The Port Gibson reveille. [volume] (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1890-current, 1921-02-17
COUNTY REFORMS NEEDED
FOR RETRENCHMENT
Editor Reyeille.

Editor Reveille:
! submit to the resolutions commit
tee Of the Taxpayers association the
following for consideration:
lst. An annual county budget BY
the board Of supervisors-wh our in
come and what our expenditures will
De-thereby avoiding recurring def
cts and prospective bond issues.
md A new system of county book
Keeping, showing every three months
what monies are in the general fund.
road fund, school fund, tick fund and
sinking fund, and how such have been
used and balance on hand Double en-
try, balls receivable and bills payable.
Srd. To do away with SO many par
allel roads and public roads extended
to the gates of private owners In
some road districts very few people
live on them, and they need the NOV
ing machine more than road machine.
One road know Of seven miles long
has one black family and one white
family living on it. Every one can
not have public highway through his
or her property.
4th. Abolish all district boards Of
road commissioners, school boards and
pension boards. They to be consoli-
dated and all responsibility centralized
IN the board of supervisors. 1t is
surprising the designations of road
commissioners after Obtaining he new
ly-coveted public highways to their
farm gates, and stop further extension
Of the roadway. There is too much
invisible government attached to the
school department Of the counties. No
one knows the salaries the school
teachers receive and the amount col
lected of dog taxes. Why cannot we
rural folks be informed of the sums
expended to the teachers in the one
room schools, consolidated schools and
separate school districts as well as
that published by the Port Gibson
schools by the town fathers? Again,
we are ignorant of the charges paid
to the railroads and transportation
vans for carving the school children
to and from school.
9th. The salaries of county officials
should require investigation as to
each office being self-sustaining or
having debts on their ledgers. This
would determine the number of depu-
ties required to give efficiency to the
public service. l, at one time, advo-
Gated the consolidation of the circuit
clerks Office with the chancery clerks
Office, but on reflection think it would
not be advantageous. Only two coun-
ties IN Mis- =issippi have one person
filling such combined Office. They are
small sounties-lssaquen and George
-one has about 40 votes, the other
belongs to ore man, lumber king and
iand hog. Again, | am opposed to
giving too much power to one official,
for ! know what 1t is to live under a
city ward boss and a country court
house ring dictation. We would have
a grand Mogul, and his or her depu-
ties, little Moguls from each district
would give orders to the people and
tyranize over them. Especially if
some keen politician was elected, and
has wife who is mistress in controls
ing women voters-he a hail fellow
well met with the boys, and she, sweet
as can be to mothers and babies with
hugs and kisses.
9th. That poll tax league be form
ed to see that it is paid by every per-
son eligible for IT, This does not
give the right of franchise, but is
suggested because for the past two
years we are threatened with a short
school term of seven months instead
of eight or nine, and its collection win
help public education.
/ disclaim any personalities in the
above seriatim outlines, and it will
take state legislative action in some
of them to function the reforms for
the over-burdened taxpayers. We
should study county taxation as the
national tax payers leagues does Fed
eral, state and municipal taxation.
JAMES +. McCALEB, M. d.
Byrnmore Plantation, Feb. IA, 1921.