The daily sentinel., 1912-07-30
PEARCE RIGHT
To GET LEGAL
ADVICE FIRST
SentInel SpeciaI service.

SeuLluel special Service.
Denver, July 3O.-Secretary of
States James B. Pearce is daily in re-
ceipt of letters from practically ev-
cry part of the state highly compli-
menting him for the stand taken in
reference to the bills TO be referred.
The secretary declares that there are
enough fraudulent signatures on
some of the petitions to practically
inyalidate them, and that if attached
would be enough to throw them out.
On this account he asked for an
opinion Of the attorney general as to
the course he should follow before
taking the responsibility of publish
ing the measures at an expense to
the taxpayers of more than S225 600.
The opinion was that the bills be
published and then if passed they
could be attacked on the grounds that
thousands Of names on them were
fOrgeries. Already the secretary has
secured positive proof that hundreds
of signatures were bogus and those
who made affidavit to the correctness
of the names will be prosecuted Just
as soon as the district attorney has
made an investigation of conditions.
This step is in line with all others
taken by Secretary of State Pearce-
in the interest of the people If there
We're enough bad names on these
petitions to invalidate them. he did
not care to publish them without au-
thority of the legal head of the state.
and this he obtained before taking
steps that mean the expenditure of a
quarter of million dollars.
So, efficiency, devotion to business
and a strict adherence to duty. has
marked the career Of Mr.. Pcarce ever
since his induction into office nearly
four years ago, and if Te-nominated
and reelected this fall the people of
Colorado may expect the same eff
cient service from him. No other
secretary of state has back of him
such a record for business methods in
the conduct of the affairs of the
office. Everything is systematized
and the work of every department
under him is carried on with strict
attention to orders from the head of
the department. While this is the sit
uation, there is no friction. HarmO-
ny pervades every department and no
other state department is carried on
with the same good feeling as exists
among the employees.
One of the greatest acts in behalf
of the people of the state was the
passage of a law at the instance of
Secretary of State PearCe whereby
he was enabled to collect delinquent
corporation license tax as far back as
10 years. AS a result during the
past six months practically all COM
panies behind in their taxes have
liquidated or been declared defunct
and imperative. During the month
of February there were collected by
the secretary of state total of 500
600, 100000 of this sum being from
delinquencies and corporations. No
other secretary of state came within
hailing distance of Mr.. PearCe in the
matter of tax collections.
The Office of secretary of state Is
essentially a business and not a po-
litical office, and Mr.. Pearce has
conducted it along these lines He
has been accused of favOring corpOr-
ations, but the charge is groundless
as is attested by his action when he
went before the eighteenth general
assembly and insisted on the enact
ment of the bill that permitted him
to proceed against all delinquent
companies, no matter what the size
Of their capital stock, whether 81 900
or $4,000. 900. This should be evil
dence enough to show where Mr..
Pearce stands on this question.
All these big collections OF the past
biennial period have been made with
greatly reduced clerical force
which has been a saving to the tax
payers Of the state of many thousand
dollars.
The secretary will have little trou-
bIe in convincing the voters that his
record has been above question, and
that he has collected more money
from the corporations that were de-
linquent than all former secretaries
since the state was admitted to the
Union of states. In fact, no other
secretary ever undertook TO collect
these taxes and the work was left
to Mr.. Pearce.
Holmburg Back.