Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1910-06-05
OBSERVATIONS
And
COMMUNICATIONS.
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kosjtzky Answers EckIund.

H\OSN6Ny N"o"S'o ~S'>'~~s
Editor Tribune: John E. Ecklund
county commissioner from the Third
district, tries to square himself and
the other members of the board with
the people whom he has been decelv
ing for some time past, and attacks
me in the Bismarck Tribune of June
2, with a paid advertisement, In
hopes of making good.
There is an old saying, where
there is fire there must be smoke
in this instance Mr.. Ecklund smells
the smoke. Mr.. Ecklund states that
the board allowed me a deputy for an
extra month in order to get the de-
linquent personal tax list for previous
| years made up. AS a matter of fact
the delinquent tax list was made up
by five business men and myself dur
ing the evenings of the months of
January and February, 1909.
Pressure was brought upon the
board in various respects as to their
negligence in complying with the law
as to their duties as county COM
missioners, and this caused them to
get busy and pass a resolution in
April, 1909, to the effect that the
sheriff be given strict orders to col.
lect the thousands of dollars of de-
linquent personal taxes due the coun.
ty which should have been collected
before. Now why were they allowing
bills to be paid to the Palladium out
of the county funds when there was
due from them several hundred dol
lars of personal taxs? One of their
duties is to deduct all personal taxes
due the county first before a bill is
a..owed If they have been doing
their duties as commissioners, why
did they allow the thousands of dol
lars of taxes to accumulate and be-
come uncollectable?
Why have they been allowing pad
ded bills to the extent of $126.40?
Why have they allowed thousands
of dollars of printing to be done out
side of the county at greater cost
than local paper offered to do the
same?
Why have they not advertised for
bids as the law requires them to do
and try to save the taxpayers as
much money as possible?
Why have they been allowing bills
to be paid that were neither itemized
nor verified?
Why have they been allowing
themselves bills for mileage and then
turn around and pay the livery bills
out of the county funds when they
should have paid them out of the mile
age they were drawing?
Why have they been allowing
themselves numerous bills for SER
vices rendered and failed to date any
OF the days for which such services
were actually rendered?
When an official is elected by the
people to fill an office as their SER
want, the law provides what they
shall do, and not adopt a system of
their own. If the county commits
sioners have been following the law,
they have so far failed to prove to
the people that they did.
The law provides that the county
commissioners shall employ help in
the various offices to properly con-
duct the business when needed.
In this respect, I filed with the
auditor a request to the commission
ers for deputy for the entire year,
owing to the increase in the past year
and that l was unable to do the work
properly and according to law.
| proved to the county commission
ers that there was not another coun.
ty in the state having a valuation
equal to or greater than Burleigh
county, but what the treasurers were
supplied with deputy the entire
year and from two to three clerks
during the busy season. These proofs
were in the shape of statements from
the various treasurer's offices in the
state. l called the attention of the
board to the effect that my receipts