The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1921-03-24
s,.te Accountants are Summon
ID to Make Complete Audit
of County Records
MaER CASES CONSIDERED
,,.sseuting Attorney is Submitting
All Criminal Cases to the
Grand Jury

While the hearings of the grand
;r,v now sitting in Prosser are secret
.rd no information has been given
.ut bv it such reports as are available
Indicate that the jury is not confin-
mo its investigation to specific
charges which were filed in advance
.f the hearing but are making a
.ueeping and thorough probe of the
.ouuty's affairs for several years
hack Accountants from the state bu-
yeau have been summoned and are
making a special audit. of the county
records. ~
Not only is the grand jury making
an investigation of the county affairs
hut Prosecutor Hamilton is submitting
10 It all criminal cases which have
been docketea for the next trial jury
term of the superior court. During
the week several witnesses have been
called from Kennewick to give testi-
mony regarding charges which have
no connection with the official acts
Of any of the county officers.
It is understood that tomorrow the
jury will consider the case of the
State VS.. Mr.. and Mrs. Toothaker, of
Hover. This is a case in which C. C.
Cantwell charges that the defendants
attempted to poison his livestock. AT
ter the complaint was filed Mr.. and
Mrs. Toothaker waived preliminary
hearing and were released by Justice
Staser under $500 bonds to appear in
superior court.
Tuesday the jury considered the
case Of C. C. Gordon against several
Kennewick citizens whom he accused
Of coercion. Mr.. Gordon claims that
he was forced to sign an admission of
libel at the time DIR. E. j. Bulgin was
conducting services here. Of the nine
Witnesses summoned from here only
one was placed on the stand and the
ease dropped.
County Commissioner Pratt has
been in Prosser most of the week and
Sstill held as witness. When here
tuesday, he gave out the following in
srlew regarding the hearing:
1t is very likely that more or less
god will come from the grand jury
now in session, if it only serves to call
attention to the antequated laws and
Fstem now in vogue it will have ac-
nmplished something. The former
ave been modified some by recent
eslslatures but are still very crude,
shle the latter is only adapted to af-
alrs of thirty years ago, when coun-
y activities were far different than
rpresent.
1t seems to me the only answer to
@problems that present themselves
ncounty affairs is business mana
sH' and the short ballot. Every elec-
uon brings into office at least few
new officers, some of them with the
ldea that all they have to do is to sit
N swivel chair and draw their sal
ary.
Inc most striking example of this
sass perhaps was the case of a for.
mer auditor who now considers him.
ae1 a great critic of county affairs
Aiter his election he made the oper
statement that all anyone had to dc
"nen elected to a county office was
% SIT In chair and collect his salary
:. rAa the county would pay the under.
nngs to do the work. He followed out
suis program pretty generally for {
"niie when brilliant idea struck hin
"'uch looked better still. He took ad
vantage of a ruling made by the at
sOtney general and secured renune
.S'lVe clerical job outside and mean
Siiiie ne drew the auditors salary t.
'Ae end of the tenn. Whether he i:
-.ow taking down a bonus from th'
state do not know.
inls is only one case but we hav'
re su plenty of others similar to this
= tnese offices were filled by appoint
- 'en' and under a business manage
seems to me it would be great i'm
O'ement. ~ Anyway the subject il
e tnat should receive careful atten
a0n by all taxpayers"