Letter from G. E. Harris to Mississippi Governor Adelbert Ames; May 28, 1875

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Letter from G. E. Harris to Mississippi Governor Adelbert Ames; May 28, 1875

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People

Ames, Adelbert, 1835-1933 Harris, G. E.Osborn, I. N.

Events

Crime Crime--Fraud Finances Finances--Collecting of accounts Legislation Legislation. Mississippi Legislation. Mississippi. An act to provide for the Collection of Revenue improperly withheld from the state and County Treasuries (1875)Political Office--Appointment to office

Organizations

Mississippi--Executive Department Mississippi--Legislature Mississippi--Office of the Attorney General Mississippi--Treasury Department Schools Schools--Mississippi

Occupations

Attorneys General Collection Agents Lawyers Lawyers. Public Prosecutors Secretaries Selling--Liquors Tax Collectors Treasurers

Places

Mississippi--Clay County Mississippi--Hinds County. Jackson Mississippi--Panola County

Page 1

[seal]

Attorney General's Office
Jackson Miss. May, 28, 1875.

His Excellency.
Governor, Adelbert Ames:

Sir:

Your Communication of the 20,^th to hand, soliciting my official opinion upon the following questions to wit:

1—"Have agents appointed under an act entitled "an act to provide for the Collection of Revenue improperly with=held from the state and County Treasuries approved March 4, 1875, and the act supplemental thereto approved March 6, 1875, a legal right to recieve a per. centage, of Collections, on moneys which should be devoted to school purposes?"

2— "Would a District Attorney, if appoint=ed under the provisions of said act, stand in the same attitude as agents not holding such a position?"

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Every legal opinion should be con=strued with reference to the facts of the case under consideration; but in this communication, I have neither case or facts, and therefore, I can give it only as an abstract proposition of law.

1—By virtue of the act refered to (Acts of 1875 p. p. 30. 31) you were authorized to appoint, or employ one or more agents, whose duty it should be, to examine all settlements made by any Tax collector with the state and county, within the six years last past; to institute suit &c. and collect money that is illegally or im=properly withheld. The Supplement extended the power of such agent to county and city Treasurers.

This would seem to apply to school fund as well as to state and county fund in all proper cases. But it is well known that several cities in this state, under improper advice, have misapplied, by order of their respective Boards, large amounts of the

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school fund arising from the licenses to retail vinous and spiritous liquors. (see Const. Art IV. Sec. 6.) This fund should have been paid into the State Treasury as a permanent school fund. The District Attorneys have been requested to bring suit to recover the same, but I believe only one suit has been brought, but I hope the District Attorneys may be constrained to discharge their duties in the prem=ises. I do not think that the legislature ever contemplated that these agents should intermeddle in this class of cases, for in such cases the only service required of the agent would be to speak to a lawyer on the subject, and when the money is collected, claim fifty per cent, (one half) of the amount, and thereby pocket many thousands of dollars, for the smallest immaginable service. I think the duty of these agents, is not to supercede the District attorneys

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in the exercise of the duty that devolves upon him.

But to ferret out, and bring to light, frauds, peculations, cor=ruptions and defalcations, and not to interfere in these cases, in which the cities have made a misapplication of large sums of the school fund, and such persistent intermeddling on the part of the agents, displays an impertinence equaled only by their lust for gain.

It must ever be a source of regret that the legislature should ever find a necessity for the creation of such an office in Mississippi:

The necessity for such an office could arise only from two causes.

1—The corruption of collecting officers and Treasurers, and,

2—The negligence of some District attorneys whose duty it is to sue for and collect all such funds, and yet so no-torious has been this neglect of duty that the attention of the legislature

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has been called to it, and the power of that body invoked, in the creation of a new officer, charged with the performance of the duties re=quired of the District attorneys, and yet we find that only two suits have been brought heretofore, one in Colfax County to Collect money and one in Panola County to punish a defaulter.

2—As to the attitude of a District attorny, who holds such agency. The incompatibility in the two offices is so obvious that I can scarcely imagine how one man could hold both. When the culpable negligence of a District Attorney has created a necessity for a new officer, to perform duties, long since required of him, and then for that officer to accept the new office in conjunction with the old and hold both, when the old office pays ten per cent on collections

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and the new office pays fifty per cent on the same collections and then for him to claim commis-sions under the law, creating the new office, would be a glaring absurdity, without excuse or justifi-cation, either in ^law, in^ politics or in morals. The two offices are wholly incompatible. It would, (by way of illustration), be no more absurd or incongruous, even for a member of the legislature, creating the office, to accept the appointment, and that would be, not only contrary to the spirit and genius of our institutions, but in utter disregard of the positive letter of the Constitution of the State.

Very Respectfly

G. E. Harris
Attorney General

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EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI.
Hinds—County.

From Att. Gen'l G. E. Harris
Address Jackson, Miss
Dated May 28, 1875.
Received _" 28, _"
Answered [gap]

SUBJECT:

Opinion, official, of "an Act to provide for the Collec-tion of revenue improperly withheld from the State and County Treasuries," approved March 4, 1875, and Act supplemental.

ADELBERT AMES,
Governor.

I. N. Osborn
Private Secretary.