The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-06-30
COMMISSIONERS
FILE ANSWER
Seek to Justify Contract With
Party Organ for Publishing
Delinquent List.
SECRET BID is ALLEGED
COUNTY DECLARED TO HAVE
BENEFITED BY PUBLICATION.

The county commissioners and their
bondsmen have fled an ingeniousiy
worded answer to the suit brought by
Job P. Lyon, county attorney, on behalf
of Salt Lake county to compel the re-
funding of money taken from the treas
ury for the benefit of the party organ
i'm connection with the publication of the
delinquent tax list. The answer at
tempts to Justify the transaction by the
statement that 2 large collection of de-
linquent taxes followed the publication,
and that the commissioners were really
acting in the best interests of the Coun-
ty. Because Salt Lake has received the
benefit of the publication. they argue
that the county should pay the bill.
The answer is filed by Stewart &
Stewart and Booth, Lee & Badger.
The original suit was brought by Salt
Lake county against James E Clinton,
John c. Mackay and Walter ]. Burton
county commissioners. and their bonds
men. Lewis 5. Hills, William L. Eller-
beck r. H. Callister Daniel Mackay,
John r. Smith and Heber S. Cutler. The
amount paid is s5,727.50, and was to the
Mountain Republican for printing
the delinquent tax list for 1908.
For the same printing two years be-
fore the Republican, given the contract
by tender. received S997.31. The Tele-
gram printed it the year before when
the list was longer. and received ST.
2Sl96.
Law Requires Tenders.
The law requires that tenders for this
printing shall be asked The contract
was quietly handed out to the party
organ When the bill came to the cOun-
ty treasurer. John A. GrOesbeck, he was
astourded that the cost should have
jumped TO five times what it was be-
fore. He wrote the commissioners. pro-
testing, but they did not do him the
courtesy 10 reply. Then he appealed to
the county attorney, who came to the
conclusion that such high-handed meth
DDS of disposal Of county funds were in
violation of the law. He then filed suit
The complaint in the case charged
that the payment was illegal and with
out authority of law; that no bids for
the publication had been invited or re-
ceived nor had any contract for the
publication been made or entered into;
that the county auditor had not passed
upon the bill nor had any legal direction
for the publication been made to the
county treasurer
The answer denies that the county
commissioners ordered the payment
without authority of law; denies that
the treasurer so made the payment, and
wholly denies that the contract was
awarded legally, and that the treasurer
had not been directed properly to make
the publication.
They admit that the county attorney
made a demand for the return to the
treasury of the S5,727.50. which was re-
fused and assert that the demand was
unlawful and that the county has no
legal claim for the sum or any part of
IT,
Then the commissioners and their
bondsmen assert that on the first Mon
day i'm December, 1908. under the pro-
visions of section 1920 of the Compiled
Laws of Utah, it became the duty OF
the county treasurer to publish the de-
linquent tax list On the first Monday
of December, they assert, the treasurer
was authorized by the commissioners to
publish the list in the Inter-MOuntain
Republican.
Say Bid Was Solicited.
Something new comes in here which