Tensas gazette. [volume] (St. Joseph, La.) 1886-current, 1916-11-03
SAYS FEE PLAN NOT ABOLISHED
Clerk Mecom Of Caldwell Parish OBJ
iects to Amendment.
fShreveport Times,

The Times has received the follow
ing letter from NJ. l.. Mecom of Co.
lumbis, La, clerk of the Thirtieth
District Court, in opposition to the
proposed constitutional amendment
sbolishing the fee system for sheriffs,
assessors, and clerks OF court:
Columbia, La, October %, 1915.
Editor Shreveport Times:
at Ia stated and claimed by some
that the fee system will be abolished
by Acts 142 and 143 of 1918, II the pro-
posed amendment to Article 129 of
the constitution is carried at the
November election; such statement
and claim is grossly misleading and
does not give the public at large q
fair and impartial presentation of the
case"
'Ths fact is, that Acts 142 and 143
do not abolish the fee system, nor has
the fee bills for the clerks and sheriffs
been changed or reduced In single
instance. All persons having business
with either of these officials must con-
tinue to pay fees at the same price,
and in the same manner as at the
present, and to pay in cash as they 60.
Under the proposed salary basis the
clerks and sheriffs' Offices will be un-
der the supervision of the State super
visor of public accounts, and these
officers will be held to strict account
ing for all fees collected through
them, therefore, the public must give
good and solvent bond or pay cash, as
it goes, and it matters not how m-ri-
torious charity might be. neither the
clerk nor the sheriff will be allowed,
under penalty to remit his fees in any
case, either in whole or in part"
"Act 142 does not place all the
clerks on a salary basis, but specifl-
cally excerpts the parishes of Orleans,
Concordia, Assumption, Cameron, La
Sale, st. John the Baptist, West
Baton Rouge, st. Charles, Catahoula,
st. Helena, West Carroll and West
Feliciana, yet the people of these ~
parishes, being in no manner affected
by the proposed salary basis, will vote
on the amendment, and say whether
or not the remaining public of the
State shall have the proposed law.
The people of these 12 parishes being
as they are unaffected and without
interest and the legislation being To-
cal in character and application, I
believe their sense of justice Of those
affected will cause them to either vote
against the amendment or not at ALL"
"Under the proposed salary plan,
the sheriffs' aud clerks expense ac-
counts are in some measure dependent
upon the will o! the Judge OF the court
and the president of the police jury,
instead Of Keeping the
judicial elections free of politics, as
was sought to be done when these
elections were changed so as to be
held In the Autumn, anS after the
general election, it creates a strong
incentive for the sheriffs and clerks
and their partisan friends to get ac-
lively into the juicial campaigns. The
same applies to the elections of police
jurors and particularly to the selec-
tons Of the president of the police
jury"
"The proposed salary plan is further
for the reason that it is
local in character, fixing the salary in
one parish and q different salary in
another, yet uncertain haphazard
salary in each parish, while in the -
parishes above mentioned, it fixes no
salary at all. II we are to place these
officers on a salary, let the salary be
uniform, fixed and certain throughout
the State, and whatever grading is to
be done, let it be done in expense ac-
counts. Why should any clerk or
sheriff get a better salary than the
judges Of the district courts? II the
public must continue to pay fees, and
il the sheriffs and clerks are now re-
ceiving excessive fees, let the State
reduce them and not continue prac-
tice that it has practically said is both
legally and morally wrong. The salary
plan is further Objectionable for
the reason that it is an attempt to
break the States contract, then exis-
tent, when her public servants were
elected last April"
"The State may by legal suit, but
not by moral right, violate the con-
trat between it and it's public SER
wants, but it can with perfect fidelity
to all concerned write a new and diff
ferent contract properly promulgated
md published to advance and made
effective only when it's servants have
been elected Hereunder"
"The better course for Louisiana Is
to call a constitutional convention,
when this and many other important
measures now up for amendment, can
be, without so much patchwork, origi-
nally written into organic law of the
State. With the hope that this will
merit republication by the country
press, / am,
Very respectfully,
nj. l.. MECOM.