Jasper County Democrat, Volume 11, Number 70, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 February 1909 — TO INVESTIGATE [ARTICLE]

TO INVESTIGATE

County Records, Council Appropriates $2,000. OFFICES OF TREAS. AND AUDITOR To Be Investigated At Least, and Possibly All the Offices May Be Examined.

Among the important appropriations made by the County Council at its meeting Monday and yesterday, was $2,000 for an investigation of the county records. It is the indention, we understand, to have an expert examination made of the treasurer’s and auditor’s offices, to settle the question of the shortage of ex-treasurer Nichols, who thinks there were mistakes in the latter office that made the shortage which the commissioners order ed paid at their meeting last month. Mr. Leatherman thinks his accounts are correct and says that he welcomes an investigation. Now that an investigation of these two offices has been ordered, the taxpayers of Jasper county who have the expense to pay, are interested in its being an honest and non-partisan investigation. They don’t want any white-washing, and the investigation should go back at least 15 years, covering all of the period during which the new court house was being considered and built. In order that it may be an investigation in which the people may have confidence,- The Democrat suggests that the republican and democratic county chairmen each select one accountant and the county commissioners select the third, as provided in the petition for an investigation asked for by more than 1.000 representative taxpayers of the county some nine or ten years ago. It is scarcely likely that $2,000 will be sufficient to make a thorough examination of all the offices, that is, covering a period which the investigation should cover, but the auditor’s and treasurer’s offices are the principal county offices and if a fair and honest investigation is made of them it will probably satisfy the people, though it ought not cost very much to check up the others also. The commissioners have made no contract with anyone to conduct the investigation as yet, and so far as we can learn have no one in mind. The council was still in session yesterday morning and the appropriations asked for and which they likely to grant, amounted to $lO,847,74, mostly re-appropriations, which lapsed January 1, and $14,640.15 new appropriations, making a grand total of $25,487.89. Aside from the $2,000 for an examination of the county records, most of the new appropriations are for bridges.