Jasper County Democrat, Volume 1, Number 22, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 September 1898 — JASPER’S COUNTY EXPENSES. [ARTICLE]

JASPER’S COUNTY EXPENSES.

It will be of interest to our readers to know how Jasper county compares with others over the state in the matter of the expenses of carrying on the affairs of the county. There are reasons why our county would be expected to make a rather unfavorable showing by such comparison. First. We have the largest county in the state excepting Allen and expenses incidental to many things are necessarily in proportion to the extent of territory embraced. Second. Our county is now just developing in regard to improvements, new highways are being located and new bridges built, which older counties are practically now relieved from. Third. The vast amount of ditching done in the county requires a very heavy expense on the county incidental to constructing but more especially incidental to keeping the ditches cleaned out. Fourth. During the past year the matters pertaining to new court house and pew gravel roads have very largely increased the costs of commissioners' courts by requiring so much more than ordinary time spent in session by the board. Yet notwithstaning all these facts, tending to make our expenses heavy, the showing outside of the direct expenditures for new court house is a very gratifying one to all fair people. We have succeeded in procuring the annual reports of receipts and expenditures for the past year from twelve counties in tue state—which are all we have been able thus far to procure—besides our own, which twelve do not include any of the very populous counties, and not to exceed three of these undergoing present development to any extent approaching that of our own with the consequent expense. Considering the circumstances it would certainly not be unr asonable should the county expenses of Jasper be in excess of the average of these twelve counties, [ no one ot which has had the burden of public j building upon it during the time covered. ■ There has been expended by these several I com tn- forOKDlNAßYcounty expenses, durI ing t.l:< last fiscal year as follows: Adamscdunty.. $ Henry county . 51.89137 Jay county 49.050 32 Lake county 70.081 51 Madison county.... —.... 120,390 32 Montgomery county 88,971 50 Newton county 21,925 14 Putnam county, 33,766 95 Randolph county 34,234 29 Sullivan county 57,396 93 White county 32.780 55 Wellscounty ' 49,781 85 Jasper rtmnty 31.195 64

It will be seen that every county in thia list expended more than ours, with the single exceptionzof Newton which probably shows the least expenditures of any in the state. It will also be seen that the average of these twelve counties is $55,766.09. about 80 per cent more than Jasper, and if we deduct from ! Jasper county's expenditures the extraordinary expenses which have been placed upon our county by the causes above enumerated, we will then have expended less than half the average expended by these twelve countiej. Such a showing is certainly something to be proud of.-“-Journal. How true that old saying about "figures won’t lie, but liars will figure.” Any man of average intelligence knows that the ordinary expenses of a county should be something in proportion to its population, improvements or valuation, etc., without regard to whatever amount of unimproved territory it, may embrace. Noone for a moment would say that Jasper county’s ordinary expenses should be anything like those of Marion county. But one county in the Journal statisticians’list (Newton) but has a greater valuation, more population, etc., than Jasper, and taking this fact into consideration our taxes are greater than any of the counties enumerated, as will

be seen by the following table taken from the latest and most reliable source in existence: County. Pop. Vai. Adams 20,181 9,691340 Henry... 23.879 15,906,120 Jay................... 23,478 11,406,188 Lake 28,i886 24,868,305 Madison 36,487 27,374,315 Newton . 8,802 7,731,956 Putnam.... 22,835 14,745,500 Randolph 28,086 15,976 190 Sullivan 15,671 11,481332 White 15,671 11,418,675 Wells ~.A 21,514 12.114,805 Jasper t.;,. 11.185 8,331.287 Will the Journal have, the audacity to say anything more about low (?) expenses in Jasper county?