Times-promoter. (Hernando, DeSoto County, Miss.) 1898-1970, 1909-09-02
WRITES OF COUNTY AFFAIRS
Maj. Doekery Discusses Various Subjects
of Interest to Desoto Countians.

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Editor mes-Promoter:
German Bakers proposition is, 1
think, good one, and hope he will
keep at it until he succeeds in getting
an overhauling of our county affairs.
We are told in the Good Book that
"the wicked fee when no man pur-
sueth, but the righteous are bold as a
lion." suppose that means that a
man whose acts and conduct has been
right fears no scrutiny or investiga-
ton. II he objects it leads to sus-
piclon and the Investigation should
be forced. Our officials are well paid
and the people who toll to raise the
the money to pay their salaries should
be protected by every safeguard that
we can bring to bear. Our officers
are honorable men, but how many
honorable men become defaulters ur-
Intentionally and wreck character and
family.
don't believe every defaulter is
thief, but most of them use the funds
in their hands and their own money
promiscuously in speculation or risks
and fail and too late they realize their
mistake. How many men who stard
high and above suspicion, who have
handled trust funds as bank officers,
as state and county treasurers or
other handlers of public funds would
have been saved ruin and disgrace by
knowing that aWatchful eye was Up
them. il know that the chancery
clerk is auditor of,the county books
and he is expected to ieep track of
all the finances of the county-but
would it not be safer to have disin-
terested expert to look iE to our affairs
say twice year, and relieve tie
clerk of responsibility. Judge West
grew gray in the chancery Office, ar
kept the finances straight, and was
satisfied with $lOD--for all ex-officio
services when the lawincreased the
clerks pay for auditing the finances.
to anywhere bee two and five
hundred dollars, and not adding great
ly to his duties, Judge West told me.
that five hundred was too much and
he asked for three. hundred.
I don't think Ave hundred too much
but think he should know that every
cent of our money had gone to the
right place, or where it was.
The grand jury is charged to lock
into the books and the affairs of the
officers, but suppose they had time,
how many fresh from their farms al d
shops could track d tricky sheriff like
myself or a shrewd clerk like Rob
Logan. think an expert like the
stste revenue agent, disinterestel
man among the officers, should look
into our county affairs occasionally
and get his pay out of the money
wrongfully withheld or embezzled Ga
polite word for stealing.)
/ know that the magistrates of the
county are like Caesars wife, above
suspicion-but / knew couple, they
were called firm, prominent mag
istrate and a lawyer, (who was it said
there are too many lawyers turned
loose on the poor people now days.
the magistrate told me they had a
bigger court every Saturday than our
circuit court in fernando, and if the
docket was cleared before night, they
took up some Of their Cwn witnesses
and tried and fined them for perjury.
If we had such magistrates now and
such lawyers wouldn't their courts
justify inquiring into?
hope German will succeed in gett-
ing an inquiry into our affairs, If for
no other purpose than one initial
point from which we can date our in
quiries in future. A point from which
to start or calculate is convenient as
my friend Stephen Dolahite can tell
you. He was seven years old when
the stars fell, and consequently he is
seventy nine now.
We have cool breezes and splendid
weather good health and amongI
other things fine circus, that brought
more people to town than thought
in these mountains. At dusk the
steam calliope called the fun loving
to the circus tents and the Methodist
church bell called the faithful to
prayer meeting, and ! am told while
there was jam in the circus, the
preacher and empty benches filed