The Robesonian. [volume] (Lumberton, N.C.) 1870-current, 1908-05-11

will find that the board of audit |
and finance for Robeson county
was not created until March l, |
1907, and they did not qnalify un-
til April, 1907; whereas, it was
your duty to have appointed not
less than one, or more than three, |
of your body to make the settle |
ment between the sheriff aud |
treasurer and all other county
officers at your regular meeting
in Decem Der, 1906, or a subse-
quent meeting thereafter. an
Informed that you have never
done this.
3rd. You state il your pream-
ble that the time limited by law
tor the settlement of State and
county taxes for the years 1906
and 1907 has long since expired" d"
This is true. By reference to
section 81, Chapter 25s, of the
Public Acts of 1907, you will lind:
The sheriff or other accounting
officer, shall. on or before the
second Monday in January of
each year, settle his State tax ac-
count with the commits sioners Of
OF the county, and pay the
amounts for which said sheriff or
collector is liable to the treasurer
Of the State ia such manner, or
at such 4 place, as be shall di-
rect. 1t was, therefore, your
duty to have settled these taxes
with ex-Sheriff Mcleod on or be-
fore the second Monday in Janu,
ary, 1907. which was long before
the board Of audit and finance
ever came into existence; for, as
before stated, there was no law
for the existence of a board of
audit and finance for Robson
county until March, 1907.
It is not the duty under the law
Of the board Of audit and finance
to make a settlement between the
sheriff, treasurer and other coun-
ty officials, for, as it's very name
implies, it is only to audit these
settlements after they shall have
been made by you, determining
il you have made any errors in
the settlements made by you
with the other officials. This has
been ad mitted TO be the law by
your attorney, and while the
board Of audit a3d finance tabu-
lated = statement OF the amounts
| due by ex-Sheriff Mcleod to the
various funds, they did this be-
cause OF the fact that you had
made no settlement with him, as
. the law now and for many years
directed that you should, in the
} full knowledge that twas not the
) duty Of the board of audit and
l finance primarily to pass upon
3 these questions and deter mine
7 what was due, but that it was
your duty.
AS bearing upon the taxes due
5 to the county for the year 1905
2 under Schedules B. and C; that
. is, taxes due by livery stable
= men, dealers in pistols. lightning
L rods, sewing machines, &c &c
/, we would call your attention tC
r Section 50, Chapter 256. OF the
r Public Laws OF 1907, the same
n provision being found in Section
q f9. Chapter 5o3 or the Publie
q Laws Of 1905, to wit that it shsl
d be and is hereby made the duty
|. of the Sheriff Of each county il
y the State to make inquiry as tc
a whether Or not all license take:
d provided for under Seized ule,
b B and G OF this Act shall havt
y been paid, and any person, 'fru
t or corporation liable for such Ii
i cense tax, who fails or refuses t.
\, pay such tax when demanded By
d the sheriff, shall be guilty of z;
n misdemeanor and punished by
+ Ene or Imprisonment at the dis
cretion of the court; and it shsl
. be the duty of the sheriff, upol
d the failure Of such person, &c.
i. to pay such license tax on de
# mand, to swear out a warrant
}, &c" Same section: 1T shall be
# the duty of the sheriff to furnish
q to the Judge of tne Superior
n Court,at each term of the court
i the names of all persons in his
r county doing business enumera
,, ted in these schedules, specifying
o those who have paid the tax anc
i those VINO have failed to pay, anc
r the judge shall charge the granC
: jury &C." As showing how oh;'
r law has been enforced, we re
Z port to you that for the preseb
IIyear, as appears to US from al
1t examination of the books o
y. Sheriff E. G McNeilI. that he ha
,e already collected and turned owe
At to the State and county Of thes
In schedules B and G taxes, tn
< sum of 50, ,546.5O, and from an IL
id Evestigation Of his books, we fln
ne that he has charged against othe
parties, and which he report
D. that he will collect, the sum {
lie about 5000 additional, making tt
il total of these B and g taxes fC
to this year, collected and to be co
he lected by Sheriff McNeiIl, II
lis sum of about So, 400, Of which
of large part goes to the county.
cir many instances half of it going
mt the county, the remainder to tt
10 State.
N AS against this sum Of 81 54e
be so, already collected and paid
nd by Sheriff. c.. McNeiII, und'
riff schedules B and C., and the ado
to tional sum of 5000 which he T
he nOrts 6s being good. making