Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1908-08-31
NEWS OF THE STATE CAPITAL


his best friends to lose their money
against game like that.
n Dangerous Office
Attention has been directed in
this correspondence TO the fact that
the Democratic prediction with re-
speet to the tax commissioners Of
hce has come true. The Democrats
have said from the first that the of
fee or this official would become
the most powerful part OF a danger
machine; that II would be used as
the pens.oning department for faith
full party or factional workers, and
that 1t would prove especially help
ful TO the governor, as the man
holding the office would be an ap-
pointee OF that official. The power
OF this new part OF the machine has
been made manifest in many WAYS
and its pensloning ability has been
shown recently in the manner In
which Sam Montgomery. the rene
gade recalcitrant. has been put on
the salary list. But the worst is yet
to come. The last legislature enact
ed law providing for a sysem of
uniform accounting by public Off
Gals. and making the state tax com
missioner chief inspector and SUI
pervisor of accounts. He empower
ed under the provisions of this law
to formulate and prescribe the man
ner in which all county and district
Officers shall keep the accounts of
their offices, and TO have general
supervision of them. The law SAYS
he shall have such assistances as
may be necessary to enable him to
carry out the purposes of this act"
Now, why make the state tax COM
missioner such "chief inspector and
Supervisor" adding to the force un-
der him, giving his Office this extra
patronage? Why was not the audi
tor put in charge of this matter?
1t Is because the safe tax commits
sloner holds an appointive Office and
to add to the patronage and power
OF that office adds just so much to
the strength of he governors ma
chine. The auditor is elected by
the people and is not beholden to
the governor, and therefore to add
power to his office would not be to
help the governor. The new law is
but another wheel in the big ma
chine known as the state tax COM
missioner's office: but another part
of the scheme to take more power
from the people and give it to the
executive
This new law gives to the tax
commissioner and his assistants a
power that is not given anybody
else outside the Judiciary. 1t says
the tax commissioner "or any of his
assistants shall have the power and
may exercise all the authority to
Issue subpoena and impu4sory pro-
cess, and to direct the service there
of by any constable or sheriff. to
compel the attendance of Witnesses
and the production of books AMI
papers before him at any designa-
ted time and place, selected in their
respective county, and to admins
ter oaths." Talk about your ma
chimes! Why, in a few years, at the
rate of progress made during the
last ten, the whole state will be run
by machine. and the people will be
entirely helpless in its power.
The Hutson Case.
The unbusin ess-like methods of
the present state administration re-
ceived a thorough exposure in the
recent trial OF Colonel A. S. Hut
son, former assistant adjutant gen
eral. The evidence in that trial dis
closed the fact that thousands Of
dollars were annually taken from
the state treasury and turned over
TO an unbounded officer. who had
no official connection with the pay
ing out Of money, to be used at
his will. When an encampment Of
the state militia was TO be held, es-
Inmates were made Of the probable
cost and then on a voucher cigned by
the governor, the adjutant general
and the paymaster general, and at
tested by the assistant adjutant gen
eral, money amounting TO many
thousands of dollars-it was more
than eighteen thousand dollars in
1906-was drawn form the treasury
and given the paymaster general
to take to the encampment and
there used to pay off the bills. The
paymaser general would stay at the
encampment a few days and then
leave, turning over to the assistant
adjutant general what money he
had left-generally most of the en-
tire amount drawn from the treas
ury-and the assistant adjuant gen
eral would pay II out according to
his ideas Of the proper thing. This
was the manner of procedure, from
1902 TO and including 1906. when.
because the adjutant generals job
was wanted by a man who did not
have it. the rottenness OF the whole
scheme was exposed. and the admin
istration, seeing that It would be
placed in bad light before the pub
lie tried TO make Adfutant General