The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1907-01-10
Judge SIosson Gets Copies Of
Laws to be Asked by County
Judges Of State Of Wisconsin
WOULD CHANGE THE TERM
New Law World Make the Term of the
County Judges Six Years and
Make New Plan for the Pay
ment of the Salaries

County Judge r. H. Slosson has re-
ceived from the legislation committee
of the Wisconsin Association of
County Judges list the amendments
to the laws of the state which will be
asked from the coming session of the
Legislature, and it is evident that the
| judges plan to make some changes in
the probate business. There are
more than forty amendments proposed
by the association, most of them be-
ing for the purpose Of making the
probate business of the state more
regular. Many different methods are
used in the different counties of the
state and it is the plan of the judges
to have the legislature pass laws
which will make the work of the pro-
bate courts uniform.
The most important legislation
asked for is in a supplementary re-
port of the committee ande this deals
with the election of county judges and
the amount of salary to be paid to
them The passage of such laws as
are proposed would have tendency
to change the county judge system.
The law proposed in regard to the
election of the Judges would change
the term of office after 1909 from four
to six years. It is urged that under
the present four year term 1.-THE judge
| is forced to spend too much of his time
looking after his political defenses to
L 10 u int;
The county judges are always elected
as non PARTISAN candidates, but even
with this provision there is a lot of
politics in the spring elections in
which they are chosen
The law dealing with the matter of
fixing the salaries of the judges is
even more Important. At the present
time the salary oflthe county judge
is fixed by the county board of super
visors and it is admitted that in many
of the counties of the state the salary
is not in keeping with the amount of
work done. The law proposed by the
judges would regulate the salary of
the Office in keeping with the work.
It provides that the county judge
shall receive as salary, 500 for the
first ], 200 of population in the county
sid that he shall receive fifty dollars
a ditiona1 for each addional thousand
I population up to forty-nine thous-
d, when the rate of increase shall
~ at the rate of fifty dollars for each
!, ditional three thousand people.
The law provides that in no case
shall the salary of the county Judge
be higher than that of the circuit
judge serving in the same county.
This law also seeks to fix the salary
of the register in probate at $500 a
year. The law provides that when
this scale of salaries is adopted by
the state Legislature, the county
judges shall pay into the treasures of
the different counties all fees received
from the regular work of the probate
court. The fees now earned by the
county Judges are decidedly small
and in this county the amount would
probably be less than $50 year.
Under the proposed law the salary of
the county judge in this county would
be in the neig hborhood of So, 900.
These laws have been arranged by
a committee imposed Of a number of
the leading men connected with the
county courts of the state and it is
thought that the report Of the COM
mittee will have great weight with
the Legislature.