The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1908-07-14
Commissioners Ignorant Of
Amount of County
Debt.
Must Levy Extra Mill Tax
10 Make Good the
Deficit.

Through an inexcuRahle hiunder
81 the county commissioners and
County Auditor AEnew. clerk ~ the
bssanc the taxpayers of this county
wlli be called upon % pay an extra
mlil In the 1905 tax
The extra mill viii be required
L. retire the outstanding warrants
~ The county on March J. 1909. aud
d regarded az a very conservative
estimate II f. only one stem out
Of many In which the present com.
nilnminners have displayed an en-.
tire Ignorance % even the simplest
rules 81 business
or January Is 81 this year the
commissioners voted a bond issue
81 81 SOC 600 This VAS 10 retire
the outstanding Indebtedness 81 the
county The commissioners and the
members 81 the courthouse ring
shouted The glad tidlngs "a the four
ends % The couuty
We are going to be ON a cash
basis wan the cry which went
rinEing out 10 thc taxpayers. great
and small
commiasisners Make Error.
Hut alas and alack' Either from
Ignorance or carelcssncas. the com
misalouefs made bad error. They
naiscaicuiatcd the amount ~ the
outstanding Indebtedness. Whether
they intended % deliberately de.
ceivs The taxpayers u open 70 qucs-
don. but ~ any rate. instead Of the
county owing only ti.boo. eco. the
outstanding warrants amounted to
approximately 81, 500 .o00 This was
an ossrelght Of $500 600.
The commissioners and their
clerk should have called upon Coun-
~ Treasurer Gormley for this In
formation They told their friends
that the county owed only 81 800
geo these friends told other friends
and the reporters were given the
same information
After the details Of the bond r..
sue bad been figured out. including
the amount Of paper which was to
be- issued. etc. the commissioners
asked County Treasurer Cormlcy
for q statement A. 10 the county s
indebtedness. He. like everyone
else. bad accepted the figures Of
the commissioners as correct. never
believing for an instant that they
would 80 ahead with such an Inn
porsant matter without being fully
Informed beforehand
Biundsr ls Discovered.
The fact that the commissioners
had made a sad error was soon de-
veioped In very short time the
county treasurer had a statement
prepared showing the cnuBty's in
aebiedncss 20 be at least s300. 600
more than the board had provided
for. Tho oommissioaers we're thun-
deratfuck There was no way 10
remedy the error. va they did the
next best thing. tried to keep Il
nui Of the papers.
County Auditor Aenew. who is
nomlnaliy secretary Of the board,
rushed to his stcnoRrapher and die
taied several elaborate statements.
Which were given 10 the court house
reporters lie tried 20 prove In
these statements that everyone who
doubted the wisdom and ability OF
: Nlff fffiHAtNNHNNiA'AH anu AAAhaA Twin
was 'lapHus noodle and that King
county would be on cash basis
by March 4. or April az the latest
These selfmade interviews read
we'll
The political offlceholding clerks
~ the county departments who had
been compelled 60 sell their war
rants at q discount OF per cent
IN order to get them cashod, had
immediate visions of the millennium.
when they could so 20 the county
trensurera wicket and get real
lnonoy for their pay checks.
County Still In Debt
March came and still no cash
basis The bond Issue was sold to
Chicago syndicate and outaiand.
Ing warrants called I'M, according
io the date Of issue. Tho months
passed by. the entire receipts of the
bond issue were expended and the
county sull had ~ much debt left