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Show Government You and I (Article No. 2) As told by Byrd Trego to Frank Gaisford After the days of the town crier, "Legal Notices" were nailed up at the town hdl. Frequently before they were read rain and wind destroyed them. If they did remain in good condition, people could not afford the time to go to the place of posting and hunt through an assortment of notices for an item of vital personal interest. Citizens hardly knew what the fluttering sheets on the billboard were all about. But you and I remember cases where someone found that he had been "done out" of a property right or an inheritance because he had not stopped to decipher the fluttering sheets on the billboard. You and I must recognize the true value of "public notices." no-tices." They are vitally important in the protection of our rights. "NO REGAIN" for YOU or ME Legal notices are of extreme importance to us when suddenly sud-denly we need their protection of our citizen rights. Our Constitution says that persons "shall not be deprived of property without due process of law." This is of no value to you or me should we fail to pay attention to "legal notices" or fail to act upon a notice served by an officer "personal service." He who throws away his right cannot regain them "after expiration." Personal service and public notice go hand in hand in protecting the rights of every citizen. In spite of loose statements the record proves the efficiency efficien-cy of government executives. The fact that any wrong act becomes suddenly important shows the integrity of the dominant dom-inant majority of those elected to public office. Without these men of honesty and patriotism in high office you and I would not be enjoying our American form of government today. These types of executives in government are the very men who wrote into our laws definite requirements for "legal notice." It is protection against the exceptional fraudulent act. You and I have heard claims of "economy." To open the doors to misconduct of office is never a "saving" nor does it matter to you and me if malfeasance is chargeable to lack of judgment or to lack of integrity or honesty. There are many examples in our own experience where large losses to government units could have been prevented through proper "legal notice." If a city council had "wasted" a small sum of money at regular periods for publication of expense and income, and you or I noticed that our payment did not appear in the list, there would be a "show down" promptly. If you or I had sold to the city anything and found it listed at a higher price than we received, thv.:e would be quick reckoning. Any city has several hundred self-appointed auditors at work within an hour after the paper is out. Any error, any oversight will come to light. The entire procedure protects the honest executive, and also you and me. Are you interested in your newspaper only as a means of protecting good government? You or not but why? (To be continued) |