Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1923-05-10
ADOPTED by The Grand Jury, April
Term, 1923, Ben Hill Superior Court

before referred to report, we the Com.
missloners, respectfully state. with
reference to the Clerk of the Road
OF County Commissioners not be;no
otioer bond, that no clerk OF the Board
OF county Commissioners that is the
commissioners of Roads and Revenues
IN and for Ben Hill County has heen
under bond for at least the past e;oht
years, and that inadvertently from
such precedent we overlooked the
placing of the Clerk under bond the
present Clerk, R. L. Stone. being re-
sponsible for his obligation in all 6rob-
ability may have made us little care
less, IN connection with the Dreceden+
herelnbefore stated, of inuuirinq into
the law regarding such bond. How.
ever, we are advised that it is neces-
sary in order to strictly comnIv with
the law, that the clerk be reouired to
give bond in the sum of one thousand
qollars, with good security, and this
thereon worth at least one hundred
ana fifty thousand dollars, which bond
Is now tiled in the office of the Ordi-
nary OF SAID county, and the law thus
FULLY complied with.
Said report of said committee adopt-
ca as hereinbefore stated by the grand
jury IN their. general presentments rec
commended that the commissioners
publish quarterly itemized statement
OF all their receipts and disbursements,
said statement to show voucher numb
er, name, quantity, price, total amount.
etc, and recommended to the grand
jury that the commissioners be in
structed to begin in May 1928, to pub
nsh 1temized statement covering the
first three months next preceding. and
to IN future publish such reports.
We have not heretofore made this
publication as the law directed in an
act specially passed by Wesley R.
Walker because we desired to save as
much expense to the tax PAYERS of this
county as possible, we having prepared
such statement as required by law and
having carried same to the press for an
estimate of the cost of publishing the
same, and was informed the publica-
ton OF each such report would cost
at least $4,000 However, as the re-
port of said committee adopted by the
grand jury at said term recommended
that such statement be published, we
are going to strictly track the law
with reference thereto.
And again, with reference to the
clerk, We have taken these items up
IN rotation just as they appear in the
report as recommended by said COM
m1ttee and as adopted as hereinbefore
stated. The County commissioners
arc authorized by law to elect their
own clerk at such salary as should be
by them fixed The county commits
sioners paid Wesley R. Walker, then
q Commissioner, salary of $50 per
month for acting as clerk and upon de-
Gliding to cut the salary to $40 said Mr..
Walker resigned the clerkship rather
than do the work at such price, The
present board of Commissioners en-
ployed Miss Jemima Hogan, who at
that time was working for the Ordin-
airy, ]. R. Horton, and paid her for
acting as clerk of the Board of County
Commissioners at the time she resign
ed to 60 to Florida a salary of $45
per month. Mr.. Stone, the present
clerk, was compelled to do consider
able of the clerks work prior to his
having been elected by said commits
sioners as clerk, in order to keep the
records complete, he being more ia
niliar with such work, one of the it.
ems being to record upon the road reg
lister all the roads of said county, which
should have been SO recorded by the
clerk; and in addition thereto the work
required he as we'll as other commits
sioners to spend extra days at the
Court House in order to complete the
work Of the commissioners.
nd M C+ona ,.-oe ,,,o~o
ly called upon than the other commits
sioners we decided it to be to the best
interest of the county and of the cit
izenry thereof and to the tax payers
to elect Mr.. Stone clerk, and therefore
did so at the salary received by the
last clerk next preceding Mr. Stone.
However, we decided to cut expenses
in the administration of the county
business and to economic as much as
possible in order to make a saving to
the tax payers of said county. Mr..
Stone made out a bill for his salary
and the warrant for same and handed
same to the other two commissioners
and told them to sign same, the same
being bill and county warrant for
his salary, and upon looking at such we
found the same to be $40, Mr.. Stone
stating to US that he had decided to
begin by cutting his salary No motion
was made to this effect but it was
done voluntarily on his part. We are
of the opinion that it would be impossi
Bile to secure a man who would attend
to the office of clerk faithfully and
who is competent to attend to same at
SIS, or $40, or even $50 or $35 per
month, and if you will examine the
minutes and records of the Commits
sioners of Roads and Revenues in and
for Ben Hill County you will find the
precedent bears out this statement
And if you so desire, investigate the
salary of the clerks of the various
boards of County Commissioners thru
out the adjacent counties to Ben Hill.
We admit, and gladly do so, that
in So far as possible We buy meat,
corn, oats, potatoes, hay and other
home grown products as supplies for
the chain gang, from the farmers in
Ben Hill County, and believe that we
should so do. Farmers are the bull
wark of the county, the feeders of all,
and pay taxes. therefore we deem it
but Just that we patronize them in so
far as we may.
And again We admit that in some
instances with reference to small pur-
chases of products they are measured
or weighed on the farm, and always
in the presence of representative OF
the county, but with reference to pur-
chases in any amount the same are
weighed by a public weigher in the
City of Fitzgerald, other than, OF