of Indictment the kings counsel in
itiated the prosecution, bringing the
facts before the grand jury, who then
reported an indictment to the court.
In case of presentment, however, the
grand jurors proceeded on their own
initiative without the assistance or in
tervention of the counsel.
"They summoned witnesses, and II,
to the minds of the twelve, the facts
showed the suspected person guilty OF
crime the case was presented to the
prehension were issued for the ae-
cused and the kings counsel ordered
to prosecute the case. So that, as far
as the legal signification of the word
means a grave criminal charge by an
authorized jury, present has in this
instance, the same force as 'indict.'
Further" said Mr.. Oliver. that an
owners failure to enter any property
should have been dealt with as a crime
rests upon the meaning of the word
enter in the formal presentment. Un-
der colonial law an owner, unless he
was willing to permit the county Off
cials to make schedule of his taxable
property made out list of it himself.
AS a property holder he was presumed
10 be q man Of responsibility and truth.
False Oath. Too.
Nevertheless, to protect the public
revenues against fraud the law provid-
ed that subjoined to the list OF property
should be the following oath, taken by
the owner: 4 do solemnly swear that
the property entered in the foregoing
list is all, both real and personal, sub
ject to taxation of which l am seized
and possessed in the county of -, in
the colony of Virginia.
This oath was duly made and attest
ed before an authorized official. The
offense of swearing falsely to a property
list was made separate offense by act
of ihe house of burgeases. Thus 1t was
that washington was criminally charged
not with perjury but with not entering
certain property.
In short. the greatest of Americans
was believed, on judicial inquiry and
examina ton by twelve substantial men
of his county to be guilty of what If to-
day termed tax dodging."