Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 3, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 October 1874 — MR. BABCOCK'S SALARY GRAB. [ARTICLE]

MR. BABCOCK'S SALARY GRAB.

In the issue of Tiie Union of September 2*4th it was said that last year the auditor of Jasper county charged the trustees of The several townships for making out their road tax lists.' The law regulating the pay of county auditors at that time is to be found on page 38 of the acts of 1871, section, 28 of the general laws, and reads: The auditor of each county shall be allowed the sum of fifteen hundred dollars for his services, ami no more, except as provided in this aety when the population of the county exceeds ten thousand, the additional sum of one hundred dollars for each one thousand ot inhabitants of such county over ten thousand, or fraction thereof over live hundred,’ shall be allowed such auditor to pay for depuTtesrand in addition thereto, lie shall be allowed the fees arising out of the management of the school fund, and tiie lees for transfers of land, and for transferring each tract of land or town lot, he shall be entitled to receive of the party for whom the Transfer is made, ten cents" — -- —-■ It was also further provided that all other fees than those allowed for services arising out of the management of the school fund, and fees for jbe transfers of land (which are enumerated in section 18 same act) should be collected and paid to the county treasurer on the first Monday in each month. As Avas stated in the article above referred to, Mr. Babcock charged the trustees of the several toAvnships for making out their road tax lists and collected pay-froth David. Gray, imsfoeofdia ll ging Grove township, John Querry, trustee of Gill a m township, John lierslimau, trustee of Walker township, Henry I. Adams, trustee of Jordan township, Lucius Strong, trustee of Newton township, Alexander A. Tyler, trustee qf Keener township, Alfred G’lazybrook, trustee of Kankakee township, Stilman Gates, trustee of Wheatfield township, James F. Trwin, trustee of Carpenter townwhip, Janies W. Smith, trustee of JVlilroy township, and Isaac V. Alter, trustee of Union township, giving each his receipt for., such fees collected, and each of whom probably lias that receipt still in his possession and probably Avould show it to any person who might apply to see it. Henry A. Barkley,, "trustee erf Barkley —township, and David T. Halstead, trustee of Marion township, refused to pay Mr. Babcock’s demands for the reason that he was working under a salary (as shown by the section of law above quoted,) and the law specifed that he was nbt entitled to any other fees for his services. in order to collect the demand upon Mr. Barkley, Mr. Babcock commenced proceedings against him inTlfe Circuit Court. But Judge Hammond ruled that the complaint was "faulty and that action would not lie thereon; whereupon the plaintiff (Mr. Babcoek) asked permission to amend . his complaint; w hich permission ! Avas granted,, and Barkley towu'sliip was substituted for Henry A. Barkley. Mr. Barkley waived service of notice and announced himself ready lor* trial, when Mr. Babcock asked permisssion to dismiss the case. As the Ring, which favors salary-grabbing and advocates the election of salary-grab-bers to office, have been very busy trying to put another construction upon this matter, and have denied ! that these proceedings were had in J court, we append the following ! document, which may be seen at I this office: ,i

State of Indiana, \ Jasper Bounty, j Ss j Frank W. Babcock j Jasper Circuit ’ vs. >■ Court, Deelfor- | Henry A. Barkley. J ber term, 1574. Be it remembered that on the 9th day of December, 1873, the same befog tile 7th judicial day of 'the 'December term of the Jasper Circuit j i Court, begun, held and continued at | the court house in Rensselaer, Imli- i ana, commencing ou Monday, the Ist f day of December, 1573, before the j Honorable Edwin B. Hammond,- j Judge of said Court, the following i proceedings in the above j entitled cause, to-wit: —Y —- : Tuesday, December 9tli, 1573. 1 Frank \Y. Babcock ) No. 630.—Judg- ' ■ ■ vs. — 1 oiuent against Henry A. Barkley. J Pltff for costs. ” Comes nownpiaintitf and. tiles his amended complaint herein, by Dwiggins A Co. his attorneys, substituting Barkley Township as Defendant herein, which complaint reads as follows, (insert!, and Plaintiff now dismisses his cause of action herein as to De* - feudanc Barkley. 'lt is therefore considered bv 'the Coilrt that the Defendant Barkley do have and re- j cover of and from the Plaintiff Bab-1 cock the costs and. charges hereih taxed at dollars. An 4 conies now the Defendant; Barkley township, by Thompson & >

Kpitler her attorneys, and files her sejwrate demurrer of \U») I’laintiff’s complaint as follows, (insert), which demurrer the Court sustains as to first paragraph and overrules as to second paragraph; whereupon Defendant files her answer herein, as follows, (insert), to which answer Plaintiff now files his reply herein as follows, -(insert), and the issue herein being joined, comes now the Plaintiff and by leave of Court dismisses his cause of action herein. It is therefore considered by the Court that this cause he dismissed, and that the Defendant ritarkley township do have andrecover of a ll d from Hie Plaintiff his costs Land charges herein, taxed at dollars. „

Costs- all paid. M. L. Spitler, . Clerk J. C. C. State of Indiana, 1 Jasper County, /*’"• I, Marion L. Spitler, Clerk of the Jasper Circuit Court, of the County of Jasper, in the State of Indiana, do hereby certify that the foregoing is a true anti complete copy of the proceedings and judgment of said Court, in the above entitled cause,,on the day and year first aforesaid, as appears on record in my oftice. lo testimony AATiereof, 1 ( seat* jliereunto subscribe my name hereto affix the seal of the said Court, at my office Rensselaer, Did,, tiiis liftli day of October, A. D. 1874. Marion L. Spitler, Clerk of Jasper Circuit Court.

j The fore g.oing transcript, certified to under the seal of the Clerk of Jasper county as a “true and complete cbpy x>f the proceedings and judgement” of the court in this c.ase, proves conclusively, beyond possibility of cavil, that Mr. Babcock did not gain his suit, and did not collect his demand upon the public funds in Mr. Barkley’s custody ; and that as the losing party in the action he was coinpell- | ed to, and did, pay, the costs of " the suit. — • Mr. Halstead had been county auditor eight years, and was con versant with tiie duties of tffe office; he knew' well enough w hether Mr. Babcock was entitled to the fees under consideration; and every person in this community knows that his integrity and love .of justice is unimpeachable, and that he Avould have paid Mr. Babcock all he was entitled to receive, i The law expressly stated that the I auditor should not have extra fees for services connected with his ; office, except in certain specified Leases; and it also provided that ■all-other fees which it recognized the auditor’s, right to collect, should be paid over to the treasurer of the county. a (See section 18, page 34, last paragraph of general laws-of 1871.) -r-e - Mr. Babcock collected fees which he had no right to from eleven township trustees, lie collected these fees on work, done as county auditor, ami to which he attached the seal of his office. — And he put (he rntmey into his puckei contrary to late-. He sued Mr. Barkley for illegal fees that neither Mr. Barkley nor. Mr. Halstead would pay;'he found he was beaten, dismissed the suit, and paid the costs' a* the beaten party, in accordance leith the findings of the court.— Alter Mr. BabcocK was beaten it would seem that discretion, justice and honesty should have prompted him to have returned his il'gotten fees to the trustees from whom he had illegally taken them. But he has never done so yet.