The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1910-08-19
ADEQUATE WAGES
FOR TOWN CLERKS
Association is Organized to
Bring This About.
TOWN CLERK s MANIFOLD DUTIES
Enumerated in a Paper by John z. Gale
OF Guilford-Bill TO Remedy the
Trouble TO Be introduced in the
Legislature Organization Formed.


Legislature-or Organization Formed.
Representative number Of the town
clerks of Bennington, Windsor and Wind
ham counties met at the office Of Town
Clerk Newton yesterday morning for the
purpose OF considering the subject of. re-
adjustment of fees and salaries of Ner.
mont town clerks. The meeting was ad-
joumed TO Festival hall where the follow
ing organization was perfected, 10 he
known a. the Vermont Town Clerks as'
sociation Chairman, Carl :. Hopkins,
assistant town clerk of lirattleboro; see.
rclaty aud treasurer. John l.. Gale OF
Guiliord; executive committee, {. :.
Hopkins, j. T.. Gale and NJ. L. Lawrence
of Springfield
The following paper on the Duties aud
Liabilities OF Vermont Town Clerks was
read by Mr.. Gale:
Before he can do any official act the
town clerk must be- sworn, and must file
a bond 10 the satisfaction of the select
men: ii written by surety company the
town clerk paws the bill. and il comos
every year. He must deposit a certlii-
cate OF his election with the county clerk,
also a copy OF his official oath. with Ger.
tificate OF the magistrate administering
the same. lie must appoint an assistant
town clerk and assume full responsibility
for all his acts, make a record OF the ap'
pointment and file copy of the same
with the county clerk. He must record
the warning for every town meeting and
election before il Is posted. keep record
OF all votes and resolutions passed, the
names Of all persons elected TO town
office. and copy the same into the town
books. He must record the bonds
which the law requires OF town officers.
For recording deeds. mortgages and other
papers he receives ID cents Tor each lh
words, a price fixed many ye9rs ago,
when labor was worth one dollar per
dav. For neglect or failure to record m
struments presented for record he is liza
bic TO fine of 500 Among the papers
which he must record are advertisements
of tax sales. surveys and alterations III
highways. attachments of real and per
sonal property, appointments oi Jaliers
and town officers, warnings Tor town
meetings and elections, proceedings OF the
same at length. certificates OF administfa-
tion of freemen's oaths, appralsements,
articles of association and Incorporation,
assessments, bylaws. certificates, chattel
mortgages, liens, bonds, bills of sale
covenants, decisions, DEGREES ol foreclos
ure deeds, mortgages, discharges, assign
ments. leases. dover set out, fence diyl-
sions. fire district proceedings, dog IL
censes. marriage licenses, liquor licenses,
oaths and bonds of town officers. returns
an sales on execution, tax sales, etc,
powers of attorney, probate proceedings,
wills, telephone line permits, and suhdry
and divers other papers and returns. lie
must keep an index of all his records,
and is responsible on his official bond Tor
all mistakes in his records and copies; 1T
is only short time since Windham
comfy town clerk paid 500 damages re-
sutinp from the omission of single llne
from a chattel mortgage record. For fail'
ure to keep his index properly he ma!
be fined $40. He must make licenses for
all the dogs in town, turn the FUNDS over
to the treasurer, and make an annual re-
mort of the same each license Is maze III
duplicate and the clerk gets 10 cents per
doc. transfers of licenses on dogs brought
in from other towns must also De re-
corded ;e.
"A town clerk must receive and verify
tbe annual appraisals and grand list
books. 90 through all the computations
of the listers. and send "A certified an
stract of the corrected list to the seere
tarv of state within the time limit. zen
alty for neglect, 500. He must annually
before a certain date send to the state
treasurer the names of sundry town OH
GERS, or is liable to $50 fine. He must
attend meetings of the board OF clvll au'
thority and keep record OF tne pro.
ceedings. He must send list OF jurors
chosen to the county clerk wlthh nVe
days after their election, lie must rsceivfii II
file and arrange in alphabetical order al,
voters certificates of intention, attend
check list caucrses and keep the record.
He must receive and file all certificates
of births, marriages and deaths, com
Dlete birth certificates, make full copies
and return the same to the secretary OF
the state board of health II times each
wear. or is liable to a fine OF ~ lie
musf annually in the first week of Janu,
arv submit statement of all births ana
deaths received by him during the previ-
Gus wear, to the town treasurer, OF may
be fined $40. He must issue marriaee
licenses to persons entitled thereto uu.
unless he closely follows the law pc may
be fined 500. He may issue burial per
mits. but if he does so when a properly
eyecnted certificate has not been hied
with him he is liable to pay a flne OF Hlo,
and if he mistakenly thinks the certliieat!,e'
irregular and refuses the permit ne WI
then be fined SO. After a general elec, lee
t;on he must make a complete list OF an
cand;dates voted for, with the vote 1or
each candidate upon the county ana sta,e a,
t;cliets make such lists in duplicate, me
one in his Office and file the other IN the
office of the county clerk or secretary ol
state within stated time, or ne may oe
fined $1,000. r..os 20
"A town clerk must issue, licenses 10
hunters. doing % cents worth ol WILLIE WILLIE
for 10 cents. and another - Genus "o..n rots
IN Making duplicates for which he gets
III IL l. oomnelled to receive the
license blanks from the state commission,
er and if he loses or mlslays one ne
m,,st I'm nav full value for it. He must no,
t;fv the county clerk of the name OF the
frst constable chosen annually; lie must
,sS nls tyro comics of the annual town re-
nort to his town library and to the state E
I;brarv He must direct the printing Oh
tbe ballots for the biennial elections,
obecl, the voters at elections, Keep tne
unused ballots, keep the used Dalloof ~
sealed. He must return a certiiiea.e ",
the road mileage each year, ana Idi leiu, l
abstracts and statistics from the schoor
reg;Sters n5. to the state superintendent OF
adncation. He is expected to. be on duty
from 6 a. m. to 10 p. m. SIX or seven
davs in the week. -. ,n
Office rent. lights. and fuel at his own
oxnense He is expected to have teie-
nbone fP and to pay the bill. He must keep
IN with the changes in the laws and eX-
ercise continual vigilance, as tor any WI
ful neglect to perform any OF the duties
imposed upon him by law, either express
or implied, he shall be imprisoned not
tbon s1 600 or both. His responsibility
Is Greater than that of any other town
officer and his pay less, considering the
oat,,.I +;Yne and work involved