Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1924-08-11
Automobiles

In other States different sys-
TENS have been inaugurated with
varying success. In Tennessee
for instance, State automobile
tags are issued by county court
clerks in the several counties, a
report being made by such Of
hcer to the secretary of state.
A small fee paid this officer,
perhaps, acts, as an incentive to
diligence in seeing that all au-
toists in the various counties Sc
cure licenses promptly.
In Georgia, it is claimed
through negligence of county of
hcials, who receive no fees for
enforcing this particular law
vast sums have been lost be-
cause of auto owners failing to
buy tags.
A number of Georgia newspa-
pers recently discussed the prop
osition to change the system in
this state. Holding that an ar
rangement should be made
whereby these tags could be
procured in each county, the
Washington News Reporter
says:
The present legislature should
by all means pass a bill amend
ing the automobile tag law to
that extent that all Georgia sher-
ifs will furnish the tags for their
respective counties. Tags should
be distributed in the same man
ner hunting licenses are. If ev-
cry Nimrod had to write to the
state game warden to get his
license to hunt, there would be
great many violations of the
law.
A similar opinion is held by
the Triton Gazette:
In an effort to head off the
demand for distribution Of auto
tags, a news story sent out from
Atlanta last week stated that on
ly experts" such as are employ
ed in Atlanta, are competent to
sell the tags. Probably, if the
law was SO changed that some
officer already on the pay roll
in each county handled the tags,
it would cut few employees
from the states Atlanta pay roll.
We think that it is more a case
of pie grabbers" than experts"
and any excuse will do so long
as they are kept on the job.
To which the Columbus En-
quirer Sun adds:
There appears to be nomorerea-
son why the owner of an auto
mobile should have to send to
Atlanta for a tag for his machine
than that he should have to send
there for a license to conduct a
business of any kind in the coun-
ty in which he lives. The sher-
lff or some other county officer
might very well take care of the
distribution of automobile tags;
and if such an arrangement were
made it would be a great con-
venience to auto owners. This
would also prevent a lot of con-
fusion among those who, al
( though they make application
weeks ahead, do not get their
tags on time some of the time,
on account of the great number
of orders pouring in Co the At
lanta office.
None of these newspapers,
apparently, have taken into
consideration the newly created
tax department. This depart
ment has direct supervision of
the distribution of automobile
tags after fixed date each year,
as well as the collection OF 9TH
er taxes. One Of these tax
agents in Americas recently is
SAID to have disturbed a mum
Der of autoists, as well as other
tax dodgers.
AT least one arrest was made
in the case of a merchant who
was alleged to have violated the
tobacco stamp tax law, and
numbers of autoists bought
State license tags, paying a pen
atty of 20 per cent for their
oversight in failing to get
these sooner. Perhaps with the
tax department functioning
rightly, very little cash will be
lost by the State through I'M
collected automobile taxes.
The idea of making the pur~
chase of auto license tags as
convenient as possible is one to
be commended, but autobobil-
lists are already paying their
share of taxes. Whatever may
be done, nothing should b