The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1932-03-17

While Mr.. Friend Did Not Explicitly
State in a Communication Appear
ing In The Republican Few Weeks
Ago Who Was Responsible For the
Tax Rate Now in Force In Garrett
County the Only Inference Left to
the Casual Mind Was That He Held
The Board of County Commission
ers Responsible, While That Body,
Following the Mandate of the Law,
Must Provide Salaries, Money For
Schools, Roads, Bridges and Null.
tiplicity of Other Items To Keep
the County Government Going; He
Now Questions the Law and Hints
that the Locally Elected Officers
Have Abdicated Their Power When
as an Intelligent Man He Knows
That Annapolis, Through Governor
Richie, And His Subservient Leg
islature, Has Taken Away the Right
of Local Self Government.
Another letter has been handed The
Republican by Mr.. Clifford Friend, of
near Accident, for publication, which
appears below and without comment
except that contained in the caption
above:
To the Editor of The Republican.
have read with interest an article
appearing in The Republican last
week which refers to a manuscript
prepared by myself on taxes few
| xuooLc onn Tn tho pranorafioY of Tho
manuscript / took care to refrain
from laying the blame for high taxes
at anybody's door, giving only facts
as to conditions confronting the tax
payers in our county today. How
ever, it seems that there are some
guilty minds who have felt in reading
over the article in question that the
blame for some of the woes enumer-
ated therein should be laid at their
door. It is plain enough that the shoe
fit somebody or else why the ugly in
situation, and why also did the au-
thor refrain from affixing his sigma
ture?
We are told again that our commits
sioners are responsible for only about
25 per cent of our expenditures, the
other rs per cent being mandatory.
We are aware that if our schools are
to continue to get the benefit of the
equalization system our commission
ers must appropriate up to a certain
amount for school use, but is it man.
datory? If it is, then our local
elected government has completely abb
Dictated its power and turned over to
a board sitting in Baltimore the power
| to levy our taxes and name the sal
aries of our employees. While this is
being done so far as our schools are
concerned, we are doing it for the
sake of the equalization fund, and, /
believe, we are free to withdraw.
However, we feel this question is of
secondary Importance. Our only aim
is for economy, our only hope is in
quick and effective relief. If we are
to avert the impending crash we must
have assistance from some new source.
Already our property owners are fac
ing defeat. To own property is no
longer evidence of wealth. On the
other hand, our county employees have
benfited for nearly three years from
high public salaries and steady en-
ployment. Those persons whose live
lihood depends upon the continual
! ton of these salaries, and those who
are sufficiently interested in the coun-
ty to want to see it survive, should be
willing to lend their assistance thru
! this emergency.
At Uniontown, Pa, certain county
employees donated 20 per cent of their
earnings back to the public treasuary.
Who shall say that our own county
has not as fine a set of employees as
any other, and what could be more
fair than for our employees to get to-
gether and authorize the proper au-
thorities to withhold rs per cent of
their salaries until such time as con-
ditions warrant the resumption of
payments on the old schedule?
The greater part of our school
teachers, at least, are young girls and
men who pay no taxes. Why not give
them the opportunity to help through
this emergency? What better exam
pie of good citizenship could they
set for our young generation of Am
orleans whose ideals they are helping
to shape?
In program of this kind we should
also have the able leadership of our
County Superintendent of Schools. He
is, l believe, the highest paid execu-
tive in our county. What better evil
dence of sincere devotion could he
give to the county where he has labor
ed for so many years?
There is a principle involved in all
of this that is of fundamental impor-
lance in itself. That is that the public |
should not be charged any more for
service than that same service would
be worth in private business. We !