Gunnison news-champion., 1915-05-14
ELUSIVE STATEMENTS afe3O|le
PUBLIC ECTs. M STATE AUDITOR


Shroused IN oil OF the mystery which
a newspaper article could portray. there
sppesrsd recentlyin the Denver and Pue-
bio papers statements that some ~ the
officials Of Gunbison County were short
In their accounts. Under glarine head
lines, one newspaper carried q front
page story which intimsted graft. and
this graft story came from the office Of
State Auditor hulnIx. In elusive slie-
cations the suditor soueht through this
means Of Journalism. not through an
Official communication, to accuse certain
well known men of Gunnison Of graft.
To the newspaper reading public he,
state ofhcial. sought to besmirch the
Official honor of certain men without
showing the real facts in the case. Mr.
Mulnix did not wait to give his official
report to the public by fling the repsrt
IN the clerk end recorder's Office in Gun
nison. Ne did no. wait until the means
we're st hand to give to the public the
actual facts in the case. He has init
mated thst these officials have put their
hands into the public treasury. end con
verted the funas Of others to their own
individual use. and then ssys and init
Rstes that he is going 10 forthwith hale
them before q court of justice and send
them to Jail 1t would appear that the
blsckening Of public record is of more
consequence to him thsn is his Official
duty Of adjusting public accounts. And
it would seem that this is another cese
in which the wish 10 father to the
thought, for before the ssaitors from
1r. nulnix's once hsd hssa IN Gusni-
soa one day, the Dsaver Rewspapers
we're teIephoning TO Gunnisen 70 aseer-
tsin whether Mr. hulnix nod discovered
wkaA Ne eHpsetsd 10 faA IN tAe cessty
bssks.
ne sspsrt - nst a. ~ - n is in
possible 10 know ct this time what thai
report will show, but it is well known
that the sccounts of the Office holder
do not show . shortage, ~ he would
make the people believe.
In the first place, according TO the
newspaper article. he charges that the
deputy treasurer is short something
over four hundred dollars. Now, to be-
gin with, it is impossible for deputy to
be short. Mr. Palmer has been paid by
the county commissioners for keeping
up the abstract of taxes and making up
the sales records. At various times
there was other extra work, not includ-
ed in his regular duties, which he was
employed to do and for which he was
paid a reasonable sum. Mr.. Mulnix
says that Mr.. Palmer should not have
been paid for doing this work. There.
fore, he concludes that he is short, ano
would lead the people to believe that he
has been guilty of converting public
funds to his own use. The work of keep
ing up the abstract of taxes and sales
record is extra work which someone
must do, and no one is going to do il
without receiving a reasonable compen.
sation for it. But Mulnix points ar
accusing finger, and says: You should
do that work for nothing and if you don I
do it for nothing and the county com.
mssioners pay you for doing it. you are
short in your funds and will prosecuts
you.
The following is statement by +. G.
Palmer relative to this alleged shortage
and shows the same to be only salary
paid for extra work.
1.-TWO hundred and twenty five dollars
was paid to f. c. Palmer by warrants
by County Commissioners for making
up sales records for County Clerk and
County Treasurer. ThIrty-two dollars
and fifty cents was paid by warrant by
County Commissioners for night work
extending taxes on tax roll for County
Assessor, at the time he was enjoired
from extending his tax rolls by the Col
orado Tax Commission while the new
tax law was being heard before the
Supreme Court, in which the decision
was delayed until December, and could
not be gotten out without working both
night and day shifts in the Assessor 5
Office. $500 is allowed each year by
the County Commissioners for keeping
the abstract books Of the Office, and in
this connection We will say, that with
out this set of books il would require
another clerk in the Treasurer's Office
With this set of books the Treasurer
can advise in few seconds the condi-
tion on any piece of property in the
county, and without them it would take
day time to furnish the same infor-
nation in many cases. The late J. E.
Brothers, when Treasurer. made up
these special abstract books, which are
no; provided for by law but are consider
ed first class investment. and when he
retired from the Treasurer's Office the