Golden Valley chronicle. (Beach, Billings County, N.D.) 1905-1916, 1915-01-08
Many Changes
Will Take Place
Cutting of of Slope County From
Billings Will Make Many Changes at
Medora-Billings County Officers
Will Suffer Salary Reduction.


many changes during the first six
months of the year. Slope. the terri
tory south segregated from Billings
will be ready to start out on county af-
fairs this week. Gov. L. B. Hanna has
named the board of commissioners
and the three men so appointed are to
select the temporary county seat and
appoint a set Of officers to serve until
the next general election. After this
lie done, the records in the register
of deeds Office at Medora will have
to be transcribed and If the Jan.
financial statement of Billings is taken
as q basis, the commissioner Of Slope
and Billings meet six months later
and determine upon settlement Of
the property which will include county
:buildinss. permanent record books.
fund. on hand and all indebtedness.
Bridges and road improvements are
not taken into account in settlement
between counties.
The assessed valuation of old Bill
:linss i. $T.l09,000. With division ef-
:fected the valuation of Billings is re-
~duced to $l.700.000. Thus it will be
seen that Slope has the greater valu-
-ation-$2.300,00o.
The settlement between the two
counties will be figured on a basis Of
valuation. Hence If the county build
ing a. Medora should be found to be
worth $4,000 and the floating indebt-
-edne.. of: Billinss $4,000 Slope would
have to pay money to the parent
county.
These figure. are only approximately
correct, but from the floating indebt-
ednes. can be deducted tax sale re-
~ceipt. and other cash on hand which
will bring the floating debt down to
possibly $4,000. Billings county has
no bonded indebtedness other than
the seed grain obligation and that is
supposed to be paid back by the seed
grain borrowers. 1t is known. how
ever, that there will be deficit in
,.his fund of perhaps $4,000 to $1,000
and Slope will have to stand its pro-
portion of this Indebtedness when il
is finally determined. Hence it would
not be surprising if the accounts Of
the old and new counties about bal
.anced. Slope might have to pay Bill
:ings few thousand.
Division will hurt the salary ac-
counts of officers in Billings unles,
the new assessment in 1915 should
bring the valuation up to the two mil
lion mark. With the valuation below
two million, the auditors salary will
drop $500. from $1,000 to $l.40o
per year, and register of deeds from
$1,000 to $1,000. 1t is also probable
that the number of deputies about the
court house will be reduced.
However the salary change is moi
effective for year. and the 1915 as
SCISSORS may discover lot of new
property. Much land that has gone
to patent will be added to the assess.
7ment rolls this year.
The segregation of the south terri.
tory makes it necessary to restrict
Billings into new commissioner dis.
,tricts and also to 6ll commissions,
appointments for the first and third
districts. also assessors and uperin.
tendent Of schools. The appointing
board will be the county auditor. Ira
]. Wilson, the incoming judge. V. E.
pehresson, and the holdover commits.
sioner from the old first district, Aus.
tin Mead.
The question Of redi.trictins i. al.
ready creating considerable discus
sion. Those living along the Little
Missouri river. in the Bad Lands ter
1itory.. are largely Of the opinion that
this should comprise one district and
be represented by stockman. If thi.
division was made. there would be
two districts in the section east ol
the river, one north of the Northern
Pacific line and one south. Another
set Of people believe that the county
should be divided east and west. Civ.
ing north, middle and south dis
trict. Commissioner Mead is now in
District I, the north territory. E. D.
Peck has been serving on the board
by appointment for the old middle
district, while W. H. Hanson still ha.
two years of unexpired term for the
old third, or south district. However
segregation leaves him entirely out Of
the present Billings territory. D. M.
Hart was elected for the second dis
trict, but he is now in Slope.
Mr.. Bond was elected superintend-
ent Of schools last fall, but he resides
at Marmarth and therefore is in
Slope. Earl Mccullough has been
looking after the Office since Miss
Marie Akerman and her deputy. Miss.
Fern Wilson. took marriage vows and
moved to their farm homes in Slope.
This gentleman is-a candidate for the
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